Recent work in practice paid off for Valparaiso University men’s golf senior Mitchell Wittmann (Kaukauna, Wis. / Kaukauna) on Monday, the first day of the Titans Motown Classic in Detroit. Golfing as an individual for the first time this season, Wittmann responded by finishing the first two rounds of action with the best score on the team and the fifth-best in the 60-player field. Even without Wittmann’s score, Valpo is in the top half of the standings, tied for fourth in a 10-team field.

How It Happened

• Wittmann started his day with a 74 in Round 1 before cutting two strokes off that score in Round 2 and turning in a 72. He finished the day at 146 (+2), which ranks fifth in the field.
• Sophomore Charlie Toman (Chardon, Ohio / Notre Dame-Catholic Latin) had a strong day as well as his 151 was highlighted by a 74 in Round 1. He joins Wittmann in the Top 10, tied for 10^th with 18 holes to go.
• None of the four Valpo players whose scores were counted carded over a 78 in either round. Brett Seward (Aurora, Ill. / Aurora Christian) stroked a 152, followed closely by Garrett Willis (Fort Wayne, Ind. / Homestead) at 153 and Drew Alexander (McCordsville, Ind. / Hamilton Southeastern) at 154.
• As a team, Valpo went 303 in Round 1 before compiling a 307 in Round 2. The team is tied with host Detroit Mercy for fourth and is seven strokes behind Valley foe Loyola, which sits in third. Grand Valley State (582) and Ferris State (592) are the top two teams. Ferris State’s Andrew Hammett is the individual leader at 138 (-6).

Inside the Round

• Valpo racked up 21 birdies, fourth in the 10-team field. The team added 92 pars, which ranked sixth.
• Wittmann’s best work occurred on Par 4 holes, where he averaged 4.05, tied for fifth in the field. Toman averaged 4.10 on those holes, tied for eighth.
• Seward led the team in Par 5 scoring with a 4.62, which was tied for seventh.
• Wittmann turned in a team-high 24 pars (tied for fourth overall), while Willis paced the team with six birdies.

Thoughts from Head Coach Dave Gring

“This was the first day of our fall season that we had to persevere through some challenging weather. The day started with rain over the first 4-5 holes and then we had to battle the steady 15-20 mph wind. Overall, I was pleased with how the entire team played both rounds today, especially with the wind making the course more challenging. The guys stayed focused all day, thinking through their shots well and displaying good course management." 

“We started the morning round well despite the rain and some gusty winds. We couldn't get the birdie production in the middle of the first round, but we finished the round well, playing the last four holes very solid. In the second round, we did not have a good start to the round, but we played steadier in the middle of the round and finished extremely well again. We need to play the back nine better tomorrow, taking advantage of the Par 5s and hitting more of those greens in regulation.”

“Mitch played very steady for us today with five birdies, seven bogeys, no double bogeys and a lot of pars. His tempo was terrific all day and he hit a lot of fairways and greens. He has been working on his swing and ball striking a lot over the past two weeks and I was happy to see that hard work paying off for him today.”

Up Next

The third and final round of the Titans Motown Classic will take place in Highland, Mich. on Tuesday. This will mark the last day of the fall season for Valpo.