Historic Hazeltine: 1999 NCAA Division I Men’s Championship

Some national championships are decided by one leader's composure. For the 1999 Division I NCAA Men’s Championship, both leaders needed it at the same time, on the same back nine at Hazeltine National.

From June 2-5, 1999, a 30-team field navigated Hazeltine’s 7,196-yard, par-72 course. By the time it ended, the individual race and the team race were decided within an hour of one another.

Englishman Luke Donald, a sophomore from Northwestern, led the tournament from the second round on. He opened 73-68-72 through 54 holes for a total of 213, three shots clear of Washington's Troy Kelly and seven ahead of Georgia's Ryuji Imada.

Donald built his game on precision, rather than fireworks. He found greens, took his two putts, and let Hazeltine's tucked pins do the work of separating the field.

Imada had already absorbed one setback, carrying a one-stroke penalty in his opening-round card for slow play. But he made a furious comeback in the final round with birdies on the 2nd, 4th, and 6th holes, and an eagle on the par-5 7th with a putt from 70 feet, turning in a front-nine 31. 

Donald, meanwhile, opened his own round with a double bogey at the 8th—and the gap that he built over three days disappeared inside nine holes.

Still, Donald persisted with birdies on 14 and 15, then played the final three holes at even par to close with a 71 and a winning total of 284, four under for the tournament.

“I wanted to get some breathing space, and I was able to do that,” Donald said afterward, of the run that put the tournament out of reach.

Imada shot a final-round 67, five under and one shot off Hazeltine's competitive course record, and still finished three shots back, tied for second with Kelly at 287.

While Donald and Imada played their duel at the top of the individual leaderboard, Georgia was building the margin that mattered more to Imada. The Bulldogs finished at +28, three shots ahead of Oklahoma State, for the program's first NCAA championship.

“It was one of the best 18 holes of golf I've ever seen,” Georgia head coach Chris Haack said of Imada's final round, crediting it with carrying the team home.

Imada later said he played the back nine more conservatively to protect the team's lead rather than chasing the individual title outright.

The University of Minnesota finished 11th as a team. Adam Dooley was the top Gopher, tying for 12th individually.

Where the Field Went From Here

Donald turned professional later that year, reached world No. 1 in 2011, and has since captained the 2023, 2025, and 2027 European Ryder Cup teams.

Imada went on to win the 2008 AT&T Classic and serve on the Japanese team for the 2008 and 2009 World Cup of Golf competitions.

Adam Scott, who finished 11th at Hazeltine, went on to win the 2013 Masters. Lucas Glover, tied for 8th that week, won the 2009 U.S. Open.

Paul Casey, who finished 4th, built a two-decade career across the PGA Tour and Europe's Ryder Cup teams. Charles Howell III, 5th at Hazeltine, went on to a nearly two-decade PGA Tour career of his own.

Long before Hazeltine hosted the professionals who define the modern game, it hosted the college fields that produced them.