Led by senior Sam Chien's Sunday surge, Northwestern’s men’s golf team finished in third place at the Big Ten Tournament this weekend. Chien took Big Ten Silver at the conference's golf championship in French Lick, Ind. this weekend after vaulting himself to second place individually on the final day.
The tournament kicked off at the Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort on Friday, but the Wildcats found themselves in 10th place after the first round. Their score of 311 was three strokes worse than the trio of Minnestoa, Nebraska and Penn State, all of which finished the first round tied for seventh place.
As the weekend progressed, Northwestern initially jumped into sixth place with a score of 296 and then into fourth place after the third round with a score of 288. The Wildcats finished the tournament in third with a total team score of 1,186 (+34), behind first place Illinois (+23) and Indiana (+26).
The Wildcats’ charge to the top of the standings was assisted and complimented by Chien’s ascent to second place. Chien began Sunday in third place, eight strokes behind Luke Guthrie of Illinois, but quickly cut the gap between him in half with four birdies on the front nine. He finished the tournament at 1-under 287 and took home the silver medal for his efforts.
Fellow Northwestern senior Eric Chun finished in 10th place with a 9-over 297 total and sophomore Jack Perry ended play in 15th with an 11-over 299.
Junior Nick Losole and freshman Bennett Lavin finished 35th and 47th, respectively.
Now that Big Ten play is complete, the Wildcats await word from the NCAA regarding where and when it will play in the postseason.