May 1, 2012

PARK RIDGE, Ill. - Senior Luke Guthrie and head coach Mike Small were honored with the top Big Ten season awards, announced the conference office on Tuesday. Guthrie was selected as Big Ten Player of the Year following his second-straight individual conference title, while Small was named Big Ten Coach of the Year for the fourth year in a row and fifth time in his career after leading the Illini to a fourth consecutive Big Ten Championship. Guthrie and sophomore Thomas Pieters also earned first-team All-Big Ten honors, while redshirt junior Mason Jacobs was picked to the second team.

Guthrie, who also took home the team's Sportsmanship Award, is the fifth Big Ten Player of the Year in school history and first since Scott Langley in 2010. The Quincy, Ill., native won Big Ten medalist honors for the second year in a row, making him the third repeat conference champion in school history and first in the Big Ten since Luke Donald (2000-01), the world's current No. 1 player. He led Illinois to a fourth consecutive Big Ten title, becoming the first Illini golfer to win a team championship all four years. Guthrie, who is a three-time first-team All-Big Ten pick, won three tournaments during the 2011-12 season, fired a career-low tournament total of 203 (-10) and earned the Les Bolstad Award for low season stroke average (70.90) in the Big Ten.

Small, who set two conference records by earning a fourth-straight and fifth all-time Coach of the Year award, surpassed Northwestern's Pat Goss for the most coaching honors since 1988 when the award was first handed out. In his 12th season at the helm, Small guided Illinois to a four-peat at the Big Ten Championship and a school-record single round of 273 (-15) at the Augusta State Invitational. His Illini also repeated as champions of the D.A. Weibring Invitational and notched a regional berth for the fifth year in a row by collecting the conference's automatic bid.

Pieters garnered All-Big Ten honors for the first time in his career after tying for fifth at the Big Ten Championships, which placed him on the All-Championship Team. The Nijlen, Belgium, native ranks second on the Illini in stroke average (72.03) and has been the team's top finisher at five of 10 tournaments. He won his first career individual medalist honors at the Jack Nicklaus Invitational and fired a career-low 54-hole total of 206 (-10) at the Barona Collegiate Cup. He boasts 12 rounds under par this season, which is the second-most for the Illini, and has fired a career-best round of 6-under four times.

Jacobs notched All-Big Ten honors for the first time following his best Big Ten finish with a tie for 21st. The Metropolis, Ill., native chipped in for eagle on the final hole of the Big Ten Championship, helping Illinois come back to complete the conference four-peat. He ranks third on the team in stroke average (73.71) and carded a career-low 54-hole total of 209 (-7) at the Augusta State Invitational, where the Illini posted its season-low score. His 67 in the second round at Augusta led Illinois to its team single round school record.

Illinois had three All-Big Ten nods for the second-straight season, which equaled the most for any school in 2012. The Illini, who are one of just seven teams to reach the NCAA Championships each of the past four seasons, will find out its regional site on Monday, May 7.

2012 BIG TEN MEN'S GOLF ALL-CONFERENCE AND INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Luke Guthrie, Illinois

FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Grant Weaver, Ohio State

COACH OF THE YEAR
Mike Small, Illinois

ALL-BIG TEN
First Team
Luke Guthrie, Illinois
Thomas Pieters, Illinois
David Mills, Indiana
Chase Wright, Indiana
Barrett Kelpin, Iowa
Eric Chun, Northwestern

Second Team
Mason Jacobs, Illinois
Chris Brant, Iowa
Steven Ihm, Iowa
Matt Thompson, Michigan
Erik Van Rooyen, Minnesota
Tyler Duncan, Purdue

SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD HONOREES
Luke Guthrie, Illinois
Chase Wright, Indiana
Chris Brant, Iowa
Matt Thompson, Michigan
Dave Ellis, Michigan State
Robert Bell, Minnesota
Jordan Reinertson, Nebraska
Sam Chien, Northwestern
Alex Redfield, Ohio State
Anthony DeGol, Penn State
Justin Cho, Purdue
Thomas O'Bryan, Wisconsin