University of Minnesota Athletics
Players Mentioned
Gopher Trio Honored by Big Ten Again
8/28/2019 11:24:00 AM | Men's Golf
MINNEAPOLIS – For the second straight season, the Minnesota trio of senior Thomas Longbella and juniors Angus Flanagan and Evan Long were among the 42 student-athletes named to the Big Ten Men's Golf Preseason Honorees.
Flanagan is coming off a sophomore season where he was named to the Division I PING Midwest All-Region team, All-Big Ten Second Team and to the Big Ten All-Championship Team after sharing individual honors at the 2019 Big Ten Championship.
By winning a share of the Big Ten title, Flanagan earned a spot as an individual at the NCAA Regional in Austin, Texas. He finished in a five-way tie for 20th with a 4-over-par 217 which was the best showing by a Gopher at an NCAA Regional since Jose Mendez tied for ninth at the Raleigh Regional in 2014.
On the season, Flanagan participated in nine of the team's 10 tournaments and recorded 2,150 strokes over 30 rounds, good for a scoring average of 71.67. Not only did that lead the team by nearly two strokes, it ranked as the third best in program history for one season. Only former NCAA champion James McLean had lower season averages in 1998-99 (70.89) and 1997-98 (71.39).
Long competed in nine of 10 events last season for Minnesota and tallied a season scoring average of 73.74, which was third best on the team. He was also third on the squad by leading the team in tournaments two times, tying for 11th at the season-opening Gopher Invitational and the Furman Intercollegiate.
He had a career-best round at the Hawkeye Invitational with a 2-under-par 69 in the opening round, while Long's 54-hole total of 214 and final score of 1-over-par were also career bests.
Longbella, an All-America Scholar who appears on the preseason list for the third straight year, finished fourth on the team last year with a scoring average of 73.92 as he tallied 1,774 strokes over 24 rounds in eight tournaments for the Gophers. He also tied for second on the team in rounds under par (5) and tied for third in top-20 finishes (2).
Longbella's best finish of the season came in the Hawkeye Invitational when he tied for 16th and posted a season-best score of 3-under par. His opening round 68 was his best 18-hole score by stroke and relative to par. His other top-20 finish last season came in the season opening Gopher Invitational when he tied for 18th.
Ten tournaments during the regular season highlight the Minnesota men's golf team's 2019-20 schedule, the first under new head coach Justin Smith. The 2019 fall season begins Sept. 8-9 with the 15th annual Gopher Invitational at Windsong Farm Golf Club.
Flanagan is coming off a sophomore season where he was named to the Division I PING Midwest All-Region team, All-Big Ten Second Team and to the Big Ten All-Championship Team after sharing individual honors at the 2019 Big Ten Championship.
By winning a share of the Big Ten title, Flanagan earned a spot as an individual at the NCAA Regional in Austin, Texas. He finished in a five-way tie for 20th with a 4-over-par 217 which was the best showing by a Gopher at an NCAA Regional since Jose Mendez tied for ninth at the Raleigh Regional in 2014.
On the season, Flanagan participated in nine of the team's 10 tournaments and recorded 2,150 strokes over 30 rounds, good for a scoring average of 71.67. Not only did that lead the team by nearly two strokes, it ranked as the third best in program history for one season. Only former NCAA champion James McLean had lower season averages in 1998-99 (70.89) and 1997-98 (71.39).
Long competed in nine of 10 events last season for Minnesota and tallied a season scoring average of 73.74, which was third best on the team. He was also third on the squad by leading the team in tournaments two times, tying for 11th at the season-opening Gopher Invitational and the Furman Intercollegiate.
He had a career-best round at the Hawkeye Invitational with a 2-under-par 69 in the opening round, while Long's 54-hole total of 214 and final score of 1-over-par were also career bests.
Longbella, an All-America Scholar who appears on the preseason list for the third straight year, finished fourth on the team last year with a scoring average of 73.92 as he tallied 1,774 strokes over 24 rounds in eight tournaments for the Gophers. He also tied for second on the team in rounds under par (5) and tied for third in top-20 finishes (2).
Longbella's best finish of the season came in the Hawkeye Invitational when he tied for 16th and posted a season-best score of 3-under par. His opening round 68 was his best 18-hole score by stroke and relative to par. His other top-20 finish last season came in the season opening Gopher Invitational when he tied for 18th.
Ten tournaments during the regular season highlight the Minnesota men's golf team's 2019-20 schedule, the first under new head coach Justin Smith. The 2019 fall season begins Sept. 8-9 with the 15th annual Gopher Invitational at Windsong Farm Golf Club.
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