Zhang, Stanford look the part of No. 1 with convincing victory in Carmel Cup at Pebble Beach

    When you have the undisputed No. 1 amateur in the world with an array of supremely talented players backing her up, it’s not a huge surprise to see Rose Zhang and the reigning NCAA champion Stanford Cardinal rampaging to an easy victory over an elite field in the Carmel Cup, played over one of America’s most recognizable golf courses, the Pebble Beach Golf Links.

   Zhang, establishing a women’s course record at Pebble Beach with a remarkable 9-under-par 63 in the second round, rolled to a five-shot victory in the individual chase to lead Stanford to a 13-shot victory in the team standings in the Carmel Cup, which wrapped up on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend.

   Stanford has the last two NCAA individual champions in Zhang, a sophomore from Irvine, Calif., and Rachel Heck, a junior from Memphis, Tenn. In Zhang, Heck and Megha Ganne, a freshman from Holmdel, N.J. who made her college debut by earning runnerup honors to Zhang in the individual chase at Pebble Beach, Stanford has three of the eight members of the United States team that was a dominant 14.5-5.5 winner over a very talented Great Britain & Ireland team at Merion Golf Club’s historic East Course as spring was giving way to summer.

   Zhang had already played the weekend in the U.S. Women’s Open, presented by ProMedica, at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club in Southern Pines, N.C., finishing in a tie for 40^th place, when she arrived at Merion for the Curtis Cup.

   Zhang would explain at Merion that she would be unable to tee it up in the U.S. Women’s Amateur at Chambers Bay because she would be in Europe playing in a couple of LPGA major championships, the AIG Women’s Open at Muirfield and the Amundi Evian Championship in France. She made the cut in both those events as well, taking the Smyth Salver that goes to the low amateur at Muirfield and finishing in a tie for 65^th place at Evian.

   Zhang was back in France the week before the Carmel Cup as the United States lost to Sweden on a tiebreaker in the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship. I don’t think she likes losing a whole lot.

   While she was there, Zhang picked up the Mark H. McCormack Medal, awarded by the Royal & Ancient and the United States Golf Association to the player who sits atop the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) at the end of the summer. It is the third straight year Zhang has won the McCormack Medal.

   OK, you figured it out. Rose Zhang is really good at golf. She opened with a 4-under 68 at Pebble Beach, which will host the U.S. Women’s Open next year for the first time.

   Zhang followed up that opening round with a tour de force, blitzing the hallowed Pebble Beach layout for seven birdies, an eagle and 10 pars in a scintillating 9-under 63. Zhang’s final round of even-par 72 was almost anticlimactic.

   Scarier still, it was the final counter for Stanford in the unusual season-opening six-score-five format. Some schools are still trying to figure out their lineups. Stanford’s team qualifiers are like a mini-Stage II of LPGA Q-School.

   Zhang finished with a 13-under 203 total. Ganne, so impressive as the youngster on the U.S. team at Merion in June, made her college debut by finishing in second place with an 8-under 208 total, five shots behind Zhang.

   Ganne, No. 26 in the Women’s WAGR, carded a pair of 3-under 69s in the first two rounds that left her seven shots behind Zhang in the individual standings before closing with a 2-under 70.

   Behind its 1-2 punch of Zhang and Ganne, Stanford was under par in each round of the Carmel Cup.

   The Cardinal, who play out of the Pac-12, opened with a 2-under 358 before adding a pair of 5-under 355s for a 12-under 1,068 total. They were the only team to finish under par.

   Texas A&M, out of the Southeastern Conference, was really the only team in the same zip code as Stanford as the Aggies matched the Cardinal’s 2-under 358 in the opening round, but fell behind with a 4-over 364 in the second round. Texas A&M closed with a solid 1-under 359 to earn runnerup honors with a 1-over 1,081 total.

   Jennie Park, a senior from Carrollton, Texas, finished a shot behind Ganne in third place in the individual standings with a 7-under 209 total. Park had grabbed the individual lead with an opening round of 6-under 66. She added a 2-under 70 in the second round before finishing up with a 1-over 73.

   Park finished in a tie for third place in the individual standings in last spring’s NCAA Championship at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz. and led the Aggies to the semifinals in match play before they fell to Oregon, which, in turn, lost to Pac-12 rival Stanford in the Final Match.

   The rest of the eight-team field was made up of solid entries from the SEC and Big 12.

   Big 12 power Oklahoma State was 15 shots behind Texas A&M in third place as the Cowgirls added a 370 in the second round to their opening-round 366 before matching par in the final round with a 360 for a 16-over 1,096 total.

   A couple of SEC entries, Mississippi State and Arkansas, accounted for the next two spots on the team leaderboard.

   The Bulldogs struggled to a 380 in the opening round before putting together solid rounds of 3-over 363 in the second round and 1-over 361 in the final round to take fourth place with a 24-over 1,104 total. The Razorbacks were another four shots behind Mississippi State in fifth place as they sandwiched a 6-over 366 in the second round with a pair of 371s for a 28-over 1,108 total.

   The Big 12’s Texas Tech closed with a solid 4-over 364 to finish five shots behind Arkansas in sixth place with a 33-over 1,113 total. Texas Tech opened with a 377 before adding a 372 in the second round.

   There was a big gap back to the two trailers, the Big 12’s Oklahoma, and the SEC’s Vanderbilt, in seventh and eighth place, respectively.

   The Sooners were 25 shots behind Texas Tech in seventh place with a 58-over 1,138 total after adding a 372 in the second round to their opening-round 384 before closing with a 382. The Commodores were a shot behind Oklahoma in eighth place as they struggled to a 392 in the opening round, bounced back with a solid 8-over 368 in the second round and finished up with a 379 for a 59-over 1,139 total

   Sadie Englemann, a junior from Austin, Texas, gave Stanford a third finisher among the top four as she eneded up in a tie for fourth place at 2-under 214, five shots behind Texas A&M’s Park. After opening with a 2-under 70, Englemann struggled a little with a 4-over 76 in the second round before closing with a 1-under 71.

   Heck, No. 3 in the Women’s WAGR, got better as the weekend wore on. After opening with a 4-over 76, Heck recorded a 1-over 73 in the second round before closing with a 1-under 71 to finish among the group tied for 13^th place with a 4-over 220 total.

   Brooke Seay, a senior from San Diego and No. 41 in the Women’s WAGR, struggled to back-to-back 5-over 77s in the first two rounds before closing with a solid 1-under 71 to finish in the group tied for 24^th place with a 9-over 225 total.

   Rounding out the Stanford lineup was Caroline Sturdza, a sophomore from Switzerland who sandwiched a 77 in the second round with a pair of 3-over 75s to finish alone in 35^th place 227 total.

   It’s a long way between now and the NCAA Championship, which will be played for a third straight year at Grayhawk, next spring. A scenario in which Zhang turns pro before the spring portion of the 2022-2023 gets under way is very possible. This Stanford team without Zhang still seems capable of winning a second straight national championship.

   In the meantime, just enjoy the view while one of the most talented women’s college golf teams ever assembled does its thing.

   Joining Stanford’s Englemann in the tie for fourth place at 2-under 214 was Mississippi State’s Julia Lopez Ramirez, a sophomore from Spain and No. 49 in the Women’s WAGR. Lopez Ramirez closed with a solid 3-under 69 to make her move up the leaderboard. Lopez Ramirez had opened with a 1-under 71 before posting a 2-over 74 in the second round.

   Oklahoma State teammates Maddison Hinson-Tolchard, a junior from Australia and No. 96 in the Women’s WAGR, and Han-Hsuan Yu, a graduate student from Taiwan, were two of the three players tied for sixth place at 1-under 215.

   Hinson-Tolchard, the individual winner of the Stillwater Regional on the Cowgirls’ home course, Karsten Creek Golf Club, last spring, opened with a 2-under 70, matched par in the second round with a 72 and closed with a 1-over 73.

   Yu opened with a solid 3-under 69, fell back a little with a 2-over 74 in the second round and matched par in the final round with a 72.

   Rounding out the trio at 1-under was Texas Tech’s Gala Dumez, a junior from France who added a 71 in the second round to her solid opening round of 2-under 70 before finishing up with a 2-over 74.

   Backing up Park for Texas A&M was Hailee Cooper, a graduate student from Montgomery, Texas who finished alone in ninth place with an even-par 216 total. Cooper, whose college career began at Texas, closed with a sparkling 3-under 69. After opening with a 1-over 73, Cooper struggled a little with a 75 in the second round.

   Thitaporn Saithip, a freshman from Thailand, gave Oklahoma State a third finisher in the top 10 as she finished alone in 10^th place with a 1-over 217 total. After adding a 74 in the second round to her opening round of 1-over 73, Saithip finished up with a solid 2-under 70.

   New Hope’s Natasha Kiel, a sophomore, made the starting lineup for Vanderbilt, but struggled at Pebble Beach. Kiel, who starred at George School before finishing her high school career at the Montverde Academy in Florida, sandwiched a 77 in the second round with a pair of 80s to finish alone in 46^th place with a 237 total.