University of Minnesota Athletics
Field Announced for Fifth Annual Gopher Invite
8/31/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
The University of Minnesota men's golf program announced the participating teams for the 2009 Gopher Invitational. The fifth annual event will take place at Spring Hill Golf Club in Wayzata, Minn., on Sept. 13-14. The first and second round will be played consecutively on Sunday, beginning with a shotgun start at 8:30 a.m. Tee times for Monday's final round will begin at 8 a.m. The event is free to the public.
The field features 12 teams from 10 different collegiate conferences. The Big Ten Conference has the biggest representation, as the host Minnesota Golden Gophers are joined by the University of Iowa and the University of Wisconsin. The Hawkeyes are making their second consecutive appearance in the Gopher Invitational while the Badgers are back at the par 72, 7,020-yard Tom Fazio designed layout for a third consecutive year. Wisconsin finished runner-up in the 2007 event.
Southern Methodist University is making its fifth consecutive visit to the Gopher Invite while Lamar University is back after taking home the team title in 2007. Rounding out the field are Arkansas (second appearance), Notre Dame (fourth appearance) and UNC Wilmington (second appearance) along with Miami (Ohio), Northern Iowa, UNC Charlotte and UNC Greensboro - all of which are making their first trip to the Gopher Invitational.
In its short tenure, the Gopher Invitational has been an excellent barometer of future success in that season's NCAA Championships. Minnesota won the inaugural Gopher Invitational in 2005 and went on to finish third in the 2006 NCAA Championships the next spring. The Stanford Cardinal edged the Gophers in 2006 and went on to capture the NCAA Championship.
Minnesota finished runner-up at the 2009 Big Ten Championships and was awarded a spot in the NCAA Northeast Regional. In eight seasons under the guidance of Director of Golf Brad James and Associate Head Coach Andrew Tank, Minnesota has finished first or second at the Big Ten Championships five times, including three titles (2002, 2003, 2007) and finished no worse than fourth.
Also, the Gophers have advanced to regional play in all but one season under James, winning the 1999 Central Region with a score of 865. Minnesota has advanced through the regional into the NCAA Championships nine times since 1993 and captured the 2002 NCAA title in Columbus, Ohio with a score of 1134.
The 2009-10 Gophers will be led by senior Ben Pisani. A Second Team All-Big Ten performer as a junior, Pisani led the Gophers in the fall and spring seasons in stroke average at 73.57 and 72.58, respectively. His combined stroke average of 73.11 tied him for the 19th-lowest in the history of Minnesota golf and is the lowest in the three seasons he has been at the U.
Also returning are sophomore Derek Chang and senior Thomas Campbell. Chang played in 10 events during his freshman campaign and finished with a stroke average of 74.22, the third lowest on the team. Campbell played in eight events and recorded a stroke average of 75.28, the lowest of his Gopher career.
Team capsules for the Fifth Annual Gopher Invitational are below.
University of Arkansas - Coached by Brad McMakin (4th year at Arkansas)... finished ninth in the 2008 Gopher Invite...tied for second at the 2007 Gopher Invite... tied for third following the stroke play portion of NCAA Championships... defeated Washington in the first round of match-play... defeated Georgia in the second round of match-play...lost to Texas A&M in the finals of the match-play... garnered 11 top-five finishes during the season including two wins and five runner-up finishes... finished second at the NCAA Central regional... finished second at the SEC Championships. Top returning players: David Lingmerth (Senior)...led the team with a 73.13 stroke average in 2008-09... finished in a tie for 23rd individually at 2009 NCAA Championships...made it to the quarterfinal round of the 2009 U.S. Amateur...tied for second in the 2008 Gopher Invitational...Ethan Tracy (Sophomore)...second on the team with a 74.0 stroke average in 2008-09... finished in a tie for 27th individually at 2009NCAA Championships.
University of Iowa - Coached by Mark Hankins (3rd year at Iowa)...second straight appearance in the Gopher Invite field...one of three Big Ten Conference teams in the field...finished fourth in the 2008 Gopher Invitational...finished 17th in the stroke play portion of NCAA Championships... finished fifth at the 2009 NCAA Southeast Regional...finished sixth at the 2009 Big Ten Championships...team collected four top-five finishes on the season, including the team title at the 2008 Landfall Tradition. Top returning players: Vince India (Junior)...holds a career scoring record of 73.8...also holds the second-lowest 18-hole score in school history (64)...Brad Hopfinger (Junior)...finished his sophomore season with a 74.1 stroke average.
Lamar University - coached by Brian White (10th year at Lamar)...third appearance in the Gopher Invite field...won the 2007 Gopher Invitational team title...finished fifth in the 2006 Gopher Invitational...finished sixth in the 2009 Southwest Regional...have made nine-straight NCAA Regional appearances...won the 2009 Southland Conference Championship for the fourth consecutive season. Top returning player: Hugues Joannes (Senior)...participated as an individual in the 2009 NCAA Championships, finishing in a tie for 54th.
Miami (Ohio) - coached by Casey Lubahn (2nd year at Miami)...first appearance in Gopher Invite field...finished seventh at the 2009 MAC Championships...collected four top-five finishes on the season, including winning the team title at the Georgetown Intercollegiate...also finished second twice, the Lonnie Barton Invitational and the Ball State Cardinal Collegiate. Top returning players: Nathan Sutherland (Junior)...finished his sophomore campaign with a team-best 74.97 stroke average...Craig Voorhees (Senior)...finished junior season with a 75.00 stroke average, second-lowest on the team.
University of Northern Iowa - Coached by John Bermel (12th year at Northern Iowa)...first appearance in Gopher Invite field...collected two top-10 finishes during the 2008 Fall Season...finished eighth at the 2009 MVC Championships. Top returning players: Tyler Johnson (Senior)...led the team with a 75.2 stroke average in 2008-09...Troy Hoffman (Senior)...finished second on the team with a 76.1 stroke average last season...only Panther to appear in all nine of the team's tournaments.
University of Notre Dame - Coached by Jim Kubinski (6th year at Notre Dame)... fourth appearance in Gopher Invite field... finished fifth in the 2005, ninth in the 2006 and third in the 2007...recorded three top-five finishes during the 2008-09 season...finished fourth at the 2009 Big East Championships. Top returning players: Max Scodro (Sophomore)...collected four top-10 finishes as a freshman, the most for a freshman at Notre Dame since 1968...finished third on the team with a 74.72 stroke average...Doug Fortner (Senior)... a two-time All-Big East performer... posted a team-best 74.24 stroke average...tied for second at the 2009 Big East Championships.
UNC Charlotte - coached by Adam Pry (2nd year at UNC Charlotte)...first appearance in the Gopher Invite field...won the 2009 Atlantic 10 Championship, the school's fourth straight conference title...tied for seventh at the 2009 NCAA Regional. Top returning players: Corey Nagy (Senior)...was the 2009 Atlantic 10 Championship medalist...tied for fourth at the NCAA Regional...tied for 38th at the NCAA Championships...finished with a team-best 73.28 stroke average...owns a school-record 72.51 career stroke average...Paul Ferrier (Sophomore)...finished the season with a 74.75 stroke average, the second lowest for return players.
UNC Greensboro - coached by Terrance Stewart (9th year at UNC Greensboro)...first appearance in the Gopher Invite field...finished eighth at the 2009 Southern Conference Championships...secured three top-five finishes on the season, including a third place finish at the Lacrosse Homes Collegiate. Top returning players: Will Bowman (Senior)...a 2009 All-Southern Conference performer... led the team with a 73.71 stroke average...Drew Younts (Senior)...was second on the team with a 75.06 stroke average.
UNC Wilmington - coached by Matt Clark (2nd year at Wilmington)...second appearance in the Gopher Invite field...finished 11th in the inaugural invite...recorded seven top-10 finishes during the 2008-09 season, including a second place finish in the Kauai Collegiate Invitational...finished in a tie for 4th place at the 2009 CAA Championships. Top returning players: Josh Brock (Junior)... led the team with a 73.0 stroke average...competed as an individual in the NCAA Southeast Regional and finished in a tie for 60th place...was part of the 2009 U.S. Open field at Bethpage Black...Derek Wallace (Senior)...second on the team with a 73.5 stroke average...finished in 6th place individually at the 2009 CAA Championships.
Southern Methodist University - coached by Jay Loar (12th year at Southern Methodist)...have appeared in all four Gopher Invitational's...finished 10th in 2008, ninth in 2007, third in 2006 and 10th in 2005...finished second at the 2009 Conference USA Championships. Top returning players: Kelly Kraft (Junior)...two-time First Team All-Conference USA selection...held a team-best stroke average of 72.25 in 2008-09...James Kwon (Sophomore)...named Second Team All-Conference USA as well as All-Freshman honors...was second on the team with a 73.28 stroke average.
University of Wisconsin - coached by Jim Schuman (6th year at Wisconsin)... third appearance in the Gopher Invite field...finished fifth in 2008 and second in 2007...one of three Big Ten Conference teams in the field...finished 10th at the 2009 Big Ten Championships... placed sixth or better in five tournaments, including a second place finish at the St. Mary's Invitational. Top returning player: Jordan Elsen (Senior)...posted a 75.17 stroke average in 2008-09, the lowest amongst returners...best finish was a tie for third place finish at the St. Mary's Invite.
