Aug. 2, 2011
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Iowa City, IOWA – Division I PING All-America teams have been named and two University of Iowa golfers are on the list. Vince India, a recent Iowa graduate and Hawkeye standout, was named a third-team All-American while incoming senior Chris Brant was an honorable mention selection. Additionally, India and Brant, along with former senior Brad Hopfinger were honored as Division I Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-American Scholars.
To be eligible for Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholar status, an individual must be a junior or senior academically, compete in at least two full years at the collegiate level, participate in 70-percent of his team’s competitive rounds or compete in the NCAA Championships and have a stroke-average under 76.0.
India, a native of Deerfield, Ill., was named Big Ten Player of the Year after putting together the best individual season in Hawkeye men’s golf history. India became just the second golfer in school history to win the prestigious Les Bolstad Trophy, awarded by the Big Ten Conference at the end of the season to the male golfer who records the lowest stroke average during the season (fall and spring). India’s regular season stroke average of 71.08 is the ninth-lowest in the trophy’s history, dating back to 1974 and stands as the lowest in Iowa’s history.
India captured first place in three different tournaments as a senior, winning the Golfweek Conference Challenge, the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate and the Hawkeye-TaylorMade Invitational. He is just the third player in school history to win three or more tournaments in a single season.
India is just the second player in school history to be named Big Ten Player of the Year, joining Brad Klapprott, who won the award in 1992. India was also selected as Iowa’s Male Athlete of the Year.
Hopfinger recorded five-straight top-20 finishes in the fall, including top-10 marks in each of the last three tournaments. He finished tied for third at the Fighting Irish Classic with a three-round total of 209 (-1), tied for second at the Rod Meyers/Duke Invitational with a score of 212 (-4) and tied for seventh at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate with a two-round total of 137 (-5).
Brant made his presence known in the conference with an impressive performance at the 2011 Big Ten Championships. Brant held the lead for the first two rounds before finishing runner-up by one stroke to Illinois’ Luke Guthrie. His 2010-11 season scoring average of 72.42 stands as the second lowest in Iowa record books.
Brant also led the Hawkeyes at NCAA Regionals and the NCAA Championships. After sharing the individual lead after the first round of the NCAA Regional tournament, Brant finished tied for seventh. His 54-hole total of +4 (220) earned him a share of 20th place at the NCAA Championships.