Arthur Ylitalo (Right) - 'All Tournament Team' honor at this tournament last season

Men's Golf 9/27/2025 12:39:00 PM Jack Belcher - Athletics Communications Assistant

PREVIEW: Men's Golf at Motor City Shakedown

Arthur Ylitalo named to the All-Tournament team, finished seventh at this tournament last year

MARQUETTE, Mich. - The Northern Michigan University men's golf team will head to Dearborn, Michigan, to compete in the Motor City Shakedown at TPC Michigan. Hosted by Wayne State, the two-day tournament runs from Monday, September 29, to Tuesday, September 30.

The field includes GLIAC foes Purdue Northwest (#144/25), Roosevelt (#152,26), Davenport (#109/19), and host school Wayne State (#25/3). (National/regional ranking based on last year's final ranking).

You can follow along with live scoring here.

Course Statistics
Working with the beautiful natural environment, Jack Nicklaus designed TPC Michigan as a challenging and beautiful signature layout.

The centerpiece of the golf experience at TPC Michigan is the masterfully designed, superbly landscaped, and expertly maintained 18-hole championship course that offers an enjoyable experience for golfers of all skill levels.

The beautiful course, which presents a challenging links-style layout and winds through natural wetlands and rolling hills, hosted the Ford Senior Players Championship for 16 years, welcoming legends like Arnold Palmer, ChiChi Rodriguez, and Gary Player.

Weather Report
As of writing, the weather in Dearborn, Michigan, calls for two days of sunny skies with temperatures in the low 80s and winds ranging from 5-10 mph. It should be near-perfect conditions for the tournament.

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Last Time Out
The NMU men's golf team has completed its first tournament of the season, finishing 17th of 19 teams at the Bulldog Fall Classic. NMU shot a combined team total of +92, showing improvement each round, after shooting team scores of +35, +29, and +28. As a team, the 'Cats average 3.40 on the par threes, 4.54 on the par fours, and 5.42 on the par fives. The team carded eight birdies and 153 pars.

Leading the way for the Wildcats was Arthur Ylitalo, who finished his three-day total with a score of +14 to finish T41 of the 106 golfers. In second place on the team as an individual for the tournament and posting the third-best Wildcat round of the day was Jacob Daavettila, who finished his tournament with a score of +24 to finish T79.

Shortly behind Daavettila was Tyler Annala, who played consistent golf this week, shooting rounds of +8, +8, and +10 for a three-round total of +26. Annala finished second on the team in par four scoring, par five scoring, and total pars.

Competing as an individual was Harvey Ylitalo, who finished in sole possession of 93rd with his three-round total of +30. Brady Badker and Levi Pennala finished with a score of +32.

Previously at The Motor City Shakedown
The Northern Michigan University men's golf team finished sixth out of nine teams at the Motor City Shakedown last season, led by a top-10 finish from Arthur Ylitalo.

Ylitalo finished in the top three on the day with his round of 74 (+2), giving him a two-round total of 143 (-1) to finish seventh overall. This marked Ylitalo's best 18-hole score of his career and matches Austin Elsner's round of 143 at sixth in the NMU record book for individual 36-hole scores. Ylitalo's 11 birdies in two rounds are also second for most individual birdies through 36 holes in NMU history.

Notes on The Field

Purdue Northwest -The Pride began the season by finishing 15th of 19 teams at The Bulldog Fall Classic hosted by Ferris State in Big Rapids.
- Purdue Northwest's performance at the Bulldog Fall Classic was highlighted by Brody Pass and Maxwell Abel tying for 62nd place.
Wayne State - WSU began the season at the Folds of Honor challenge, as they tied for third place as a team. The tournament took place in Allendale, Michigan, and was hosted by GVSU.
- Individually for WSU, Andrew Daily, Josh Lahner, and Troy Chapman each secured a top-25 finish in a tie-for-fourth, 23rd, and tied-for-24th, respectively.
Davenport - The Panthers started its 2025/26 campaign by finishing 5th out of 19 teams at the Bulldog Fall Classic.
- Davenport was led by a strong performance by Justin Grimmard, who finished in 6th. Chen-Shiuan (Louis) Wu finished in 12th place just behind Grimmard. They had two additional golfers finish in the top 50 at the tournament.
Roosevelt - The Lakers started its season by finishing 19th out of 19 teams at the Bulldog Fall Classic.
- The Lakers were led by Pierre Heylen and Ben Jones, who finished in 58th and 85th, respectively.

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Players Mentioned

Tyler Annala: 6' 0"; Senior

Brady Badker: 5' 10"; Senior

Levi Pennala: Sophomore

Arthur Ylitalo: 5' 11"; Junior

Harvey Ylitalo: Freshman

Jacob Daavettila: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Tyler Annala
: 6' 0"; Senior

Brady Badker
: 5' 10"; Senior

Levi Pennala
: Sophomore

Arthur Ylitalo
: 5' 11"; Junior

Harvey Ylitalo
: Freshman

Jacob Daavettila
: Freshman