Chris Bruening Season 2008-09

Honors and Awards

• Academic All-Big 12 second team (Spring 2009)
• Big 12 Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll (Fall 2007)
• Nebraska Junior Amateur champion (2004)
• Nebraska Junior Amateur Golfer of the Year (2003)

Senior (2008-09)
Chris Bruening played 15 rounds in his final season as a Husker, posting a 78.13 stroke average in the process. Bruening recorded a career-best 12th-place finish at the Husker Shootout, a triangular with South Dakota State and Morningside, after scoring a 151 through 36 holes. Bruening ended his career at Nebraska with a 77.18 career stroke average.

Bruening enjoyed success off the course during his senior season, earning Academic All-Big 12 second team honors for the first time in his career, as well as a spot on the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll in the fall. 

Junior (2007-08)

Entering the season as Nebraska’s most experienced golfer, Bruening finished fourth for the Huskers with a 77.31 stroke average. At the rain-shortened Memphis Intercollegiate, Bruening scored a 150 through two rounds and led Nebraska with a tie for 34th finish. Bruening shot his season low of 72 at Memphis and also at the Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate, where he ended with a 228 and tied for 80th.

In the spring, Bruening played his best three rounds of the season at the Diet Pepsi Shocker Classic. He carded a 225 and tied for 37th place. Bruening finished his season at the Palisades Collegiate Classic, where he tied for 64th with a 232 total. Bruening was named to the Big 12 Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll for the first time in his career in the fall semester.

Sophomore (2006-07)

Bruening competed in only two events as a sophomore, but he made the most of it, setting career bests with a low round of 70, final score of 224 and a tie for 13th at the Wichita State Invitational. Bruening also fired a 231 at the NCAA Central Regional to finish second on the Huskers’ roster and in a tie for 50th overall. Bruening was the only Husker other than Brady Schnell to place in the top 100 and to shoot in the 70s in each of the three rounds. Bruening finished with a stroke average of 75.83, more than one stroke better than his freshman season.

 

Redshirt (2005-06)

Bruening redshirted during the 2005-06 season. Bruening was a regular in the NU lineup in his freshman campaign, and used the redshirt year to develop his game.

 

Freshman (2004-05)

In Bruening’s first year, he earned a spot in the lineup for seven of the Huskers’ tournaments. Over 19 rounds, he produced a 76.68 stroke average. He opened his career at Nebraska strong, finishing in a tie for 20th at the Fairway Club Invitational, and then topped it at the Rice Intercollegiate with a tie for 19th. Bruening carded season-low rounds of 73 three times and posted eight rounds of 75 or lower during his freshman campaign.

Before Nebraska

Bruening was one of the state’s top junior players throughout his career at Norfolk High School. He was named the 2003 Nebraska Junior Amateur Golfer of the Year. Bruening won the Class A state championship as a sophomore in 2002 and finished fourth as a senior in 2004. In 2003, he helped the Panthers and Coach Jerry Cover to a runner-up team finish at the Nebraska state tournament.

The 2004 Nebraska Junior Amateur champ, Bruening also excelled in men’s tournaments as a junior. He finished ninth in the 2004 Nebraska Amateur, and was a semifinalist at the 2003 Nebraska Match Play Championship.

Personal

Chris is the son of Kevin and Tad Bruening and has two brothers, Scott and Eric. Chris was born on Aug. 20, 1985, and is majoring in business administration.

Year-by-Year
Year             Rounds          Strokes          Average

2004-05             19                1,457               76.88
2005-06                             REDSHIRT

2006-07              6                  455                75.83
2007-08             26                2,010               77.31

2008-09             15                1,172               78.13

Career Totals   66                5,094               77.18

Career Statistics
Low Round - 70 (Wichita State Invitational, 4/2/07)
Low 54-Hole Score - 224 (Wichita State Invitational, 4/3/07)
Best Tournament Finish - T-13th (Wichita State Invitational, 4/3/07)
Rounds Under Par - 1