Wednesday, April 20
PGA National Resort & Spa / Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
University of North Texas
vs
Conference USA Championship
Back-to-Back: UNT Women Repeat As C-USA Champs
4/20/2022 4:28:00 PM | Women's Golf
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. - The North Texas women's golf team overcame a two-shot deficit to start the final round on Wednesday, watched it balloon to as many as six shots and overcame the odds to pull out a one-stroke victory over UTSA to claim its second consecutive Conference USA championship at PGA National.
The Mean Green got a superb bounce back performance from senior leader Audrey Tan, who shot an uncharacteristic 80 in Tuesday's second round before tying for the best round in the field on Wednesday with a 4-over 76 to clip the Roadrunners in the closing few holes.
"The plan today was just to go out there and give it my very best every shot," said Tan, who won the 2021 individual championship. "I was just focused on staying relaxed and enjoying the golf course - challenge and all. So I'm happy to able to overcome the struggle from yesterday and fight to put together a good round that was good enough to help us win."
North Texas, which was the highest-ranked team in the field (No. 44), shot the best round of the day for the second straight day with a 32-over 320 and moved into the top spot behind Tan, an 80 from senior Patricia Sinolungan, who birdied 18, and sophomore Ellie Roth, who was subbed in for junior Emilie Ricaud after playing in Monday's opening round but being subbed out for Tuesday's second round. Head coach Michael Akers took advantage of a new rule this year that allows one alternate to be subbed in freely before each day of play. Roth had the second-best round of the day for the Mean Green on Wednesday with a 79, including birdies on 13 and 17 - two of the team's four birdies on a day that proved to be incredibly difficult.
"I have been coaching a while and have never seen a golf course play as difficult as PGA National played today," Akers said. "The wind gusted over 40 mph and the famous Bear Trap holes were insane. It was a battle with UTSA and fortunately we came out on top. We knew Audrey would have a good day, and she did."
Tan agreed with her coach, saying she knew Wednesday would be a challenge and praised her teammates and their collective mental toughness.
"It was a very tough course in tough conditions," Tan said. "It definitely took a lot of mental strength and grit to persevere, but I think we all did our best to embrace what was thrown at us and handled it as well as we could. I couldn't be prouder to be a part of this team.
"I'm very happy for (Roth). I know the first round was tough on her, and I'm glad she got to get back out today and make the most of it."
Tan and Sinolungan tied for sixth with three-round totals of 16-over par, and sophomore Shreya Pal finished tied for 14th after a tough final round following two strong rounds.
The Mean Green were in a similar position last year, when they trailed by four shots going into the final round before running away with a 12-shot victory. But Wednesday's finish proved to be much more dramatic, as Sinolungan's birdie on 18, Roth's birdie on 17Â and junior Marija Jucmane's birdie on 15 proved to be pivotal.
"Fortunately, Marija kept grinding and ultimately her score saved the day," Akers said. "It feels good to win back-to-back championships. Now, we focus on preparing for regionals."
With the win, the Mean Green are assured a spot in the NCAA Regional after last year's was infamously canceled due to rainy and wet course conditions in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. UNT went on to win the Barstool Sports Let Them Play Classic that was thrown together for all the teams who missed out on their NCAA Regional bid in Baton Rouge. Even if UNT hadn't repeated as conference champions, it had already locked up a regional bid due to its national ranking.
The 2022 NCAA DI Women's Golf Selection Show will be on GOLF Channel on April 27 at 4 p.m.Â
Fans can follow the program on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram throughout the season and for more information on their NCAA Regional bid coming soon.
Team Leaderboard
1. No. 44 North Texas (+71)
2. No. 49Â UTSAÂ (+72)
T3. Charlotte (+91)
T3. Florida International (+91)
T3. Old Dominion (+91)
T3. Florida Atlantic (+91)
7. Southern Mississippi (+94)
8. Western Kentucky (+100)
9. Middle Tennessee (+104)
10. UTEP (+110)
11. Marshall (+113)
12. UAB (+142)
Player Leaderboard
T6. Audrey Tan (+16)
T6. Patricia Sinolungan (+16)
T14. Shreya Pal (+21)
S. Emilie Ricaud (+23)
S. Marija Jucmane (+15)
S. Ellie Roth (+19)*
*Subbed in for Emilie Ricaud for Wednesday's Round 3, and also played in Round 1
The Mean Green got a superb bounce back performance from senior leader Audrey Tan, who shot an uncharacteristic 80 in Tuesday's second round before tying for the best round in the field on Wednesday with a 4-over 76 to clip the Roadrunners in the closing few holes.
"The plan today was just to go out there and give it my very best every shot," said Tan, who won the 2021 individual championship. "I was just focused on staying relaxed and enjoying the golf course - challenge and all. So I'm happy to able to overcome the struggle from yesterday and fight to put together a good round that was good enough to help us win."
North Texas, which was the highest-ranked team in the field (No. 44), shot the best round of the day for the second straight day with a 32-over 320 and moved into the top spot behind Tan, an 80 from senior Patricia Sinolungan, who birdied 18, and sophomore Ellie Roth, who was subbed in for junior Emilie Ricaud after playing in Monday's opening round but being subbed out for Tuesday's second round. Head coach Michael Akers took advantage of a new rule this year that allows one alternate to be subbed in freely before each day of play. Roth had the second-best round of the day for the Mean Green on Wednesday with a 79, including birdies on 13 and 17 - two of the team's four birdies on a day that proved to be incredibly difficult.
"I have been coaching a while and have never seen a golf course play as difficult as PGA National played today," Akers said. "The wind gusted over 40 mph and the famous Bear Trap holes were insane. It was a battle with UTSA and fortunately we came out on top. We knew Audrey would have a good day, and she did."
Tan agreed with her coach, saying she knew Wednesday would be a challenge and praised her teammates and their collective mental toughness.
"It was a very tough course in tough conditions," Tan said. "It definitely took a lot of mental strength and grit to persevere, but I think we all did our best to embrace what was thrown at us and handled it as well as we could. I couldn't be prouder to be a part of this team.
"I'm very happy for (Roth). I know the first round was tough on her, and I'm glad she got to get back out today and make the most of it."
Tan and Sinolungan tied for sixth with three-round totals of 16-over par, and sophomore Shreya Pal finished tied for 14th after a tough final round following two strong rounds.
The Mean Green were in a similar position last year, when they trailed by four shots going into the final round before running away with a 12-shot victory. But Wednesday's finish proved to be much more dramatic, as Sinolungan's birdie on 18, Roth's birdie on 17Â and junior Marija Jucmane's birdie on 15 proved to be pivotal.
"Fortunately, Marija kept grinding and ultimately her score saved the day," Akers said. "It feels good to win back-to-back championships. Now, we focus on preparing for regionals."
With the win, the Mean Green are assured a spot in the NCAA Regional after last year's was infamously canceled due to rainy and wet course conditions in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. UNT went on to win the Barstool Sports Let Them Play Classic that was thrown together for all the teams who missed out on their NCAA Regional bid in Baton Rouge. Even if UNT hadn't repeated as conference champions, it had already locked up a regional bid due to its national ranking.
The 2022 NCAA DI Women's Golf Selection Show will be on GOLF Channel on April 27 at 4 p.m.Â
Fans can follow the program on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram throughout the season and for more information on their NCAA Regional bid coming soon.
Team Leaderboard
1. No. 44 North Texas (+71)
2. No. 49Â UTSAÂ (+72)
T3. Charlotte (+91)
T3. Florida International (+91)
T3. Old Dominion (+91)
T3. Florida Atlantic (+91)
7. Southern Mississippi (+94)
8. Western Kentucky (+100)
9. Middle Tennessee (+104)
10. UTEP (+110)
11. Marshall (+113)
12. UAB (+142)
Player Leaderboard
T6. Audrey Tan (+16)
T6. Patricia Sinolungan (+16)
T14. Shreya Pal (+21)
S. Emilie Ricaud (+23)
S. Marija Jucmane (+15)
S. Ellie Roth (+19)*
*Subbed in for Emilie Ricaud for Wednesday's Round 3, and also played in Round 1
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
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