Overton helps U.S. team win Palmer Cup

Former IU men's golf star Jeff Overton played an integral role in helping the United States win the Palmer Cup Thursday on the Irish course at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis. \nOverton won a singles match and a foursome match, as the U.S. team reclaimed the Cup by a 14-10 score.\nIn the foursome match, Overton teamed with Georgia Tech University junior Roberto Castro to defeat Pablo Martin and Alejandro Canizares, of Oklahoma State University and Arizona State University respectively, 5 and 4. At that point, the U.S. and European teams were tied at 8-8 overall. \nIn singles play, Overton defeated Martin 4 and 3 to earn his second point for the U.S. team. With this victory, Overton contributed 2.5 points out of the U.S. team total of 14. \nOverton was dominant in his play, never trailing in either match, and remarkably losing only one hole the entire day. \nOverton halved his singles match with Martin on Wednesday, but he jumped out to an early lead on Thursday with the help of his putter, birdieing the second, third, fifth, and eighth holes to take a 5-up lead. \nOverton felt he was unbeatable the whole weekend, he said in a statement. \n"I just got off to a quick start," he said. "The putter felt really good today and I hit a lot of tough putts and was confident in my game. I really didn't think there was anyone here that could beat me. I just went out there, played my game, executed some shots and won a couple points for my team."\nThe U.S. team's victory pushed the Palmer Cup series score to a 5-3-1 U.S. advantage over the Europeans. It was the first Palmer Cup victory for the U.S. since 2002. \nOverton was grateful to have played in the Palmer Cup, the college-level equivalent to the Ryder Cup, he said. \n"This was a great experience. I had a lot of fun playing out here and competing with my teammates," Overton said. "Once again, this continues to show me I can play with anyone in the country"