Buckeyes Close Out Their Season With a 13th Place Finish at the NCAA Championships

May 27, 2019

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2018-19 Schedule
2019 NCAA Championships Notes/Stats

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.—The Buckeyes closed out their remarkable 2018-19 season with a 13th place finish in the NCAA Championships at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Ohio State put together a 72-hole score of 1,201 to close out the tournament 49-over par and just four spots out of the eight team match play. The squad played outstanding golf in the latter part of the season, finishing second at the Irish Creek Intercollegiate, winning the Robert Kepler Intercollegiate, and shooting 20-under as the No. 8 seed in the NCAA Myrtle Beach Regional to place second and advance to the NCAA Championships. The senior quartet of Daniel Wetterich, Will Grimmer, Caleb Ramirez, and Will Voetsch played inspired golf down the stretch and outperformed all expectations to be competing in the final round of stroke play of the NCAA Championships.

Daniel Wetterich closed out his collegiate career with an impressive 19th place finish, shooting 293 (71-74-74-74) to card a 72 hole score of five-over. The senior led Ohio State from wire to wire, helping to carry this team, that was the lowest ranked school in the 30 team field, to the final day. He played another steady round of golf as the wind started to kick up and cause problems at Blessings Golf Club in the final 18 holes. After two opening bogeys, he righted the ship with six pars and a birdie to finish the back nine one-over par. He birdied hole one and followed up with six pars and two bogeys to close out his round with a two-over 74. Wetterich caps off a season in which he led the team with a 71.83 scoring average, earned first team All-Big Ten honors, and picked up his first collegiate victory.

The lone underclassman of the group, Laken Hinton, showed his experience in the NCAA Championships finishing 13-over to tie for 43rd place. Hinton had trouble with the course as did the entire field but battled back numerous times to shoot 301 (77-71-78-75) and contribute four scores to the team tally. He battled on the back nine and made the turn three-over. After a triple bogey on the first hole, Hinton found his groove and birdied three of his next four holes to save his round and walk into the tent with a three-over 75. The sophomore transferred in from Augusta University after the fall semester and quickly carved out a spot in the starting lineup, with his most notable finish coming at the NCAA Myrtle Beach Regional where he shot two-under to finish 14th.

Will Grimmer was the next best finisher for Ohio State, ending his collegiate career with a 15-over 303 to come in 53rd place. The senior showed flashes of brilliance that he has put on display all year but the championship course proved a difficult task to manage for all four days. Grimmer posted a final round 81 to go with a pair of 72s and a 78 to finish his decorated career in the Scarlet and Gray. The Cincinnati native played exceptional golf in his senior campaign, collecting six top-10 finishes, his second career victory, and spots on the watchlist for the Fred Haskins and Ben Hogan awards. Most notably he will compete as a member of the United States Arnold Palmer Cup team in June and received a sponsor’s exemption to play in the PGA Tour Memorial Tournament later this week with many of the best players in the world.

Caleb Ramirez finished his NCAA Championships at 20-over par with a final round 77. His 72 hole score of 308 (77-73-81-77) netted him a share of 68th place and contributed three scores to the team. Ramirez had the best season of his career this year, shaving over one and a half strokes off of his previous low scoring average to move to 72.66 in his final season and earning three top-10 finishes.

Senior Will Voetsch rounded out the starting five for Ohio State, turning in a 28-over 316 (77-81-78-80) to finish tied for 79th. Voetsch has played strong in the four spot for the Scarlet and Gray all season, setting a career low at the NCAA Myrtle Beach Regional and finishing inside the top-10 in three of his last four tournaments prior to the NCAA Championships.

Ohio State had the best season in recent memory, winning three tournaments and posting five top-3 finishes on the season. They made the NCAA Myrtle Beach Regional as the No. 8 seed and had their best regional finish of second place since 1990 to make the NCAA Championships for the first time since 2011.

RESULTS