Sept. 2, 2008
FARMINGTON, Pa. - The opening weekend of the 2008-09 golf season was a successful one for the Purdue Boilermakers as the men's team won the Rutherford Intercollegiate by a 15-stroke margin.
Purdue overcame a nine-stroke disadvantage after 18 holes, storming back over the Labor Day weekend to post the program's first team victory since March 20, 2007, at the Western Intercollegiate in Santa Cruz, Calif.
Purdue followed Monday's 288, even-par round with a tournament-clinching 285, three-under. The Boilermakers' back-to-back rounds of even and minus-three were the best two rounds registered by any participating team in the field.
On the individual side, Purdue's Nakarintra Ratanakul took the first place prize with a three-round total of 211, firing a 73 on the final day - his only round above par for the weekend. Ratanakul shot a 70 on the first day and a tournament-best 68 on Day Two. His minus-five for the 54-hole tournament was five strokes better than second place.
Purdue placed a pair of freshmen among the tournament's top 10 finishers as William Sjaichudin tied for third at plus-two for the weekend and Tyler Duncan shot a plus-four tournament, tying for sixth.
Senior Tom Olvier finished tied for 24th at 11-over and sophomore Maximo Kopp rounded out the Boilermaker squad with a plus-13 weekend, finishing tied for 34th.
Of the 66 golfers competing in the Rutherford Intercollegiate, shooting a total of 198 rounds of golf, the Boilermaker fivesome accounted for five of the 17 rounds fired below the par-72.