Thorman Comes Stormin' Back To Claim Individual Title, Spalding Goes Back-to-Back
Posted: Apr 19, 2016

Thorman Comes Stormin' Back To Claim Individual Title, Spalding Goes Back-to-Back

RESULTS
 PHOTO GALLERY
HIGHLIGHT VIDEO

Tyler Thorman came storming back in round three to capture the 2016 SLIAC Individual title while Spalding University took home the team championship, making it back-to-back titles for the Golden Eagles.

Tyler Thorman

Thorman started the day in third place, two strokes back of leader Michael Vick from Spalding. However Thorman quickly showed he was capable of making a run early on when he birdied the opening hole. Thorman also showed resolve early on, fighting back from a bogey on hole four. After a par on the third hole Thorman made his move, starting with a birdie on six; something he did in each of his three rounds. Thorman took the lead on the seventh hole when he eagled the 530-yard hole. After a tee shot down the left side of the fairway Thorman put his second shot on the green, landing it blindly beyond a hill with the ball rolling just inches away from the hole. Thorman then birdied number eight and carried a 33 on his care into the back nine.

But on a day of ups and downs, Thorman would soon lose his lead as he bogeyed the first three holes of the back nine. That allowed Spalding's Michael Vick to grab control of the lead once again. Vick, who led each of the first two rounds, played a smart tournament with just 12 bogeys in his three rounds. Vick held steady on holes 12-16 and then birdied number 17 to take a one stroke lead into the final tee box.

With Thorman and Vick paired together in the final group the crowd patiently awaited their final approach on 18. Thorman ripped his tee shot down the middle and then calmly landed his second shot on the green. From there Thorman two putted for a par, leaving Vick with a putt for the win. Vick however hit his par putt left, tapping in for a bogey and sending the two players to a playoff.

The duo retraced their steps back to the tee box on 18 where both players hit their drives into the water. With no harm done, Vick played his ball up the left side while Thorman went to the right of the green. Thorman was the first to reach the green, hitting off the cart path and landing the ball within 10 feet of the hole. Vick reached the green on his next shot and it would come down to a putting contest for the 2016 SLIAC Individual Title. Thorman ended up putting in for championship as his teammates cheered him on.

Thorman finished the three round event with a 219, shooting a tournament low 70 in round two. Vick would finish with the identical 219 score, placing second. Spalding's Jonathon Gandia earned his second straight top three finish, shooting a 223. Teammates Jon Hughes and Max Earnst tied for fourth overall with a 225, as Ernst also grabbed 2016 SLIAC Newcomer of the Year honors.

Spalding claimed the 2016 SLIAC Team Championship with a team score of 891, leading after each of the three rounds. Anthony Irwin added a sixth place finish for the Golden Eagles with a 227, while Hunt Lenz finished eighth with a 230, and Brandon Sanner tied for tenth with a 233; giving the Golden Eagles five players in the top ten.

Webster also placed all five players in the top ten, finishing second in the team score with an 895. Will Murphy shot a 228 to place seventh and Justin Onken shot a 233 to tie for tenth in the field.

Iowa Wesleyan took third place with a 944 with Michael Neff leading the way with a 232. Tanner Travis and Patrick Zielinski tied for a team low round of 74 in the tournament. Zielinski finished 13th while Travis tied for 15th.

MacMurray College took fourth place with a three round score of 949. Tarryn Link paced the Highlanders with a 233, including a 73 in the final round to highlight the day for MacMurray. Link finished tied for 10th in the field, picking up All-Conference honors.

Fontbonne University made the field's biggest improvement on day two, cutting their strokes down by nearly 20 from the first two rounds. The Griffins finished round three with a 312, totaling a 974 for the tournament. Michael Kanan led the way with a 237, tying for 15th place.

Blackburn College took sixth in the tournament with a 983. The Beavers were unable to keep up with their opening round score of 321, as they saw their team score increase in each round. The Beavers were led by Kyle Kesingel, who shot a 235 and placed 14th.

Westminster College shook off a rough round two to shoot their lowest round in the tournament since 2011. The Blue Jays cut 50 strokes off from the second round to the third round, shooting a 325 on the final day. Blake Stonecipher paced the team with a 251, finishing 28th overall in the field.

Eureka College showed improvements in the final round as well, shooting their tournament low 393. Tyler Nelson, coming back from a wrist injury that forced him to withdraw from round two, shot a team best 83 in the final round. Brody Hibbard led the Red Devils with a tournament score of 290, finishing 34th overall.