LAKE ELMO, Minn. – The No. 10 Sun Devil Women's Golf team wrapped up their first tournament of the 2019-20 campaign today, completing the final round of the ANNIKA Intercollegiate at Royal Golf Club.
Inclement weather delayed the start of the round by two hours, causing the format to change to a shotgun start with every team beginning their round at 8:30 a.m. MST. Despite the uncertainty, Arizona State (+1/865) managed to move up a spot in the team standings, finishing in fourth-place among a loaded field at one of the most prestigious tournaments of the season. The Maroon & Gold ended up ahead of several talented teams in the standings at the end of the three-day event, including No. 1 USC, No. 2 Duke, No. 6 UCLA, and No. 12 Arizona.
"Fourth place in this tough of a field is a solid week," Coach Missy Farr-Kaye remarked. "We have a lot of positives to take away from this tournament."
Dealing with windy conditions all week, Arizona State gained plenty of experience battling adversity. Despite the weather issues, the Sun Devils had three individuals finish in the Top-15 at a tournament littered with preseason All-Americans and individual talent. ASU joins tournament champion Wake Forest as the only two teams to place three golfers in the Top-15. The depth of the lineup was on display all weekend, with all five members of the team showing flashes of brilliance.
"Conditions were windy today and all scores went up," Coach Farr-Kaye mentioned. "We had three players in the Top-15, which is a great start."
Leading the way was freshman Linn Grant (-2/214), who had the lowest score on the team at her first collegiate tournament. Grant got stronger as the week went on, carding a -2/70 on the final day, her best round of the tournament. The native of Sweden finished tied for eighth, moving up 11 spots on the leaderboard thanks to her effort over the final 18 holes. On her third hole of the day, the par-five ninth hole, she registered her first collegiate eagle. Grant boasted the best scoring average in the field on par-five holes, finishing the weekend eight-under with a stroke average of 4.33.
Alessandra Fanali (+2/218) was Arizona State's other Top-15 finisher, as the sophomore recorded the third-best finish of her young career. After recording her first hole-in-one as a Sun Devil on Monday, Fanali managed to remain in contention for the individual title for a majority of the tournament, eventually finishing in a tie for 15th. She was sharp all week on some of the toughest holes, one of only 11 individuals to finish at or below par on par-three opportunities.
After improving her score by two strokes yesterday, Olivia Mehaffey (+5/221) carded the same score (+1/73) for the second straight round. The senior started her day off on the right foot, recording birdies on two of her first three holes. It was the second time this week that she had birdied the par-five ninth hole. Mehaffey battled all three days to finish in the top-half of the 60-person field.
Junior Raquel Olmos also got off to a quick start, carding a birdie on her very first hole of the day. Later in the round, she made up three strokes on just two holes, registering a birdie on 17 and her first eagle of the season on 18. Olmos was brilliant on 18 throughout the tournament, ending up at four-under thanks to two birdies and an eagle.
For the second consecutive day at the 2019 ANNIKA Intercollegiate, the Maroon & Gold had the fourth-best round of any team. Coach Farr-Kaye's squad found the most success on the 9th and 18th holes. On the ninth hole this week, the Sun Devils played bogey-free, ending the tournament at nine-under including seven birdies and an eagle. ASU also had a fantastic approach on 18 this week, making nine birdies and an eagle to help them finish -10 on the 18th hole.
Overall, the Sun Devils' first tournament was a successful one. The coaching staff had many positive takeaways and learned more about their team, which will only help in preparation for the rest of the fall season. Arizona State enjoyed their experience in Minnesota and Coach Farr-Kaye is already excited to go back.
"We loved getting to play in Annika's collegiate tournament and we hope to be back next year," Coach Farr-Kaye stated.
UP NEXT
Next up, the Sun Devils will have a brief break before heading back to the Midwest for their second tournament of the 2019-20 season. Arizona State is set to compete in the Windy City Collegiate at Glen View Golf Club in Golf, Illinois for the third consecutive season taking place September 30-October 1. ASU has enjoyed its share of success at this event, finishing in second place a year ago after winning the team championship in 2017. Olivia Mehaffey shot her career low of 65 in the first round of the 2017 tournament. The event hosted by Northwestern includes several Top-25 schools, including preseason No. 1 USC. The field will complete 36 holes on Sept. 30 with the final round taking place on Oct. 1. Golfweek listed the tournament at No. 5 on their ranking of the 50 best women's college golf events in 2019.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Keep up with your favorite Sun Devils by following our social media platforms (@SunDevilWGolf) and visiting our website (thesundevils.com) for the latest information and updates throughout the season.
Inclement weather delayed the start of the round by two hours, causing the format to change to a shotgun start with every team beginning their round at 8:30 a.m. MST. Despite the uncertainty, Arizona State (+1/865) managed to move up a spot in the team standings, finishing in fourth-place among a loaded field at one of the most prestigious tournaments of the season. The Maroon & Gold ended up ahead of several talented teams in the standings at the end of the three-day event, including No. 1 USC, No. 2 Duke, No. 6 UCLA, and No. 12 Arizona.
"Fourth place in this tough of a field is a solid week," Coach Missy Farr-Kaye remarked. "We have a lot of positives to take away from this tournament."
Dealing with windy conditions all week, Arizona State gained plenty of experience battling adversity. Despite the weather issues, the Sun Devils had three individuals finish in the Top-15 at a tournament littered with preseason All-Americans and individual talent. ASU joins tournament champion Wake Forest as the only two teams to place three golfers in the Top-15. The depth of the lineup was on display all weekend, with all five members of the team showing flashes of brilliance.
"Conditions were windy today and all scores went up," Coach Farr-Kaye mentioned. "We had three players in the Top-15, which is a great start."
Leading the way was freshman Linn Grant (-2/214), who had the lowest score on the team at her first collegiate tournament. Grant got stronger as the week went on, carding a -2/70 on the final day, her best round of the tournament. The native of Sweden finished tied for eighth, moving up 11 spots on the leaderboard thanks to her effort over the final 18 holes. On her third hole of the day, the par-five ninth hole, she registered her first collegiate eagle. Grant boasted the best scoring average in the field on par-five holes, finishing the weekend eight-under with a stroke average of 4.33.
Just missing a spot in the Top-10 was Alexandra Forsterling (-1/215), who ended the tournament one stroke behind Grant for the best score on the team. After tying her career-best round yesterday by shooting a 69, Forsterling was solid yet again. She caught fire early starting on her third hole of the day, recording a birdie on three consecutive holes (8-10). Forsterling did her best work at the ANNIKA Intercollegiate on the par-five holes, completing the week at five-under with one of the lowest stroke averages in the field. By ending the tournament tied for 11th, it becomes Forsterling's second-highest finish of her career.What a first collegiate tournament by Linn Grant! ??
— Sun Devil W. Golf (@SunDevilWGolf) September 18, 2019
The freshman puts together an excellent round on the final day to move up 11 spots on the leaderboard, finishing in a tie for 8th place! #ForksUp #ANNIKAInter pic.twitter.com/o2ArEWELJ0
Alessandra Fanali (+2/218) was Arizona State's other Top-15 finisher, as the sophomore recorded the third-best finish of her young career. After recording her first hole-in-one as a Sun Devil on Monday, Fanali managed to remain in contention for the individual title for a majority of the tournament, eventually finishing in a tie for 15th. She was sharp all week on some of the toughest holes, one of only 11 individuals to finish at or below par on par-three opportunities.
After improving her score by two strokes yesterday, Olivia Mehaffey (+5/221) carded the same score (+1/73) for the second straight round. The senior started her day off on the right foot, recording birdies on two of her first three holes. It was the second time this week that she had birdied the par-five ninth hole. Mehaffey battled all three days to finish in the top-half of the 60-person field.
Junior Raquel Olmos also got off to a quick start, carding a birdie on her very first hole of the day. Later in the round, she made up three strokes on just two holes, registering a birdie on 17 and her first eagle of the season on 18. Olmos was brilliant on 18 throughout the tournament, ending up at four-under thanks to two birdies and an eagle.
For the second consecutive day at the 2019 ANNIKA Intercollegiate, the Maroon & Gold had the fourth-best round of any team. Coach Farr-Kaye's squad found the most success on the 9th and 18th holes. On the ninth hole this week, the Sun Devils played bogey-free, ending the tournament at nine-under including seven birdies and an eagle. ASU also had a fantastic approach on 18 this week, making nine birdies and an eagle to help them finish -10 on the 18th hole.
No. 9 Wake Forest (-17/847) ran away from the rest of the field, taking home the team title by 14 strokes. Demon Deacons freshman Rachel Kuehn (-13/203) captured the individual title.What a 9?th hole by the Sun Devils! ??
— Sun Devil W. Golf (@SunDevilWGolf) September 18, 2019
Olivia Mehaffey and Raquel Olmos each record birdies while Linn Grant registers her first collegiate eagle! ??#ForksUp #ANNIKAInter
LEADERBOARD: https://t.co/k43MCKEWp7 pic.twitter.com/rLeMaDozjn
Overall, the Sun Devils' first tournament was a successful one. The coaching staff had many positive takeaways and learned more about their team, which will only help in preparation for the rest of the fall season. Arizona State enjoyed their experience in Minnesota and Coach Farr-Kaye is already excited to go back.
"We loved getting to play in Annika's collegiate tournament and we hope to be back next year," Coach Farr-Kaye stated.
UP NEXT
Next up, the Sun Devils will have a brief break before heading back to the Midwest for their second tournament of the 2019-20 season. Arizona State is set to compete in the Windy City Collegiate at Glen View Golf Club in Golf, Illinois for the third consecutive season taking place September 30-October 1. ASU has enjoyed its share of success at this event, finishing in second place a year ago after winning the team championship in 2017. Olivia Mehaffey shot her career low of 65 in the first round of the 2017 tournament. The event hosted by Northwestern includes several Top-25 schools, including preseason No. 1 USC. The field will complete 36 holes on Sept. 30 with the final round taking place on Oct. 1. Golfweek listed the tournament at No. 5 on their ranking of the 50 best women's college golf events in 2019.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Keep up with your favorite Sun Devils by following our social media platforms (@SunDevilWGolf) and visiting our website (thesundevils.com) for the latest information and updates throughout the season.
| ANNIKA Intercollegiate Final Team Standings | |||
| Pos | Team | To Par | Total |
| 1 | Wake Forest | -17 | 847 |
| 2 | Arkansas | -3 | 861 |
| 3 | Texas | -2 | 862 |
| 4 | Arizona State | +1 | 865 |
| 5 | USC | +2 | 866 |
| 6 | Arizona | +4 | 868 |
| 7 | South Carolina | +16 | 880 |
| 8 | Alabama | +17 | 881 |
| 9 | Duke | +19 | 883 |
| 10 | UCLA | +27 | 891 |
| 11 | Virginia | +41 | 905 |
| 12 | Minnesota | +74 | 938 |
| ANNIKA Intercollegiate Final Individual Standings | |||
| NAME | TEAM | TO PAR | TOTAL |
| Rachel Kuehn | Wake Forest | -13 | 203 |
| Vivian Hou | Arizona | -8 | 208 |
| Kaitlyn Papp | Texas | -7 | 209 |
| Kajal Mistry | Arkansas | -5 | 211 |
| Siyun Liu | Wake Forest | -4 | 212 |
| Lauren Walsh | Wake Forest | -3 | 213 |
| Aiko Leong | USC | -3 | 213 |
| Linn Grant | Arizona State | -2 | 214 |
| Jennifer Chang | USC | -2 | 214 |
| Kenzie Wright | Alabama | -2 | 214 |
| Alexandra Forsterling | Arizona State | -1 | 215 |