March 28, 2012
EVANSTON, Ill. -- For the second time in the spring season, Northwestern senior Eric Chun (Ansung City, South Korea/International Christian School) is the Big Ten Golfer of the Week. Chun earned his fourth top-2 finish this year last week at the Barona Collegiate Cup to win the honor.
Northwestern now has won the Big Ten Golfer of the Week award after each of its three spring season tournaments. Senior Sam Chien (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel) picked up the honor following the Big Ten Match Play Championship while Chun earned the crown after tying for first at the Rice Intercollegiate.
Chun opened the Barona with a 4-under 68 before climbing up to fifth place with a second-round 3-under 69. Entering the final round three shots out of first, Chun used two front nine birdies to find himself tied for the lead after eight holes of play. Though he would go on to card another 4-under 68, Chun ended up in second place after J.J. Spaun of host San Diego State pulled away from the field for a three-stroke win.
Chun now has five top-10 finishes and four top-2 finishes (with one win) in seven stroke play starts this year. He has 14 rounds at par or better out of 21 played this year, including nine rounds in the 60s. Chun's stroke average for the year stands in Luke Donald territory at 70.57; Donald currently has the top three single-season stroke averages in NU history with marks of 70.45 (1998-99), 70.48 (1999-2000) and 70.76 (2000-01).
Chun's recent play also has vaulted him skyward in both the NCAA Golfstat Cup rankings and the World Amateur Golf Ranking. In the latest data, Chun is 48th in the country in Golfstat and up 43 positions to rank as the No. 64 amateur player in the world.
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