Hinson-Tolchard claims individual title, leads Oklahoma State to team crown in Big 12 Championship

   Maddison Hinson-Tolchard accounted for Oklahoma State’s only point in its 4-1 loss to Mississippi in the NCAA Championship’s Final Match at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz. in the spring of 2021.

   Last weekend Hinson-Tolchard, a junior from Australia and No. 51 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), began the road toward another trip to Grayhawk by capturing the individual title and leading the Cowgirls to the team crown in the Big 12 Championship, which wrapped up April 23^rd at the Dallas Athletic Club in Dallas, Texas.

   Last year was a little unsettled in Stillwater with Oklahoma State losing a couple of big pieces when head coach Greg Robertson enforced a team rule banishing players who decided to enter the transfer portal.

   Still, Oklahoma State, behind an individual title for Hinson-Tolchard, advanced to the NCAA Championship out of the Stillwater Regional at the Cowgirls’ home course, Karsten Creek Golf Club.

   Much of the cast has changed since two springs ago, but there was the steady force of Hinson-Tolchard matching par over the 6,264-yard, par-72 Dallas Athletic Club layout with a final-round 72 to edge Iowa State’s Pammy Chookaew, a freshman from Thailand, by a shot for the individual title and leading the Cowgirls to a seven-shot margin over Baylor in the team standings.

   It was the 11^th Big 12 Championship crown for Oklahoma State and its third in the last four playings. The Cowgirls moved up a notch in the Golfstat rankings from No. 23 to No. 22 in the aftermath of the Big 12 Championship and when the NCAA regional fields were revealed last week the Cowgirls learned that they would be headed to the San Antonio Regional as a four seed.

   After opening with a 6-over 294, Oklahoma State took control of the Big 12 Championship with a sizzling 10-under 278 in the second round. A final round of 8-over 296 gave the Cowgirls a 4-over 868 total.

   After opening with a 1-under 71, Hinson-Tolchard contributed a 3-under 69 to Oklahoma State’s second-round surge before matching par in the final round to take the Big 12’s individual crown with a 4-under 212 total.

   After opening with an 8-over 296, Baylor also put together a solid second round with a 7-under 281 before closing with a 10-over 298 that left the Bears seven shots behind Oklahoma State in second place with an 11-over 875 total.

   Baylor, who moved up a notch in the Golfstat rankings from No. 13 to No. 12 following its runnerup finish in the Big 12 Championship, will represent the conference in the Pullman Regional, where the Bears are seeded second.

   Texas Christian finished just a shot behind Baylor in third place with a 12-over 876 total as the Horned Frogs added a 3-over 291 to their opening-round 295 before closing with a solid 2-over 290.

   TCU, which moved up two spots in the Golfstat rankings from No. 40 to No. 38 in the aftermath of the Big 12 Championship, was awarded a spot in the Raleigh Regional as a seven seed.

   Iowa State, behind Chookaew’s runnerup finish, took fourth place, a shot behind TCU with a 13-over 877 total. The Cyclones struggled a little in the opening round with a 10-over 298, but bounced back with a 2-under 286 in the second round before finishing up with a 5-over 293.

   Iowa State, which maintained its No. 20 ranking following its fourth-place finish, was awarded a spot in the Westfield Regional, where it will be seeded fourth.

   Chookaew was tied for the individual lead with Hinson-Tolchard and Hinson-Tochard’s Oklahoma State teammate, Clemence Martin, a sophomore from France, going into the final round as Chookaew added a 1-over 73 in the second round to her opening round of 5-under 67.

   Chookaew closed with her second straight 1-over 73 to finish a shot behind Hinson-Tolchard in second place with a 3-under 213 total.

   Texas Tech was Oklahoma State’s closest pursuer going into the final round as the Red Raiders added a 5-under 283 in the second round to their opening round of 3-over 291 and only trailed the Cowgirls by two shots. Texas Tech backed off in the final round with a 306 to finish three shots behind Iowa State in fifth place in the nine-team field with a 16-over 880 total.

   It was a disappointing week for defending Big 12 champion Texas as the Longhorns finished in seventh place with an 896 total, dropping from No. 8 to No. 10 in the Golfstat rankings as a result. But Texas still got a high seed, No. 2, in the Palm Beach Gardens Regional.

   Oklahoma State got a big performance from a rapidly improving Martin, who finished in a tie for third place in the individual chase with Oklahoma’s Mikhaela Fortuna, a senior from the Philippines, at 1-under 215, two shots behind Iowa State’s Chookaew.

   After opening with a 1-over 73, Martin was the low Cowgirl in Oklahoma State’s second-round surge with a 5-under 67 that gave her a share of the individual lead with her teammate, Hinson-Tolchard, and Chookaew before finishing up with a 3-over 75.

   Backing up the top two for Oklahoma State was Thitaporn Saithip, a freshman from Thailand who finished in the group tied for 13^th place with a 4-over 220 total. After opening with a 2-over 74, Saithip carded back-to-back 1-over 73s in the final two rounds.

   Hun Hsuan-Yu, a graduate student from Taiwan, finished in a tie for 21^st place with a 7-over 223 total as she contributed a solid 3-under 69 to Oklahoma State’s strong second round after she had opened with a 4-over 76. Hsuan-Yu finished up with a 78.

   Rounding out the Oklahoma State lineup was Rina Tatematsu, a junior from Thailand who finished in a tie for 34^th place with a 231 total. Tatematsu struggled a little in the first two rounds, adding a 77 in the second round to her opening-round 78, but her final round of 4-over 76 was a counter for the Cowgirls.

   Oklahoma’s Fortuna added a 2-under 70 to her opening round of 1-under 71 before closing with a 2-over 74 to get a share of third place with Oklahoma State’s Martin at 1-under 215. Fortuna will represent Oklahoma in the Athens Regional, where she will compete as an individual.

   Chookaew’s fellow Thai freshman Karisa Chul-Ak-Som gave Iowa State a second finisher inside the top five as she finished alone in fifth place with an even-par 216 total. After opening with a 2-over 74, Chul-Ak-Som matched par in the second round with a 72 before finishing up with a solid 2-under 70.

   Texas Tech’s Gala Dumez, a junior from France, Baylor’s Hannah Karg, a senior from Germany, and TCU’s Sofia Barroso Sa, a freshman from Portugal, each landed a shot behind Chul-Ak-Som in a tie for sixth place at 1-over 217.

   Dumez opened with a 2-over 74 and matched par in the second round with a 72 before closing with a 1-under 71. Karg also opened with a 2-over 74 and added a 2-under 70 in the second round before finishing up with a 1-over 73. Barroso Sa sandwiched a 1-under 71 in the second round with a pair of 1-over 73s.

   Barroso Sa’s TCU teammate, Caitlyn Macnab, a sophomore from South Africa, Kansas’ Esme Hamilton, a graduate student from England, and Baylor’s Silje Ohma, a freshman from Norway, rounded out an entirely international top 10 as they finished in a tie for ninth place, each landing on 2-over 218.

   Macnab bounced back from an opening round of 4-over 76 with back-to-back 1-under 71s in the final two rounds. Hamilton struggled to a 5-over 77 in the opening round, but came on strong in the second round with a 3-under 69 before matching par in the final round with a 72. Ohma matched Hamilton’s 3-under 69 in the second round after opening with a 2-over 74 and then closed with a 75.