Men’s Golf

For the second straight event, Northwestern took home new hardware.

The Wildcats defeated Army 10.5-1.5 in the second annual Bush Cup on Friday, following up on their victory in the Marquette Invitational.

“It was another good step forward,” Coach David Inglis said. “This was a great competition and (the players) played really well.”

The match was played at the prestigious Medinah Country Club, which has played host to three U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships and the 2012 Ryder Cup.

“It was an awesome experience, and the course was in fabulous shape,” junior Dylan Wu said. “We got to play the same pins as the Ryder Cup four years ago, and the greenskeeper made (the course) really impeccable.”

Unlike many other competitions throughout the year, the Bush Cup used match play, meaning the golfers competed against one opponent hole-by-hole rather than competing against a field and shooting for the lowest total score.

The day began with four alternating-shot foursomes. NU won three and tied one, giving the Cats a commanding 3.5-0.5 lead heading into the eight head-to-head singles matches in the afternoon. NU continued to build on the momentum from the morning and rolled to victories in seven matches to seal the lopsided win.

“It was a tough day with having to play 36 holes, which is a lot of golf,” Wu said. “But we’re playing really well now as a team.”

Some matches, however, had dramatic finishes that were encouraged by the head-to-head format. Wu recounted how he and his morning partner, sophomore Pete Griffith, were forced to come up with great shots, rallying from two holes down after the 16th hole to win the last two and secure half a point.Senior Andrew Whalen staged a similarly dramatic comeback after he was down by two holes with just four remaining — he won three of the four, including a birdie on 18, to secure the whole point.

Although the final score may not have been close, the Bush Cup presented a unique experience for the Cats. The Cup is named after former president George H.W. Bush and was first held last year when Army tied Yale at Winged Foot Golf Club.

Inglis said the Bush Cup was an opportunity for NU to get to know more about the unique experiences of golfers at a service academy when the teams had dinner together after the match.

“Overall it was such a really cool experience to be a part of, and I think the guys will remember it for a really long time,” Inglis said.

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Twitter: @benjyapelbaum