TicketsTRINITY, Texas – Three-straight birdies late in the back nine allowed Ty Gingerich to claim Big 12 individual champion honors, shooting a 9-under 279 overall, at beautiful Whispering Pines.
Gingerich matched TCU's Gustav Frimodt and Oklahoma State's Preston Stout for the crown, Cincinnati's first as a Big 12 member in its inaugural season. Gingerich, who earned UC's first individual conference title since Dan Gage in the 1993 Great Midwest, will mark Cincinnati's third-straight year of NCAA Regional representation.
"He's starting to trend in a very good direction," head coach Doug Martin said. "We saw him in the practice round comfortable getting back into his skin again. It's an awfully mean game when you aren't playing well. His perseverance, even having to struggle early today and battle back with three birdies late in the round after a bogey, was great. I'm real proud of him, and he will be rewarded with a chance in the Regionals and leave the program on a high note."
The Big 12 Championship is four rounds, which meant Cincinnati was playing its longest event in program history. Gingerich led by two strokes after the first three.
Gingerich previously had three second-place finishes in his career and earned back-to-back top-10s to close it out. His three-straight birdies on the back nine were critical in overcoming what was a 1-over on the front end.
Ryan Ford, the 2023 AAC Freshman of the Year who was third in that championship, tied for 15th as the second-leading Bearcat of the week. He put together his two best rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, first with a 71 and ending with a 69 that included no bogeys.
Ford's final three tournaments of the year involved his best round coming at the end.
Connor McNeely, UC's stroke-average leader all season, was third with a 10-over 298, while Rylan Wotherspoon rounded out the final tally with a 14-over 302.
"This team has had a strange year," Martin said of the Bearcats, who ultimately finished ninth. "We've had some ebbs and flows. This is a postseason team in my opinion. We're probably gonna fall a few spots short of a bid, but the resilience we showed in shooting the third-best round of the field on close-out day, you have to be able to finish. To shoot 5-under, I was extremely proud of what we did. We had five guys in the round. It was great to see them out there, and Big 12 golf is at the highest level."
Cincinnati Scores
T1. Ty Gingerich (65-74-69-71=279)
T15. Ryan Ford (72-76-71-69=288)
T43. Connor McNeely (72-79-75-72=298)
53. Rylan Wotherspoon (76-77-75-74=302)
S. Cole Imig (- - 75-71=146)
Team Scores
1. Texas (1127)
2. Oklahoma (1145)
3. Oklahoma State (1150)
4. Baylor (1155)
5. West Virginia (1157)
T6. Texas Tech (1159)
T6. Houston (1159)
8. Kansas (1163)
9. Cincinnati (1164)
10. BYU (1175)
11. Kansas State (1176)
12. Iowa State (1191)
13. UCF (1195)
14. TCU (1205)
Gingerich matched TCU's Gustav Frimodt and Oklahoma State's Preston Stout for the crown, Cincinnati's first as a Big 12 member in its inaugural season. Gingerich, who earned UC's first individual conference title since Dan Gage in the 1993 Great Midwest, will mark Cincinnati's third-straight year of NCAA Regional representation.
"He's starting to trend in a very good direction," head coach Doug Martin said. "We saw him in the practice round comfortable getting back into his skin again. It's an awfully mean game when you aren't playing well. His perseverance, even having to struggle early today and battle back with three birdies late in the round after a bogey, was great. I'm real proud of him, and he will be rewarded with a chance in the Regionals and leave the program on a high note."
The Big 12 Championship is four rounds, which meant Cincinnati was playing its longest event in program history. Gingerich led by two strokes after the first three.
Gingerich previously had three second-place finishes in his career and earned back-to-back top-10s to close it out. His three-straight birdies on the back nine were critical in overcoming what was a 1-over on the front end.
Ryan Ford, the 2023 AAC Freshman of the Year who was third in that championship, tied for 15th as the second-leading Bearcat of the week. He put together his two best rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, first with a 71 and ending with a 69 that included no bogeys.
Ford's final three tournaments of the year involved his best round coming at the end.
Connor McNeely, UC's stroke-average leader all season, was third with a 10-over 298, while Rylan Wotherspoon rounded out the final tally with a 14-over 302.
"This team has had a strange year," Martin said of the Bearcats, who ultimately finished ninth. "We've had some ebbs and flows. This is a postseason team in my opinion. We're probably gonna fall a few spots short of a bid, but the resilience we showed in shooting the third-best round of the field on close-out day, you have to be able to finish. To shoot 5-under, I was extremely proud of what we did. We had five guys in the round. It was great to see them out there, and Big 12 golf is at the highest level."
Cincinnati Scores
T1. Ty Gingerich (65-74-69-71=279)
T15. Ryan Ford (72-76-71-69=288)
T43. Connor McNeely (72-79-75-72=298)
53. Rylan Wotherspoon (76-77-75-74=302)
S. Cole Imig (- - 75-71=146)
Team Scores
1. Texas (1127)
2. Oklahoma (1145)
3. Oklahoma State (1150)
4. Baylor (1155)
5. West Virginia (1157)
T6. Texas Tech (1159)
T6. Houston (1159)
8. Kansas (1163)
9. Cincinnati (1164)
10. BYU (1175)
11. Kansas State (1176)
12. Iowa State (1191)
13. UCF (1195)
14. TCU (1205)