BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The Purdue men’s golf team overcame a second-round withdrawal to finish third at the Big Ten-loaded Hoosier Collegiate at The Pfau Course in Bloomington.
Purdue fired a 28-over par 880 (293-288-299) to finish in third place behind No. 39 Kansas (+20) and No. 13 Illinois was second at 23-over par. The Boilermakers were third at 28-over par, nine shots ahead of Little Rock in fourth and 14 clear of Maryland in fifth.
Purdue finished second among the 10 Big Ten teams in the field, topping Maryland (14), Minnesota (15), No. 46 Northwestern (16), Ohio State (20), Rutgers (21), Michigan (23), Indiana (27) and Wisconsin (29) – all by at least 14 shots.
The Boilermakers will likely be the fourth seed at the upcoming Big Ten Championships that starts May 1, at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club just outside Portland, Oregon. Illinois (13), USC (26) and UCLA (33) are all currently ranked ahead of Purdue in the current national rankings.
The Boilermakers were forced to overcome adversity in Bloomington, as Kentaro Nanayama stepped in a hole late in the first round, forcing a second-round withdrawal yesterday and forcing the Boilermakers to play four-count four for the second round. Nanayama was leading at the time of injury with four holes to play. He played through pain in round three, accounting for a clutch scoring round that kept the Boilermakers in the the top three.
Sam Easterbrook continued his resurgent spring with a runner-up finish at 1-over par 214 (71-71-72). It marked his fifth top-10 finish of the season and third in four events this spring. He has eight career top-5 showings and his 14 career top-10 finishes are tied for the sixth most in Purdue history.
Freshman Will Harvey continues to play outstanding golf in the spring season, finishing tied for sixth at 4-over par 218 (73-68-76). Harvey, who was the co-leader after 36 holes, recorded his third top-10 finish and fifth top-20 showing of the season. Harvey has now finished T-16, T-4 and and T-6 in his last three outings.
Andre Zhu finished tied for 42nd at 15-over par 228 (74-71-83), while Supapon Amornchaichan was tied for 60th at 18-over par 231 (78-78-75).
Kentaro Nanayama shot rounds of 75 and 76 in the first and third rounds.
Playing as an individual, Jenson Forrester placed tied for 42nd at 15-over par 228 (78-74-76).
The Boilermakers will next play in the Big Ten Championships on May 1 through 3, in Oregon. Purdue is looking for its first Big Ten Championship since 1981.