Photo: U.S. Women's Open (USGA)
This week, the best women in golf are showcasing their talents at Country Club of Charleston for the 74th U.S. Women’s Open. This will be the championship’s first appearance at the iconic venue and 42 ANNIKA alumnae are set to compete.
Of the 42 former ANNIKA players, 18 are amateurs. Leading the pack is Gina Kim, who just last week helped Duke claim their seventh national title at the NCAA Championship. Joining her is Stanford’s Andrea Lee who has competed in seven ANNIKA events in her career. Currently ranked 4th in World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR), Lee had five top-5 finishes in the six events she played this season. Sierra Brooks is also a top amateur competing this week. The Florida Gator finished runner-up in the NCAA Championship and all three players competed in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur this past April. Other amateurs competing this week are Leonie Harm, Jiwon Jeon, Yuka Saso, Megan Furtney, Celeste Dao, Alexa Pano, Kaitlyn Papp, Brigitte Dunne, Karolina Stormo, Sabrina Iqbal, Ty Akabane, Jennifer Chang, Gabriela Ruffels, Auston Kim and Megha Ganne.
Alumnae to watch in the professional ranks include Bronte Law who is enjoying a very solid year. Winner of the 2016 ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel while at UCLA, Law is headed into the week after securing her first LPGA Tour win at the Pure Silk Championship.
Another is Maria Fassi, who is making her professional debut this week. The Razorback, winner of the 2018 ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel, finished her amateur career in dominant fashion last week claiming the NCAA individual title in Arkansas.
Nelly Korda, ranked No. 11 in Rolex Rankings, has also had an impressive season so far. The 2017 rookie started the year off strong with a win at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open and has tallied six top-10 finishes this year.
Other ANNIKA alumnae who will be competing this week are Aditi Ashok, Celine Boutier, Austin Ernst, Jaye Marie Green, Danielle Kang, Megan Khang, Jessica Korda, Yu Liu, Yan Liu, Gaby Lopez, Annie Park, Mariah Stackhouse, Emma Talley, Angel Yin, Leona Maguire, Ingrid Gutierrez Nunez, Tiffany Chan, Nanna Madsen, Stephanie Meadow, , Patty Tavatanakit and Amy Ruengmateekhu.
We wish the best of luck to all our former ANNIKA competitors playing this week and will be cheering everyone on!