Heading into the weekend, each of the 14 golf teams in the Illini Spring Classic saw the forecast and knew that the tournament was going to be a battle against the weather as much as it would be against the competition. Ultimately, Mother Nature won the battle as cold weather and high winds delayed the start of Saturday's scheduled 36 holes, forcing the tournament to be cut from 54 holes to just 36, with Saturday's final 18 completed on Sunday morning.
After struggling in the opening round, Wisconsin recovered from an opening +34 322 to post a second round total of +4 292, the second best final round total in the event. The Badgers' strong finish allowed them to leapfrog Xavier and Creighton, resulting in a twelfth place finish at 38-over-par, just a stroke behind top-50 teams from Purdue and Michigan.
""From a team standpoint, some great things happened out there today,"" sophomore Chris Meyer said after Sunday's round. ""Guys stepped up and rebounded from a tough start in adverse conditions.""
On the individual side, sophomore Thomas Welk led the way, posting a 36 hole total of 4-over-par 148, good for a T13 finish in the event. Welk and freshman Stephane Dubois both posted 1-under-par 71's in the tournament's final round, allowing Welk to jump 15 spots on the leaderboard with Dubois moving up 18.
Welk's tie for thirteenth is the highest finish by a Badger individual thus far in the season and his 36 hole total is just one stroke off his career low of 147, a remarkable number considering this weekend's conditions in the host city of Urbana.
Another freshman, Robbie Jacobsen, recovered from a difficult first round finish to post a final round 73, a new individual career low.
Fresh off this encouraging finish, the Badgers will head to Columbus, Ohio this weekend for the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate at Ohio State's famed Scarlet Course. With another strong field scheduled to compete, the 36-hole event is the last test UW will face before the season-ending Big Ten Championships.
""Today's performance was a testament to what [our coaches] have been stressing all year,"" Meyer added. ""We expect only great things in our last two events this season.""
