Outstanding Stanford freshmen did it again.
Rose Jean, the No. 1 amateur in the world, won the NCAA Women’s Individual Championship on Monday at the Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was a year after her teammate Rachel Heck won the title as a freshman.
“It means the world to me,” Zhang told the golf channel. “I feel that coming to college was the best decision in my life.”
Zhang will be the 10th freshman to win a female individual title.
On a day shy about his 19th birthday, Zhang entered the final round of stroke play with a 7-shot lead and sat under 9 for the tournament.
The final round wasn’t easy for everyone, as Zhang described the course as a “brutal grind.”
NCAADI Women’s Golf Championship Individual Score
A strong start, including a par 4 second birdie, replaced the error as the round progressed. The first was a par 3 in 5th place with a double bogey, followed by 9th, 10th and 15th bogies. Her only other round birdie was 13th in par 3.
The young star Reed was trimmed from 7 shots to 3 shots on the 10th hole, and Texas A & M’s Jenny Park landed. Zhang’s score dropped from 9 under to 6 under on the last bogey on the 15th, then shot a par on the last 3 holes to stop bleeding and finally scored 3 over 75 for the day.
She was the only over-per-score stroke play, but she posted 68-70-69 earlier, but Zhang was happy to know she was the champion and finish the day. ..
In a momentary breathtaking pose to his teammates, Zhang sank a putt for the 18th par, and after a day projecting only a stoic and focused attitude, he finally relaxed his smile. I did.
“I saw every inch of the golf course I didn’t see in the first three days,” Zhang said. “I am very grateful to be here for knowing that I have completed the C game.”
Victory is nothing new to freshmen born in Arcadia, California. Zhang won the AllPac-12 First Team honor as Cardinal, winning his first three events and not finishing below 10th place throughout the season.
Despite the bounce of team leads, Par 3’s 16th Zhang teammate Brooksie’s personal title and ace were enough to make Stanford the top seed for Tuesday’s match play. Oregon, Texas A & M, UCLA, Auburn, Florida, San Jose and Georgia are also eligible for match play.
Cardinal Chan will be confronting the 8th seed bulldog, so there is no celebration of Zhang’s birthday yet. For now, she has to get over herself with the water bottle spray bath she received from her teammates on the 18th green.
“I have more ambitions than becoming an individual national champion,” Zhang said. “I want to raise the trophy with my teammates. There is still a long way to go.”
