Courtesy of Michigan Athletics
Behind medalist
Monet Chun, the 20th-ranked Michigan Wolverines won its first-ever Big Ten championship on Sunday at Fox Chapel Golf Club in Pittsburgh.
Michigan finished the tournament at 5-over 857 which was good for a four-shot win over rival Michigan State, as both teams carded 7-over rounds on their Sunday cards. Ohio State and Northwestern tied for third at 12-over.
Chun carded rounds of 70-66-69 to win the individual title with an 8-under score 205, four strokes clear of
Faith Choi of Ohio State. It was the first collegiate title for Chun, who became the second Michigan player to win the conference individual championship following Elodie Van Dievoet victory in 2017.
After firing a career-low round of 66 on Saturday, Chun took a two-stroke lead over Crystal Wang of Illinois into the final round. With six golfers with five strokes of the lead heading into Sunday's play, Chun took care of matters by carding a 2-under round of 69 to earn her first collegiate victory.
"There aren't enough words to really capture all my thoughts," said Chun. "However, for my first collegiate win to come at the Big Ten Championships, and the fact thatI was able to help this program win the first-ever team title is just so special. I feel so lucky."
"Monet's game has been so solid all year long, her scoring just wasn't reflecting that quite yet," said Michigan head coach Jan Dowling. "She stayed so patient all year long, kept believing and kept plugging away. It was her time, and boy did she embrace it. What a time to turn it on."
At 2-under 566 after 36-holes, the Wolverines took a four-stroke lead into the final round over Michigan State and Northwestern. Behind Chun's 69 and an even-par 72 by
Hailey Borja, Michigan didn't come back to the pack and had enough to secure the four-shot win.
"This was a total team effort, from Friday on through Sunday, and we knew that's what it would take," said Dowling. "It was quite the battle out there today. Tough pin positions, a tricky wind and great golf. The team was ready, and they embraced the entire week. We were also able to tap into our experiences from earlier this year which helped. I am so proud of this team for winning our very first Big Ten Championship for Michigan!"
Michigan will host one of the six regional sites at U-M Golf Course, May 9-11. The top four teams from each regional will advance to the NCAA Championships at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Michigan Athletic Communications contributed to this report.
ABOUT THE
Big Ten Women's Championship
54-hole stroke-play event to decide the women's
golf
champion of
the Big 10 Conference. Team (best four scores out
of
six players each round) and individual competitions.
View Complete Tournament Information