Goodrich resident Brandon Duff recently achieved a significant milestone for the University of Michigan’s men’s golf program.
Duff, an alumnus of Powers Catholic High School in Flint and a senior at U-M, was named the Big Ten Conference’s Player of the Week Feb. 16, the first U-M golfer to do so since Michael Harris earned that honor Mar. 29, 2000.
He accomplished that feat by virtue of his performance in the University of Central Florida/Rio Pinar Intercollegiate tournament Feb. 13-14 in Orlando, Fla. Duff finished 18th among all golfers in that tournament with a 54-hole score of 223, leading the Wolverines to a 13th-place finish.
Duff said he first became interested in the sport as a freshman at Powers, when he made the Chargers? boys golf team. After Powers won the state championship that year, Duff said that piqued his interest even further.
Besides Michigan, he said other schools he was considering included Michigan State, Wisconsin, Miami of Ohio, Duke, and Emory University in Atlanta.
In the end, Duff, a political science and economics major at U-M, said he settled on Michigan because several relatives attended there, including parents Benson and Sheree Duff.
Michigan men’s golf coach Andrew Sapp, in his fourth year as the head coach of the Wolverines, said Duff has emerged as a team leader this season.
‘He’s a great ball striker, and he really has a lot of fire and intensity,? Sapp said. ‘He wants to do the best he can for the team. He’s stepped into a leadership role.?
Sapp also said experience has been a good teacher in Duff’s development at the collegiate level. ‘He makes much better decisions on the course and manages the game well,? he said. ‘He’s matured into a good college player.?
Sapp said he thinks Duff can build upon his early success and finish the season with a flourish.
‘I hope he continues to improve and become even more consistent,? he said. ‘Hopefully, he can win a tournament between now and the Big Ten Championships (in April). That would be a significant accomplishment.?