Sept. 17, 2006
Gopher Invitational Final Results in PDF Format
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WAYZATA, Minn. – Playing in cool, blustery conditions that sent scores skyrocketing, the Notre Dame men’s golf team wrapped up its first tournament of the 2006-07 season on Sunday afternoon with a ninth-place finish at the Gopher Invitational on the Spring Hill Golf Club (par 72/7,020 yards) in Wayzata, Minn. The Irish, who opened the day in seventh place, shot a final-round 310 and wound up the 12-team event at 54-over par 918 (313-295-310), with Stanford rallying on the final day for a five-shot victory over tournament host Minnesota. The strong winds were the story of the weekend, as only one team broke 300 in either the first or third rounds, with the average team score on Sunday being 19-over par 307 (marked by only one player in the 66-man field breaking par in the final round).
Senior All-America candidate/co-captain Cole Isban (South Bend, Ind./Mishawaka Marian) and sophomore Josh Sandman (Greensboro, N.C./Southeast Guilford) ended up among a four-way tie for 19th place at 11-over par 227 in their 2006 openers — Isban shot rounds of 79-72-76, while Sandman carded scores of 75-77-75. For Isban, it’s his seventh top-20 finish in the past 13 tournaments, while Sandman collected his third top-20 placement in six career college events.
Freshman Doug Fortner (Tustin, Calif./Foothill) and junior Mike King (Sidney, Ohio/Sidney) appeared to have the most difficulty adjusting to the winds on Sunday, finishing tied for 43rd place at 20-over par 236. Fortner was Notre Dame’s top individual through two rounds, but a final-round 86 took some luster off his first two rounds of 79 and 71. Meanwhile, King completed his weekend with rounds of 80-75-81. Senior co-captain Adam Gifford (Plymouth, Ind./Plymouth) displayed steady improvement in each of his three rounds at the Gopher Invitational, going to the clubhouse in 59th place at 27-over par 243 (85-80-78).
Notre Dame returns to action Oct. 9-10 when it plays host to the inaugural Fighting Irish Gridiron Golf Classic at the Warren Golf Course, located on the north side of the Notre Dame campus. It will be the first regular-season home tournament for the Irish since the 2004 Notre Dame Invitational/Central Regional Preview, with some of the other schools in the 12-team field including Lamar (the ’06 NCAA ninth-place finisher), Augusta State (the ’04 NCAA Central Regional champion at the Warren Golf Course), and Baylor (22nd in the final 2006 Golfweek rankings). Live in-progress scoring will be available via the Golfstat web site, with results also provided on the official Notre Dame athletics web site (www.und.com), the Notre Dame Sports Hotline (574-631-3000) and the Irish ALERT text message system (sign up on the men’s golf page of the Notre Dame athletics web site).
— ND —
Gopher Invitational
Sept. 16-17, 2006 — Wayzata, Minn.
Spring Hill Golf Club (par 72/7,020 yards)
FINAL TEAM RESULTS (54-hole totals): 1. Stanford 889 (301-291-297); 2. Minnesota 894 (303-287-304); 3. SMU 896 (298-294-304); 4. Michigan State 900 (306-289-305); 5. Lamar 902 (304-295-303); 6. Indiana 908 (300-295-313); 7. Northwestern 915 (314-300-301); 8. Ohio State 916 (303-307-306); 9. NOTRE DAME 918 (313-295-310); 10. Georgia Southern 924 (311-307-306); 11. Denver 939 (318-310-311); 12. Finland 967 (326-315-326).
TOP SIX INDIVIDUALS PLUS NOTRE DAME FINISHES (of 66): 1. (tie) Colt Knost (SMU) 214 (71-67-76) and Zack Miller (Stanford) 214 (71-71-72); 3. Bronson LaCassie (Minnesota) 215 (73-69-73); 4. Matt Harmon (Michigan State) 217 (72-74-71); 5. (tie) Jorge Campillo (Indiana) 220 (72-73-75) and Brandon DeStefano (SMU) 220 (72-74-74); 19. (tie) Cole Isban (Notre Dame) 227 (79-72-76) and Josh Sandman (Notre Dame) 227 (75-77-75); 43. (tie) Doug Fortner (Notre Dame) 236 (79-71-86) and Mike King (Notre Dame) 236 (80-75-81); 59. Adam Gifford (Notre Dame) 243 (85-80-78).