Season Review: 2016-17 Michigan Men's Golf
6/8/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
• Seniors: Bryce Evon, Reed Hrynewich and Tom Swanson (no captains)
• Record: 87-67-2 overall, 21-18-1 Big Ten Conference
• Big Ten Tournament: 9th (878)
• NCAA Regional: 10th (886)
"Our team took another important step forward. We had some incredible leadership by our three seniors who really set the tone for the season. The team identity that developed was all about attitude and good preparation. They played the right way and expected to play well every time out. These guys love the game and want to be great. We will continue to build as a program every year by enhancing our positive team culture, developing our hard-working players and adding more and more young, talented recruits. The 2016-17 team did a great job of raising the expectations and setting the path for the future." -- U-M head coach Chris Whitten
Paced by the trio of junior Kyle Mueller, sophomore Nick Carlson and senior Reed Hrynewich, the University of Michigan men's golf team earned its third straight trip to the NCAA postseason, posted two team wins and had four Wolverines take home medalist honors. U-M finished the regular season with five top-five team finishes, including titles at the Dayton Flyer Invitational (Oct. 17-18) and the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (March 4-5). In the postseason, the Wolverines closed ninth at the Big Ten Championships and continued their postseason with a third straight visit to an NCAA Regional. Playing at Washington's Aldarra Golf Club, the Maize and Blue finished 10th to end its season.
Team Highlights
• In 13 total events in 2016-17, Michigan posted five top-three finishes, with two team titles -- the Dayton Flyer Invitational (Oct. 17-18) and the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate (March 4-5). The Wolverines added four individual medalists and one individual runner-up and posted the third-lowest team scoring average of all-time with a 291.12 tally.
• Kyle Mueller was honored by the Big Ten with his third straight All-Big Ten selection and second straight first-team accolade. He became just the second Wolverine in program history to earn three All-Big Ten honors, joining Michael Harris, who was a three-time first teamer (1998-2000). Mueller earned second-team honors as a freshman (2015) and now has back-to-back years of first-team selections (2016 & 2017).
• Using four individual sub-par rounds, Michigan posted a 270 (-14) final round at the Inverness Intercollegiate (Sept. 19-20) to lower the program single-round record by two shots. U-M topped the 272 (-12) tallied in the first round of the 2015 MacKenzie (Oct. 12-13, 2015) to set a new program mark. Overall, it is just the seventh double-digit under-par team total in U-M history. In addition, the record round shattered the event's single-round record by seven, which was posted by Duke (277) in the tournament's first round.
Individual Highlights
• Kyle Mueller improved upon his already stellar U-M career, breaking his own single-season scoring record with a 71.36 per-round average. He is the only golfer in program history to close a season with a sub-72 average. In his 13 starts, he posted six top-10 finishes and was the medalist at the Windon Memorial (Sept. 25-26) as well as at the rain-shortened Aggie Invitational (April 1-2). He led U-M with 17 sub-par rounds in his 33 total on the season with 10 sub-70 rounds. With a perfect 3-0 record at the Big Ten Match Play Championship, he improved his career record to 9-1. Earning All-Big Ten first team honors for a second straight year, Mueller also was named the GCAA PING Division I All-Midwest Region team for a third consecutive season.
• Nick Carlson continued his stellar play following his 2016 summer run at the U.S. Amateur Championships. Starting all 13 events, he won his first collegiate event after a playoff win at the season-opening Inverness Intercollegiate (Sept. 19-20). He followed that nearly a month later tying with teammate Ian Kim for low medalist honors at the Dayton Flyer Invitational (Oct. 17-18). Carlson lost in a playoff to teammate Ian Kim for the overall individual trophy. He posted a career-best 72.53 scoring average and set career lows for a single round (67, -4 in third round at Inverness), 36-hole tournament (142, Dayton) and 54-hole tournament (209, -4, Inverness).
• Reed Hrynewich saved his best for last as he averaged a career-best 73.65 per round in his final season. He started 12 events before injury kept his from the NCAA Regional. He highlighted the season with a runner-up finish at the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate, smashing his prior career-best 54-hole event total by seven shots (209, -7). Along the way, he fired a career-best 66 (-6) in the second round and helped the Wolverines to their second team win on the season. Hrynewich closed his career starting 40 of 41 tournaments.
• Tom Swanson closed his four-year career starting 10 of his 12 events in his final season. He posted a 75.58 per-round average and tied his career-best 54-hole tournament total with a 212 (-4) at the Desert Mountain Intercollegiate. He went a perfect 3-0 in Big Ten Match Play, helping him close his career with a 7-6 record. He closed his career starting 32 of 37 tournaments.
Honors and Awards
Nick
Carlson
Bryce
Evon
Reed
Hrynewich
Kyle
Mueller
Tom
Swanson
Team Titles
Dayton Flyer Invitational (Oct. 17-18, 2016)
Desert Mountain Invitational (March 4-5, 2017)
Medalists
Nick Carlson, Inverness Intercollegiate (Sept. 19-20, 2016)
Kyle Mueller, Windon Memorial (Sept. 25-26, 2016)
Ian Kim & Nick Carlson, Dayton Flyer Invitational (Oct. 17-18, 2016)
Kyle Mueller, The Aggie Invitational (April 1-2, 2017)
GCAA Division I PING All-Midwest Region
Nick Carlson
Kyle Mueller
All-Big Ten First Team
Kyle Mueller
Big Ten Sportsmanship Award
Reed Hrynewich
Big Ten Golfer of the Week
Kyle Mueller (March 1, 2017 & Sept. 28, 2016)
Reed Hrynewich (March 8, 2017)
Ian Kim (Oct. 19, 2016)
Nick Carlson (Sept. 21, 2016)
Preseason Big Ten Golfers to Watch
Nick Carlson
Reed Hrynewich
Kyle Mueller
GCAA Academic All-America
Bryce Evon
Kyle Mueller
Tom Swanson
Academic All-Big Ten
Bryce Evon
Reed Hrynewich
Kyle Mueller
Tom Swanson
U-M Academic Achievement
Bryce Evon (High Honors)
Reed Hrynewich
Kyle Mueller
Taisei Negishi
Tom Swanson
U-M's Bert Katzenmeyer Award (Low Scoring Average)
Kyle Mueller, 71.36 - new program record
U-M's Tom Trueblood Award (Most Improved)
Nick Carlson
U-M's Jim Carras Award (Development Throughout Season)
Bryce Evon
Communications Contact: Tom Wywrot
Players Mentioned
