SAVOY – Before the sun set Sunday, Joe Affrunti wouldn''t have been able to tell Red Buttitta from Red Skelton, or Craig Chaney from Lon Chaney.

Don''t blame the Illinois golfer, who redshirted last season after transferring from Minnesota, if he wasn''t up on his UI Open history.

All that mattered was that Buttitta, the tournament''s first champion in 1953, presented him the winner''s prize Sunday afternoon after Affrunti shot a two-round, 4-under-par 140 to win the 50th UI Open at the Orange Course.

"It was a pretty good weekend," the 21-year-old Affrunti said.

While this weekend was all about honoring the past and celebrating the tournament that is an institution to golfers in the Champaign-Urbana area, Affrunti upheld another tradition by adding his name to the generous list of Illinois golfers who have won the event like Pat Keen, Jamie Fairbanks, Jay Scott, Chris Dobrovolny, Marty Schiene, Ben Bruce, Ken Kellaney, Mike Toliuszis and Nick Gibala.

He can thank former Illinois teammate Geoff Lound, who finished third this weekend with a 1-over 145, for making it possible.

"Geoff told me he was playing in it, and competitionwise, I haven''t played much, so I signed up," said Affrunti, who shot a pair of 2-under 70s in perfect conditions on a challenging Orange Course.

Any competition is good with Affrunti, who redshirted this past season when a few course credits didn''t transfer from Minnesota, where he was part of the school''s 2002 national champion team. He didn''t want to sit out the spring season, so he opted to redshirt. He practiced with the team but was hungry for some real work.

"It''s a good win no matter what tournament you win," said the Crystal Lake resident, who recently returned from playing in the British Amateur at Royal Troon Golf Club in England.

"It gets your confidence up and gives you something you can look back on when you''re out at tournaments this summer or next year."

While other golfers struggled to stay consistent, Affrunti was steady. He made four birdies Sunday to go with five Saturday and was able to overtake first-round leader Chaney, who shot a 4-over 76 Sunday to finish at even-par 144 for the tournament.

"It was pretty much a boring round," said Affrunti, who had a 75.11-stroke average in 16 tournaments during his three seasons with the Gophers. "A boring round is usually a good round."

Affrunti is excited to finish his college career at Illinois, even if it is only one season as a redshirt senior. Despite experiencing the elation of winning a national championship – though he didn''t take part in the national tournament – Affrunti felt like it was time to move on.

"Things just didn''t work out," Affrunti said. "I just figured it would be better to come down here with Coach (Mike) Small, and I wanted to learn from him. Next year is going to be awesome."

Lound, who graduated this spring, will echo those sentiments even though he won''t be there.

"He''s going to be a big part of the team," said Lound, who bettered his Saturday round of 73 by a stroke. "It''s good for them. I''m the only one leaving. The team is going to be stronger with Joe there."

Despite a tough afternoon Sunday, Mattoon''s Chaney, who won the tournament in 1999, couldn''t complain about his weekend effort.

Chaney''s 68 Saturday was still the best round of the tournament, and his even-par finish for second place was fine by him.

"I had some putts on this golf course today that I''ve never had here before," Chaney said. "They had some pins in tough locations, but this is probably the best I could do – finish even-par.

"When I won in ''99, I shot even-par for three rounds, and I didn''t know if I could do better than that."

Centennial graduate Wes Whittingham made the trip from the Chicago area this weekend and made it count, finishing fourth with a 3-over 147. Joe Rainboth and Champaign''s Billy Smith tied for fifth at 149.

Reigning Twin City champion Tim Hoss Jr. was seventh with a 149, and Seymour''s Ryan Gumbel, who shot a 70 Saturday, struggled to an 80 Sunday, tying Derek Taylor and Grant Goltz for eighth at 150.

The lowdown

Top finishers from the 50th UI Open on Sunday at the par-72 UI Orange Course in Savoy:

Joe Affrunti

70-70 - 140

Craig Chaney

68-76 - 144

Geoff Lound

73-72 - 145

Wes Whittingham

72-75 - 147

Joe Rainboth

74-74 - 148

Billy Smith

74-74 - 148

Tim Hoss Jr.

74-75 - 149

Derek Taylor

75-75 - 150

Grant Goltz

74-76 - 150

Ryan Gumbel

70-80 - 150

You can reach Jeff Mezydlo at (217) 351-5604 or via e-mail at jmezydlo@news-gazette.com.