No. 26 IU finishes 3rd against strong field

The No. 26 IU men’s golf team had another successful tournament weekend at the Olympia Fields/Illini Invitational in Olympia Fields, Ill. \nLed by the dazzling play of junior Jorge Campillo, the Hoosiers finished third at the invitational, just six strokes behind runner-up Texas and 13 strokes back from tournament champion Oklahoma State.\n“I made some tough putts, and I made the putts I really needed to hit,” Campillo said. “We played some really great teams out here, and it feels good to finish the way we did.”\nCampillo posted a three-round total of 204 (69-67-68) and finished second overall individually. Campillo was the only player in the entire field to shoot under par each of the three rounds, and his 204 total was the best of his IU career, giving him his second straight top-five finish of the year. \n“Jorge’s performance was the best collegiate performance I have ever witnessed,” IU coach Mike Mayer said. “To play how (Jorge) did on this course was just spectacular.”\nOklahoma State’s Rickie Fowler won the tournament, edging out Campillo by a single stroke. Fowler’s second round score of 63 was a course record and gave him the edge on Campillo going into the final round of the tournament. \nIU junior Seth Brandon went into the tournament coming off one of his best performance of the year, a second place individual finish at the Wolf Run Intercollegiate. This weekend at Olympia Fields, Brandon posted a three-round total of 220 (71-76-73) to finish in a tie for 18th overall. \n“I felt my performance was pretty mediocre overall,” Brandon said. “I didn’t putt very well and felt I wasn’t in control of my mental game.”\nRounding out the rest of the starting five for the Hoosiers, sophomore Alex Martin finished tied for 28th, posting a 222 (73-73-76). Junior Drew Allenspach posted a 225 (74-75-76) to finish in a tie for 41st while senior Santiago Quirarte , who replaced senior Tad Sacheck in the lineup this week, finished in 52nd place with a 230 (76-79-75). \nMayer was pleased with his team’s performance but knows there is room for improvement. \n“We played well this weekend, but we didn’t play great,” Mayer said. “We played against a strong field and fared well, but there are a lot of little things we need to work on. I know this team is capable of even more.” \nThe 12-team field at Olympia Fields was loaded with talent and included defending national champion Stanford, nationally-ranked teams Duke, Florida State, Tennessee, Arizona State and Oklahoma State and Big Ten rivals Northwestern, Purdue and Illinois. \nThis week the Hoosiers will prepare for their next tournament, the Windon Memorial Classic. The tournament will be played next Sunday and Monday in Glencoe, Ill.