PHOENIX - Sun Devil Women's Golf delivered a historic round as they climbed into second place after day two of the PING/ASU Invitational.
No. 11 Arizona State used a balanced team effort to shoot a 277 (-11), the third-lowest team score ever at PING/ASU Invitational. It also matches the seventh-lowest score in the history of the Sun Devil Women's Golf program. Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye's team was the best team by five strokes today and are in firm contention for a third consecutive team title at their home event.
Three Sun Devils sit in the Top-6 after 36 holes, led by freshman Paula Schulz-Hanssen. Schulz Hanssen (-3/141) is in sole possession of fifth place and only four strokes back of the overall leader. Fellow freshman Beth Coulter is also performing well in her PING/ASU debut, currently tied for sixth after shooting a 70 (-2). She is tied with teammate Ashley Menne, who made the second biggest jump of any single golfer, sliding up 33 spots and into a tie for sixth after shooting a team-best 68 (-4). Calynne Rosholt enjoyed a similar result thanks to her 69 (-3), as she raised 32 spots and into the Top-25 (T23).
The Maroon & Gold begin their push on the final day of the PING/ASU Invitational tomorrow at 9 AM, starting on the first hole. Not only is Arizona State in a position for a potential team title, several Sun Devils are eyeing an individual title at Papago Golf Club. Live scoring for the PING/ASU Invitational will be provided by Golfstat at the following link.
ROUND BREAKDOWN
Arizona State began their round on the front nine and saw a vast improvement from day one's results during the stretch. ASU was 26 strokes better from day one to day two on the first nine holes, which was a huge reason why they were able to make up so much ground. It started early, as they wasted no time recording birdies. Menne, Rosholt, Schulz-Hanssen, and Grace Summerhays all started off with birdies on the first hole to set the tone. Menne and Summerhays then followed with birdies, as the Sun Devils got off to a fast start. Amanda Linner and Summerhays each birdied hole four, while back-to-back birdies came from Schluz-Hanssen on six and seven. ASU made the turn with four of their five counting scores under par.
The Sun Devils continued their success from day one on the back nine, as they finished the day strong. Both Calynne Rosholt and Ashley Menne finished two-under, with two birdies the only time they strayed away from par. No one was better than Beth Coulter down the stretch, as she finished three-under over the final nine holes. This included three birdies and an eagle on the par-five, 512-yard 15th hole. It is one of only eight birdies recorded at the PING/ASU, three of which have taken place on 15. Schulz-Hanssen went nine-for-nine on pars, finishing her round with ten straight total. Linner birdied the 16th hole and is one of four Sun Devils in the Top-20 (T-17th).
NOTABLES
- Arizona State shot a 277 (-11), which is the third best score ever by the team at the PING/ASU Invitational.
- The only two round better at Papago Golf Club at the PING/ASU Invitational were both by ASU, as they shot a 275 (-13) in last year's second round and a 273 (-15) in the third round of the 2017 edition.
- The 277 was tied for the seventh-best 18-hole score vs. par in program history, all of which have come with Coach Farr-Kaye in Tempe.
275 (-17) 2022 Pac-12 Preview, par 73 (first)
272 (-16) 2017 NCAA Regionals, par 72 (third)
273 (-15) 2017 PING/ASU Invitational, par 72 (third)
273 (-15) 2009 NCAA West Regional, par 72 (first)
275 (-13) 2022 PING/ASU Invitational, par 72 (second)
276 (-12) 2017 Mason Rudolph, par 72 (second)
273 (-11) 2010 Stanford Intercollegiate, par 70 (first)
277 (-11) 2023 PING/ASU Invitational, par 72 (second)
- The 18-stroke improvement from round one to round two was the second-largest of the season for Arizona State, as they improved their total from 295 to 277 to move into second place.
- Coach Farr-Kaye's team had the best round of the day by far, beating out Baylor (282) by five strokes. This allowed them to gain ground on everyone in the field.
- Four of the five counting scores were under par and three of the seven Sun Devils sit in the Top-10.
- Ashley Menne shot a 68 (-4) to move an incredible 33 spots up the leaderboard and into a tie for sixth place.
- She did not record a bogey the entire round, using a pair of birdies on each of the nines to climb the individual standings.
- Joining Menne in making a jump was Calynne Rosholt, who fired a 69 (-3) to leap 32 spots into a tie for 23rd.
- Rosholt also did not register a bogey and ended her day with two birdies on her final five holes.
- Beth Coulter also elevated her game, shaving three strokes off her score during a second round of 70 (-2).
- She is tied moved up 16 places and into a tie for sixth with teammate Ashley Menne.
- Leading the way in the individual standings for the Sun Devils is Paula Schulz-Hanssen, who is in sole posession of fifth place. Her 141 (-3) is only four strokes off the overall lead heading into the final day.
- She is one of only five golfers to go under par on both days, shooting 70 (-2) to slide into the Top-5.
- Arizona State has displayed a well-rounded game, currently sitting in the Top-5 in scoring average on par three, four, and five holes. Their 4.03 average on par four holes is the second-best in the field. ASU is six-under on par five holes for the tournament.
- The Sun Devils 127 total pars are the most of any team, as they have managed to avoid many mistakes. That is in comparison to 24 birdies from the counting lineup (32 total birdies).
- Coulter carded an Eagle on the par-five, 512-yard hole. It is one of only eight eagles at the tournament so far.
- Schulz-Hanssen has the second-best scoring average on par four holes (3.85). Ashley Menne is not far behind (3.90), also in the Top-5 in the field.
- Coulter has been extremely successful on par five holes, boasting a 4.50 scoring average, tied for the second-best in the field.
- Schulz-Hanssen leads all individuals with 29 pars compared to only two bogeys.
- Amanda Linner and Beth Coulter are each tied for a team-high with seven birdies a piece.
"We talked about a couple of things yesterday," Coach Farr-Kaye reflected. "One was our par 5 scoring - and then of course - the first hole is a par 5. We talked about how we were going to start and just putting ourselves in position to be able to have the opportunity to make birdies. That was our goal the first 5 holes; get in position. We started off so well on one, it was just insane. Then the momentum just kept going all day long."
Are there any players that come to mind who really had an impressive showing?
"Everyone played really well and it's awesome," Coach Farr-Kaye added. "Calynne's been ready for a good round and that's exactly what she did today. Under par for both the freshman is great. Ashley is just such a great leader and anchor for our team. It was great to see that, but Calynne's been waiting for a good round and that one felt satisfying. Watching Paula and Beth really start to feel confident in their abilities as freshman - because they're so good - is just really cool to watch."
What are the goals for tomorrow?
"We'll talk before the end of the day about some of the strategy conversations we had yesterday, because we went over the holes," Coach Farr-Kaye forecased. "We had a couple of holes we consistently struggled on yesterday. We'll go over that quickly and talk about starting off strong and trying to continue that momentum."
On the importance to have a good outing today
"It was really important," senior Ashley Menne mentioned. "This is our home event and this is our home course. We want to play well, so I think today just kind of goes to show we're a pretty good team and we're good players. We have what it takes to win, so I think if we just do what we did today, we'll be good for tomorrow."
On what part of her game impressed her today:
"I would say my putting was great, I don't think I three-putted once today and basically all my putts were to a foot or inside of that," Menn reflected. "So I was happy with that since I was working on that."
On tomorrow's goals for herself and the team:
"We want to start strong," Menne added. "Be ready to play golf. I think that's really important. We started out slow the first day, so going out and making some birdies on the first five holes would be good. Finish strong down the stretch, it's not over until we sink the last putt on 18."
TEAM STANDINGS
| Place | Team | 1 | 2 | To Par |
| 1 | #23 Northwestern | 282 | 282 | -12 |
| 2 | #11 Arizona State | 295 | 277 | -4 |
| 3 | #14 Baylor | 290 | 287 | +1 |
| 4 | #6 Mississippi State | 290 | 288 | +2 |
| 5 | #5 Oregon | 290 | 290 | +4 |
INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS
| Place | Player | 1 | 2 | To Par |
| 5 | Paula Schulz-Hanssen | 71 | 70 | -3 |
| T6 | Ashley Menne | 75 | 68 | -1 |
| T6 | Beth Coulter | 73 | 70 | -1 |
| T17 | Amanda Linner | 69 | 76 | +1 |
| T23 | Calynne Rosholt | 77 | 69 | +2 |
| T43 | Grace Summerhays | 76 | 73 | +5 |
UP NEXT
Arizona State will begin the final round of the PING/ASU Invitational tomorrow morning at 9:00 AM MST as a part of the featured group.
| PAIRING | Arizona State, Northwestern, Baylor |
| HOLE | 1 |
| TIME (MST) | GOLFER |
| 9:00 AM | Beth Coulter |
| 9:09 AM | Grace Summerhays |
| 9:18 AM | Paula Schulz-Hanssen |
| 9:27 AM | Ashley Menne |
| 9:36 AM | Amanda Linner |
| HOLE | 10 |
| 8:15 AM | Breyana Matthews |
| 8:51 AM | Amanda Linner |
HISTORY AT THE PING/ASU INVITATIONAL
This is the 50th edition of the PING/ASU Invitational, which has developed a reputation as one of the toughest fields in the Spring women's golf season. The first 45 were at Karsten Golf Course, with the past four taking place at Papago Golf Club. It represents a prime opportunity for the top teams in the nation to get a taste of the intensity of postseason golf leading up to the conference champions.
Arizona State has won the most event titles, claiming the team championship at PING/ASU an incredible 22 times. This included the 2021 & 2022 versions, as they look to win a third consecutive PING/ASU title for fifth time in program history. They last did so when Linda Vollstedt's team won five straight titles from 1991-1996. ASU also won the title in 2017 on their way to a National Championship.
The Maroon & Gold also boast the most individual medalists in tournament history, with Sun Devils earning the crown 17 times. This includes Alexandra Forsterling last year. Forsterling (-9/207) had to beat out teammate Ashley Menne for the title, as Arizona State finished 1-2 in the final player standings. She became the first Sun Devil to win at PING/ASU since Roberta Liti back in 2017. Some of the top scores in program history have come at PING/ASU, with Monica Vaughn leading the way with a historic 64 (-8) in the first round of the 2017 version.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Live scoring for the PING/ASU Invitational will be provided by Golfstat at the following link. For the latest updates and information on the Sun Devil Women's Golf program, follow our Twitter/Instagram accounts (@SunDevilWGolf), like our Facebook page (facebook.com/sundevilwgolf/), and visit our website (thesundevils.com).
2023 NCAA WOMEN'S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP
Arizona State and the Thunderbirds will host the NCAA Men's and Women's Golf Championships for the third consecutive year, taking place at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale May 19-31. This is the final of successful three-year run as the host school of the most prestigious event in all of college golf. Don't miss your last chance to check out the top individuals and teams in the nation square off for the ultimate prize in your own backyard.