Stanford just rolls on by taking team title in Charles Schwab Women's Collegiate; Auburn's Davis the individual champion

 

   Haven’t really had a chance to check in on reigning national champion Stanford during the wraparound 2024-2025, but it seems like every time I visit the Cardinal’s website, they’ve won another tournament.

   That’s because they have. Stanford ran its stroke-play tournament win streak to eight in a row, dating back to its victory in the final edition of the Pac-12 Championship last spring with a two-shot victory over former Pac-12 rival Oregon in the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate, which wrapped up Tuesday at Colonial Country Club, Hogan’s Alley, in Fort Worth, Texas.

   Stanford is No. 1 in the Scoreboard, powered by clippd, rankings as it has since the rankings were first unveiled last fall. Capturing the team title in the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate against the toughest field the Cardinal will face until the NCAA Championship tees off at the La Costa Resort & Spa later this spring should do nothing to change that ranking.

   Stanford actually trailed its former Pac-12 rival Oregon and its new Atlantic Coast Conference rival Wake Forest following Monday’s double round as the Cardinal added a 1-over-par 281 over the challenging 6,072-yard, par-70 Colonial layout in the afternoon to their opening round of 2-over 282.

   The Ducks, who fell to Stanford in the NCAA Championship’s Final Match in 2022 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz., matched par in each half of Monday’s double round with a pair of 280s to lead the Cardinal by three going into Tuesday’s final round.

   But Stanford, getting a sparkling 3-under 67 from junior leader Megha Ganne, the Holmdel, N.J. native who is No. 12 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), closed with a 3-under 277 for an even-par 840 total.

   Oregon, No. 3 in the Scoreboard rankings, closed with a 2-over 282 to finish in second place with a 2-over 842 total.

   The Ducks were led by Kiara Romero, the talented sophomore from San Jose, Calif. who is No. 8 in the Women’s WAGR, as Romero earned runnerup honors in the individual chase, finishing a shot behind Auburn’s Anna Davis, a sophomore from Spring Valley, Calif. and No. 17 in the Women’s WAGR.

   Romero, winner of the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship in 2023 at the Air Force Academy Eisenhower Golf Club’s Blue Course in Colorado Springs, Colo., opened with a 2-under 68 and added a pair of 3-under 67s in the final two rounds for an 8-under 202 total.

   Stanford has simply reloaded since capturing its second national championship in three years last spring in the first staging of the NCAA Championship at La Costa in Carlsbad, Calif.

   Meja Ortengren, a freshman from Sweden and No. 16 in the Women’s WAGR, led the way for the Cardinal in the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate as she finished in fourth place in the individual standings with a 4-under 206 total.

   Ortengren, who might very well be the best freshman in the country, added a 3-under 67 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round to her opening-round 69 and was only one shot behind Romero and SMU’s Mackenzie Lee, a junior from North Little Rock, Ark. and No. 48 in the Women’s WAGR, in the individual standings going into Tuesday’s final round.

   Ortengren matched par in the final round with a 70 to finish at 4-under.

   Stanford had two players inside the top eight as Paula Martin Sampedro, a sophomore from Spain and No. 10 in the Women’s WAGR, finished alone in eighth place with a 1-under 209 total.

   After opening with a 2-over 72, Martin Sampedro, arguably the best freshman in the country last year, recorded a 1-under 69 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before contributing a 2-under 68 to the Cardinal’s final-round surge. Martin Sampedro finished in third place in the individual standings in last spring’s NCAA Championship at La Costa.

   Oregon lost to UCLA in the all-Pac-12 semifinals in the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring.

   Auburn, a Southeastern Conference power and No. 19 in the Scoreboard rankings, closed with a solid 2-under 278 to finish four shots behind Oregon in a tie for third place with reigning ACC champion Wake Forest, each landing on 6-over 846.

   The Tigers, who also earned a spot in the match-play bracket a year ago at La Costa only to fall to eventual national champion Stanford in the quarterfinals, had opened with a 3-over 283 at Colonial before adding a 5-over 285 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round.

   Auburn was led, of course, by the immensely talented Davis, who burst into the national consciousness when she captured the title in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship as a 16-year-old in 2022.

   Davis blew past the field in the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate with a flawless 6-under 64 over the classic Colonial layout that has hosted a PGA Tour stop since 19 and 46  in the final round that gave the left-hander a 9-under 201 total.

   Davis had opened with a 2-under 68 and added a 1-under 69 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round on her way to her third collegiate victory in a little over a year.

   Augusta National. Colonial. Seems like Davis saves her best stuff for the classics, the most challenging, the most interesting golf courses. She’ll be back in Augusta, Ga. for the opening round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, which tees off Wednesday at the Champions Resort Golf Club.

   I’ll get back to the Augusta National Women’s Amateur later in this post.

   Wake Forest, No. 9 in the Scoreboard rankings, was right there tied with Oregon for first place going into the final round as the Demon Deacons opened with a solid 3-under 277 before adding a 3-over 283 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round.

   Wake Forest closed with a 6-over 286 to join Auburn in the tie for third place at 6-over.

   Wake Forest, which captured its first national championship in 2023 at Grayhawk, came up just short of earning a spot in the match-play bracket in defense of its title a year ago at La Costa, ending up in ninth place, two shots behind Auburn.

   Arizona, another Pac-12 ex-pat playing in the Big 12 and No. 20 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished five shots behind Auburn and Wake Forest with an 11-over 851 total. After opening with a 1-over 281, the Wildcats struggled a little in the afternoon of Monday’s double round with a 290 before closing with a 3-over 283.

   Arizona failed to advance to last spring’s NCAA Championship as a three seed in the Las Vegas Regional.

   TCU, another Big 12 representative and No. 16 in the Scoreboard rankings, and Texas, which left the Big 12 for the SEC and is No. 6 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished in a tie for sixth place in the loaded 15-team field for the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate, each ending up eight shots behind Arizona at 19-over 859.

   After opening with a 291, the Horned Frogs added a 5-over 285 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before closing with a 3-over 283. The Longhorns also struggled in the opening round with a 290 and added a 2-over 282 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before closing with a 7-over 287.

   Texas advanced to last spring’s NCAA Championship with a runnerup finish as a two seed in the Bermuda Run Regional, but the Longhorns never really got it going at La Costa.

   Backing up Ortengren and Martin Sampedro for Stanford was Ganne, her closing 67 leaving her in a tie for 11^th place with a 1-over 281 total. Ganne was a member of the winning U.S. team in the Curtis Cup Match at the iconic East Course at Merion Golf Club in the summer of 2022 before she had ever even struck a shot for Stanford.

   Kelly Xu, a junior from Claremont, Calif. and No. 24 in the Women’s WAGR, finished among the group tied for 32^nd place for Stanford with an 8-over 218 total. Xu matched par in the opening round with a 70 and added a 2-over 72 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before closing with a 6-over 76.

   Martin Sampedro, Ganne and Xu were all in the lineup for Stanford in its victory over UCLA in the NCAA Championship’s Final Match last spring at La Costa.

   Rounding out the Stanford lineup was Ortengren’s fellow Swede and fellow freshman, Nora Sundberg, who is No. 50 in the Women’s WAGR, as she finished in the group tied for 37^th place with a 9-over 219 total. After opening with a 4-over 74, Sundberg improved by a shot in each successive round, adding a 73 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before closing with a solid 72.

   SMU’s Lee was tied for the lead with Oregon’s Romero going into the final round as Lee added a 3-under 67 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round to her opening-round 69. Lee matched par in the final round to finish alone in third place, three shots behind Romero with a 4-under 206 total.

   Wake Forest’s Carolina Chacarra, a senior from Spain and No. 27 in the Women’s WAGR, finished a shot behind Lee in fifth place with a 3-under 207 total. Chacarra opened with a 2-under 68 and added a 69 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round that left her just two shots out of the lead going into the final round before matching par in the final round with a 70.

   Karen Tsuru, a sophomore from Carlsbad, Calif. and No. 55 in the Women’s WAGR, gave Oregon a second finisher among the top six as she ended up in a tie for sixth place with Texas’ Lauren Kim, a sophomore from Canada and No. 20 in the Women’s WAGR, each landing a shot behind Chacarra with a 2-under 208 total.

   Tsuru opened with a 2-under 68 and added a 69 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before closing with a 1-over 71. After matching par in the opening round with a 70, Kim registered back-to-back 1-under 69s in the final two rounds to join Tsuru at 2-under.

   The Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate was something of a preview for next week’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur, which has quickly established itself as one of the premier events in women’s amateur golf.

   The top eight finishers in the individual standings at Colonial as well as the other three players in the Stanford lineup outside the top eight will all be in the field when the Augusta National Women’s Amateur tees off Wednesday at the Champions Retreat Golf Club Wednesday. Have a feeling Colonial is going to prove to be perfect preparation for Champions Retreat and Augusta National Golf Club, the Alister Mackenzie masterpiece that will host the Masters Tournament, the first men’s major professional championship of 2025, a week later.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the individual standings were TCU’s Camille Min-Gaultier, a freshman from France, and Oklahoma State’s Marta Silchenko, a sophomore from Latvia, as both ended up a shot behind Martin Sampedro in a tie for ninth place at even-par 210.

   After matching par with a 70 in the opening round, Min-Gaultier posted a solid 1-under 69 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before closing with a 1-over 71. After opening with a 2-over 72, Silchenko recorded a solid 2-under 68 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before matching par in the final round with a 70.

   Freshman Angelina Tolentino, who starred at Lenape High in South Jersey and is the reigning Pennsylvania Women’s Amateur champion, once again appeared in the starting lineup for SEC power Vanderbilt, which is No. 15 in the Scoreboard rankings.

   Tolentino finished among the group tied for 46^th place in the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate with an 11-over 221 total. Tolentino opened with a solid 1-over 71 and added a 6-over 76 in the afternoon of Monday’s double round before closing with a 74.

   The Commodores finished in 11^th place in the team standings with a 30-over 870 total.