Schutte gets share of individual title to lead Arkansas to team crown in Purdue Puerto Rico Classic

 

   With Abbey Schutte, a junior from Goodyear, Ariz., clicking off her second straight individual title, with the reigning NCAA individual champion in the lineup and the midseason addition of a hotshot freshman from France, you need just two words to describe the outlook for the Arkansas women’s golf team right now: Look out.

   A perennial power in the Southeastern Conference, the most competitive circuit in college golf – really in college sports, period – the Razorbacks earned a spot in the match-play bracket in last spring’s NCAA Championship at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., falling to eventual national champion Northwestern in the quarterfinals.

   Schutte won her match in that frustrating 3-2 setback to the Wildcats and she was one of three co-medalists in a loaded field in the Purdue Puerto Rico Classic, which wrapped up Monday at the Grand Reserve Golf Club in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico, while leading Arkansas, No. 4 in the latest Scoreboard, powered by clippd, rankings, to the team title.

   The Purdue Puerto Rico Classic has always been one of the first big events as the spring sprint to the NCAA postseason gets under way.

   Originally scheduled to be single rounds Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, the threat of rainy weather prompted tournament officials to play a double round Sunday and hope to finish Monday or Tuesday.

   Arkansas proved worthy of its lofty ranking as the Razorbacks got off to a great start with a 9-under 279 in the opening round and a sizzling 13-under 275 in Sunday afternoon’s second round, the best team round of the tournament, to take a one-shot lead over revitalized
Atlantic Coast Conference power North Carolina going into Monday’s final round.

   I’m guessing some wind from approaching weather kicked up Monday as the scores were generally higher, but Arkansas’ solid final round of 1-under 287 gave it a 23-under 841 total that was easily good enough to defeat a couple of its SEC rivals, Mississippi and Vanderbilt, by six shots.

   Schutte fueled Sunday’s hot start for Arkansas as she opened with a 7-under 65, the low individual round of the tournament, and added a 67 in Sunday afternoon’s second round to build a one-shot lead over North Carolina’s Reagan Southerland, a junior from Atlanta, Ga., going into Monday’s final round.

   Schutte struggled a little in the final round with a 2-over 74, but her 10-under 206 total was good enough to give her a share of the individual crown with Southerland and Kansas State’s Kelsey Chen, a sophomore from China.

   Schutte had finished out the fall portion of the wraparound 2025-2026 college season by claiming an individual victory in The Ally at Old Waverly Golf Club in West Point, Miss. in October.

   Southerland was right on Schutte’s heels the whole way as she opened with a sparkling 6-under 66 and added a 67 in Sunday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 1-over 73, chipping in for birdie on her final hole to earn a share of the individual title at 10-under. It was her first collegiate individual win.

   Chen was three shots behind Schutte going into the final round after she added a 2-under 70 in Sunday afternoon’s second round to her opening-round 68. Chen closed with another 4-under 68 that enabled her to catch Schutte and Southerland at 10-under for her first collegiate victory.

   After opening with a 3-under 285, Ole Miss, No. 15 in the Scoreboard rankings, posted back-to-back 7-under 281s to earn a share of second place with a 17-under 847 total.

   The Rebels were led by Kajsalotta Svarvar, a sophomore from Sweden who finished two shots behind the trio at the top of the leaderboard in fourth place with an 8-under 208 total. Svarvar sandwiched a 2-under 70 in Sunday afternoon’s second round with a pair of 3-under 69s.

   Ole Miss earned a trip to the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring with a runnerup finish in the Charlottesville Regional, but was unable to claim a spot in the match-play bracket.

   Vanderbilt, No. 10 in the Scoreboard in the rankings, matched par in the opening round with a 288 before putting together two solid rounds, an 8-under 280 in Sunday afternoon’s second round and a 9-under 279 in the final round, the best team round of the day, to join Ole Miss at 17-under.

   The Commodores were led by none other than sophomore Angelina Tolentino, who starred scholastically at Lenape in South Jersey and captured the title in the 2024 Pennsylvania Women’s Amateur Championship at Waynesborough Country Club.

   Tolentino had the best round of the day in Monday’s final round, a sparkling 5-under 67 that enabled her to join a group of five players tied for eighth place at 5-under 211. After opening with a 2-under 70, Tolentino fell back to even-par with a 2-over 74 in Sunday afternoon’s second round.

   Starting off the sixth tee in the shotgun start, Tolentino rattled off birdies at the sixth, ninth, 11^th, 12^th, 15^th and 17^th holes to get it to 6-under for the round before making a bogey at 18, the only blemish on her scorecard. It was Tolentino’s third top-10 finish in the wraparound 2025-’26 season.

   Vanderbilt earned a spot in the field in the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring by finishing in fifth place as a four seed in the Lexington Regional, but the Commodores were unable to land a berth in the match-play bracket.

   LSU, No. 33 in the Scoreboard rankings, made it an SEC sweep of the top four sports as the Tigers finished three shots behind Ole Miss and Vandy in fourth place with a 14-under 850 total.

   LSU was solid throughout, opening with a 5-under 283 and adding a 279 in Sunday afternoon’s second round before matching par in the final round with a 288.

   The Tigers were led by Rocio Tejedo, a sophomore from Spain and No. 26 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) who finished in a tie for fifth place with Arkansas’ Reagan Zibilski, a senior from Springfield, Mo. and No. 43 in the Women’s WAGR, and Northwestern’s tenacious Dianna Lee, a senior from San Diego, Calif. and No. 80 in the Women’s WAGR, all of whom landed on 6-under 210.

   After matching par in the opening round with a 72, Tejedo added a 4-under 68 in Sunday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 70.

   Zibilski, backing up Schutte for the Razorbacks, rattled off three straight 2-under 70s to join the trio at 6-under.

   Lee, who cooly accounted for the clinching point in Northwestern’s semifinal victory over Oregon and again in the Final Match against Stanford to deliver a national title for the Wildcats at La Costa, added a solid 4-under 68 in Sunday afternoon’s second round to her opening-round 69 before closing with a 1-over 73.

   LSU earned a trip to the NCAA Championship last spring by finishing in fifth place as a two seed in the Columbus Regional. The Tigers finished just two shots out of a spot in the quarterfinals in a tie for 10^th place in qualifying for match play at La Costa.

   After a strong start, North Carolina, No. 14 in the Scoreboard rankings, struggled to a 9-over 297 in the final round to finish in fifth place, two shots behind LSU with a 12-under 852 total.

   The Tar Heels, with Southerland leading the way, opened with a sparkling 12-under 276 before adding a 279 in Sunday afternoon’s second round that left them just a shot behind Arkansas going into the final round.

   North Carolina failed to advance to the NCAA Championship at La Costa as a three seed in the Norman Regional last spring.

   Big 12 representative Kansas State, No. 26 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished five shots behind North Carolina in sixth place with a 7-under 857 total.

   With Chen leading the way, the Plains Wildcats recorded a pair of 4-under 284s in Sunday’s double round before closing with a 1-over 289.

   Kansas State earned its first trip to the NCAA Championship in program history last spring by finishing in a tie for second place in the Lexington Regional.

   In seventh place in the loaded 18-team field in Rio Grande were the Windy City Wildcats as reigning national champion Northwestern ended up two shots behind Kansas State with a 5-under 859 total.

   Northwestern, behind Lee, opened with a solid 7-under 281 and added a 4-under 284 in Sunday afternoon’s second round before closing with a 6-over 294.

   Backing up Schutte and Zabilski for Arkansas was reigning NCAA individual champion Maria Jose Marin, a junior from Colombia and No. 7 in the Women’s WAGR, as she joined the group that included Tolentino in the tie for eighth place at 5-under.

   The always steady Jose Marin added a pair of 2-under 70s in the final two rounds to her opening-round 71.

   Marin added to her gaudy amateur record in November when she captured the title in the Women’s Amateur Latin America in a playoff at PGA Riviera Maya in Mexico.

   The Arkansas lineup got a little deeper when Sara Brentcheneff, a freshman from France and No. 27 in the Women’s WAGR, showed up in Fayetteville in time for the spring semester and she made an immediate impact, finishing in the  group tied for 29^th place with an even-par 216 total.

   Brentcheneff sandwiched a 3-under 69 in Sunday afternoon’s second round with a pair of 1-over 73s.

   Rounding out the Arkansas lineup was Swetha Sathish, a freshman from Canada who finished among the group tied for 59^th place with a 5-over 221 total. Sathish also contributed a 3-under 69 for the Razorbacks in Sunday afternoon’s second round while tallying a pair of 4-over 76s in the first and final rounds.

   Natalie Blonien, a sophomore from Altus, Okla., competed as an individual for Arkansas and was solid, ending up in the group tied for 36^th place with a 1-over 217 total. Blonien sandwiched a 1-over 73 in Sunday afternoon’s second round with a pair of even-par 72s.

   Joining Tolentino and Marin in the quintet tied for eighth place at 5-under in the individual standings were Iowa’s Riley Lewis, a senior from Edwardsville, Ill., Minnesota’s Luismariana Mesones, a junior from Peru, and Furman’s Audrey Ryu, a junior from Dublin, Ohio.

   Lewis got off to a great start in Sunday’s double round, adding a 3-under 69 in the afternoon to her opening-round 68 before closing with a 2-over 74.

   Mesones matched par in the first and final rounds with 72s around a sparkling 5-under 67 in Sunday afternoon’s second round. Ryu sandwiched a 1-under 71 in Sunday afternoon’s second round with a pair of 2-under 70s.

   Tolentino wasn’t the only Jersey girl with a solid showing at Grand Reserve. Northwestern sophomore Megan Meng, a scholastic standout at Hopewell Valley Central High in Pennington, N.J., finished in the group tied for 44^th place with a 2-over 218 total.

   Meng, winner of the Pennsylvania Junior Girls Championship in 2020 at Hershey Country Club, was not in the lineup during the Wildcats’ run to the national championship last spring, but I’m certain she was very much part of a team dynamic that resulted in the program’s first national title.

   Meng recorded a pair of 1-over 73s in Sunday’s double round before matching par in the final round with a 72.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Host Pepperdine rolls to team title in Southwestern Invitational; San Diego State's Takis the individual champion

 

   It’s been five years since Pepperdine captured the national championship with a tremendous performance at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz., erasing the disappointment from the spring of 2020 when the Saheeth Theegala-led Waves were ranked No. 1 when the onset of the coronavirus pandemic forced the abrupt end of a promising season.

   Michael Beard is still the head coach at Pepperdine and the Waves are still one of the top teams on the West Coast, a point they drove home with a dominant 17-shot victory as the host team in the Southwestern Invitational, which wrapped up Wednesday at the North Ranch Country Club’s Lakes and Oaks nines in Westlake Village, Calif.

   Much as the Sea Best Intercollegiate got the spring half of the wraparound 2025-2026 season under way for the women in Florida last week, the Southwestern fulfilled its role as a spring starter for the men in a field filled with a lot of the West Coast’s top teams.

   When a high of 23 degrees almost feels warm here in the Northeast, just thinking about good players playing golf somewhere warm has a way of inspiring thoughts of spring.

   With three players finishing inside the top six, led by Brady Siravo, a senior from Sacramento, Calif. and No. 74 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) who was the runnerup in the individual standings, Pepperdine, a perennial West Coast Conference power, took the lead in the opening round and never relinquished it in capturing the Southwestern title in convincing fashion.

   Pepperdine’s opening round of 7-under 281 gave it the lead and the Waves backed it up with a 9-under 279 in Tuesday’s second round, the low team round of the tournament, before closing with a 5-over 293 in more difficult conditions for an 11-under 853 total.

   Pepperdine is No. 15 in the latest Scoreboard, powered by clipped, rankings.

   Pepperdine earned a trip to the NCAA Championship at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. last spring by finishing in fifth place as a four seed in the Amherst Regional. The Waves made it to the last day of qualifying for match play, but were unable to earn a spot in the quarterfinals.

   San Diego State, the reigning four-time Mountain West Conference champion, was Pepperdine’s closest pursuer, earning runnerup honors with a 6-over 870 total.

   The Aztecs were led by individual champion Henry Takis, a sophomore from Australia and No. 59 in the WAGR who earned his first collegiate victory with a 7-under 209 total.

   Takis added a 4-under 68 in Tuesday’s second round to his opening-round 69 to take a one-shot lead over Pepperdine’s Siravo into the final round. Takis matched par in difficult conditions in the final round with a 72 to finish two shots clear of Siravo.

   San Diego State, No. 29 in the Scoreboard rankings, opened with a 1-over 289 and added a 1-under 287 in Tuesday’s second round before closing with a 6-over 294 to end up 17 shots behind Pepperdine.

   The Aztecs failed to advance to the NCAA Championship as a three seed in the Tallahassee Regional last spring.

   Siravo added a 4-under 68 in Tuesday’s second round to his opening-round 70 to creep within a shot of Takis going into the final round. Siravo closed with a 1-over 73 to earn runnerup honors with a 5-under 211 total.

   Siravo’s teammate, Willy Walsh, a junior from San Mateo, Calif., finished in a tie for fourth place with UNLV’s Ryan Abuan, a junior from Temecula, Calif., each landing on 2-under 214.

  Walsh added a 2-under 70 in Tuesday’s second round to his opening-round 71 before finishing up with a 1-over 73.

   The third Pepperdine player among the top six was Byungho Lee, a sophomore from South Korea who finished in a tie for sixth place with San Diego’s You Seong Choi, a junior from Hacienda Heights, Calif., and Washington’s Emil Borrestuen Herstad, a freshman from Norway, each ending up with a 1-under 215 total.

   After opening with a 1-under 71, Lee contributed a 4-under 68 to Pepperdine’s second-round surge before closing with a 4-over 76.

   UNLV, behind Abuan, who transferred to Vegas after playing at San Diego a year ago, finished a shot behind San Diego State in third place with a 7-over 871 total.

   The Rebels, another Mountain West entry and probably a little underrated at No. 61 in the Scoreboard rankings, opened with a solid 2-under 286, struggled a little in Tuesday’s second round with a 298 and finished up with a 1-under 287.

   Abuan closed with a solid 4-under 68 to climb into a tie for fourth place with Pepperdine’s Walsh in the individual standings at 2-under. Abuan had matched par in the opening round with a 72 before adding a 2-over 74 in Tuesday’s second round.

   UNLV reached the NCAA Championship by finishing in third place as a six seed in the Urbana Regional last spring, but was unable to earn a spot in the match-play bracket at La Costa.

   Washington, part of the Big Ten’s new West Wing, was another nine shots behind UNLV in fourth place with a 16-over 880 total.

   The Huskies, No. 41 in the Scoreboard rankings, struggled in the opening round with a 300, bounced back with a sparkling 6-under 282 in Tuesday’s second round, but struggled again in the final round with a 298.

   Borrestuen Herstad led the way for Washington as he sandwiched a 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s second round with a pair of 1-over 73s to get a share of sixth place with Pepperdine’s Lee and San Diego’s Seong Choi at 1-under.

   San Diego, one of Pepperdine’s rivals in the WCC, and Southern California, another member of the Big Ten’s West Wing, shared fifth place in the 13-team field, each ending up two shots behind Washington with an 18-over 882 total.

   The Toreros, No. 60 in the Scoreboard rankings, bounced back from an opening round of 6-over 294 with a solid 3-under 285 in Tuesday’s second round before struggling to a 303 in the final round.

   Seong Choi led the way for San Diego as he added a 1-under 71 in Tuesday’s second round to his opening-round 70 before closing with a 2-over 74 to join the trio tied for sixth place at 1-under.

   San Diego survived brutal weather conditions to finish in fourth place as a seven seed in the Reno Regional and earn a trip to the NCAA Championship last spring. The Toreros failed to advance to the match-play bracket at La Costa.

   Southern Cal, No. 26 in the Scoreboard rankings, bounced back from an opening round of 8-over 296 with a sparkling 8-under 280 in Tuesday’s second round, but struggled in the final round with a 306.

   The Trojans failed to advance to the NCAA Championship as a nine seed in the Tallahassee Regional last spring.

   Backing up Pepperdine’s top trio was Mahanth Chirravuri, a senior from Chandler, Ariz. and No. 18 in the WAGR who finished among the trio tied for 11^th place with a 1-over 217 total. Chirravuri sandwiched a 1-over 73 in Tuesday’s second round with a pair of even-par 72s.

   Rounding out the Pepperdine lineup was Luke Daviotis, a freshman from Sacramento, Calif. who finished in the trio tied for 17^th place with a 4-over 220 total. Daviotis contributed a 3-under 69 to the strong start for the Waves and added a 4-over 76 in Tuesday’s second round before closing with a 75.

   Beard, Pepperdine’s head coach, used the opportunity of his home event to get his entire roster on the course at North Ranch and got some decent showings.

   Oscar Bach, a freshman from Norway, matched par in the final round with a 72 to finish among the group tied for 32^nd place with a 9-over 275 total. Bach struggled a little in the opening round with a 6-over 78 before adding a 75 in Tuesday’s second round.

   Luke Bailey, a sophomore from Encinitas, Calif., finished in the trio tied for 36^th place with a 226 total as he opened with a 2-over 74 and added a 77 in Tuesday’s second round before closing with a 75.

   Carson Kim, a junior from Yorba Linda, Calif., finished among the group tied for 42^nd place with a 228 total as he matched par in the opening round with a 72 and then added back-to-back 6-over 78s in the final two rounds.

   Rounding out the Pepperdine contingent was Joshua Koo, a senior from Cerritos, Calif. who finished alone in 73^rd place with a 247 total. After opening with a 5-over 77, Koo struggled to an 88 in Tuesday’s second round before finishing up with an 82.

   It was a slow start to the spring campaign for UCLA, which captured the Big Ten team title at Baltimore Country Club’s Five Farms East Course in its first year in the conference.

   The Bruins, No. 21 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished in a tie for eighth place in the Southwestern team standings with former Pac-12 rival Utah, now representing the Big 12 Conference and No. 20 in the Scoreboard rankings, each landing on 36-over 900.

   UCLA did get a nice individual performance from Baylor Larrabee, a sophomore from Ferndale, Wash. who finished in third place, two shots behind Pepperdine’s Siravo with a 3-under 213 total.

   Larrabee was only two shots behind San Diego State’s Takis, the eventual winner, going into the final round after Larrabee added a 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s second round to his opening-round 70. He closed with a 2-over 74.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the individual standings were UNLV’s Trevor Lewis, a senior from Prescott, Ariz., and Southern Cal’s Nicolas Dominguez, a junior from Mexico, as they finished in a tie for ninth place, each ending up with an even-par 216 total.

   Lewis gave the Rebels a second top-10 finisher as he opened with a 5-under 67, matching the low individual round of the tournament, and added a 3-over 75 in Tuesday’s second round before closing with a 74.

   Dominguez opened with a 1-under 71, matched par in Tuesday’s second round with a 72 and finished up with a 1-over 73.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Union League's Palmer honored by PGA of America as its Golf Executive of the Year

 

   The Union League turned some heads in the Philadelphia golf community when it took over the operation of Torresdale Golf Club, the classic Donald Ross design that was one of just two private golf courses inside the city limits, Bala Golf Club being the other, in 2014.

   But that was just the beginning for the Union League’s impact on the Philadelphia region’s golf scene.

   In this decade, the Union League has turned its golf footprint into a little golf empire, taking over The ACE Club and turning it into The Union League Liberty Hill in Lafayette Hill, Montgomery County, and then, quite literally, moving the earth to turn Sand Barrens Golf Club into Union League National in Cape May Court House, N.J., just a few miles away from the Jersey shore.

   In the middle of all of it has been Sean Palmer, officially the chief executive officer for The Union League of Philadelphia.

   It’s a big title for a big job, but at his heart, Palmer is a club professional. Last week at the 73^rd PGA Show in Orlando, Fla., the PGA of America announced that Palmer would receive its Golf Executive of the Year Award for 2026.

   Palmer and his fellow PGA of America honorees will be recognized at the 110^th PGA of America Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, Nev. in November.

   The Golf Executive of the Year Award recognizes a PGA of America member with outstanding service in an executive management position who displays leadership, vision, courage, moral character and who has a substantial record of service to the Association and the game.

   A caddy as a youngster, Palmer now oversees more than 1,400 employees and seven properties at one of the nation’s largest and most respected private clubs.

   Palmer graduated from Penn State’s Professional Golf Management program and learned from industry leaders at top clubs before The Union League tabbed him as the head pro at Torresdale, its first property, in 2014.

   Palmer was starting at ground zero at Torresdale with no golf members or staff. In the ensuing 12 years, Palmer has led the creation of three golf properties, growing the golf membership to 1,200 and annual golf revenue to more than $22 million.

   In the last decade, Palmer has overseen more than $64 million in capital property projects and played a lead role in the acquisition and development of additional golf properties.

   The transformation that resulted in the creation of Cape May National was particularly ambitious with tons of earth brought in to facilitate the redesign of architects Dana Fry and Jason Straka.

   The Union League membership has grown from 3,700 to 4,700 and annual revenue has increased from $34 million to $117 million.

   As chief operating officer, Palmer manages all Union League operations, including golf, hospitality and business functions with a focus on innovation, culture and team development.

   Palmer leads Union League University, a staff training and internship program that has become a model that other clubs have followed.

   Union League University provides golf interns and employees across all departments with a structured curriculum, mentorship and career development opportunities. More than 25 assistant pros, caddie masters and retail associates have advanced to leadership roles under Palmer’s guidance.

   Palmer has made community engagement a priority as he has led The Union League’s support of PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere), hosted the 2022 PGA Works Collegiate Championship and raised more than $1.4 million for HBCU golf programs.

   The club is also a proud partner in The First Tee of Philadelphia, providing facilities, fundraising support and enrichment programs for youth.

   Palmer also created the UL Caddie Scholarship Program and has expanded access to golf for juniors, women and families by removing traditional barriers and offering innovative membership and instruction models.

   Palmer serves on four Philadelphia Section committees and is active in the PGA REACH mentorship program. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and has served on the Penn State PGM Alumni Board for nine years, including a stint as president.

   Palmer earned the Philadelphia Section’s highest honor when he was named its Golf Professional of the Year in 2021. He also earned the Philly Section’s Professional Development Award in 2024 and was the Assistant Golf Professional of the Year in 2014.

   He received Penn State’s Frank B. Guadagnolo Award for Mentoring Excellence in 2021 and the Lions Alumnus of the Year Award in 2019.

   Palmer will be among 13 PGA professionals who will be honored at the PGA of America Annual Meeting in Las Vegas.

   Another of the top honorees will be Brian Crowell, president of Bally’s Golf and general manager of Bally’s Golf Links at Ferry Point in the Bronx, N.Y. who will receive the Golf Professional of the Year Award.

   Bernie Najar, the director of instruction at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Md., will receive the Teacher & Coach of the Year Award.