GLENVIEW, Ill. – Northwestern junior David Merkow said he took a “grind it out” mindset into Monday’s first two rounds of the Big Ten/Pac-10 Challenge at The Glen Club.
His strategy paid off as he finished the day tied for fourth at 3-under par, just two shots back of leader Niklas Lemke of Arizona State.
Led by Merkow, the Wildcats are tied with Ohio State for third place with a 1-under 575 heading into today’s final round. NU sits two strokes behind Arizona State and Minnesota.
Merkow’s mental approach was tested late in his second round after a wild tee shot on the 14th hole.
Merkow’s drive landed on the tee box of the 17th hole, but he salvaged a bogey to drop to even-par on the day.
As Merkow said, he “plugged along” and made a par on 15. And then the junior made a run.
On the 16th hole, Merkow made a 25-foot birdie putt, which was followed up with a 35-foot birdie on 17. He finished off back-to-back-to-back birdies with an up-and-down on the par-five 18th hole, putting him in a tie for fourth with a 3-under 141.
“I hadn’t been playing too well before (Monday),” Merkow said. “But I stayed positive on my putting, and it turned out well.”
Coach Pat Goss said he was satisfied with the way the Cats finished but thought there was room for improvement.
“Everyone contributed, so that was important,” Goss said. “But if I had to describe the day, I would have to say that it was solidly unspectacular.”
NU finished the first round in first place, holding a one-shot advantage over the Buckeyes.
But the Cats fell back into the pack after a 1-over 289 in the second round.
Junior Chris Wilson had some troubles of his own on his drive on the 16th hole. With some help from his parents tracking down the shot in the deep rough. He found the ball and blasted it out to within five feet of the hole.
Wilson saved par and went on to finish with a 2-under 70 after a bogey-free second round with two birdies and 16 pars.
One stroke behind Merkow, Wilson is tied for eighth with a 2-under 142.
“Starting the day, if you told me that I would shoot 2-under, I would have definitely been satisfied,” Wilson said. “But I didn’t play great. I salvaged a good round in the morning even with five bogeys, and I had a steady afternoon.”
Sophomore Dan Doyle finished the first round in a tie for fourth place after a 2-under 70, but he struggled in the second round with a 3-over 75 to drop into a tie for 20th.
Senior Bryson Young experienced some problems of his own in his two rounds. He double-bogeyed and triple-bogeyed the finishing hole, and after his eight on the 18th hole, Young chucked his ball into the pond.
“I made too many little mistakes,” Young said. “I have to work on my putting. The fastest way to frustrate yourself is with bad putting. I left a lot of shots on the course.”
Senior Dillon Dougherty ended in a tie for 28th place with a 3-over 147. Sophomore Kyle Moore, who was competing as an individual, sits in a tie for 63rd with a 12-over 156.
The Cats will play the final 18 holes Tuesday at the Glen Club following the conclusion of the second round, which was halted Monday because of darkness.
“I was worried that we were going the wrong way on the leaderboard, but I was proud with our finish,” Goss said. “It gave us a real good opportunity to win this tournament.”
Reach Scott Duncan at [email protected].
