Their season may have ended less than a month ago, but the members of the UCLA women’s golf team are not taking the opportunity to sit back on their heels.
They’re already back out on the course and will play in a range of amateur tournaments throughout the summer.
Rising senior Ani Gulugian and incoming freshman Yvonne Zheng took the course early last week at the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship in Norman, Okla. The tournament was a summer tune up for both golfers, one of whom has already established herself as a key member of the team and another whose career is still budding.
Neither golfer, however, managed to place within the top 64 golfers and advance past the tournament’s second round. In the individual round, Gulugian finished with a score of 156 (+12), in an eight-way tie for 87th place. She finished only three strokes behind the 64th finisher, however, illustrating how tight the competition was at the tourney. Zheng finished at 139th, with a final score of 165 (+21).
It was Gulugian’s third appearance at the Public Links, though her performance this year was not up to par with her previous efforts. Playing as a rising sophomore in 2011, Gulugian finished 12th individually, advancing to the second round of match play. She placed 28th in individual play in 2012 before being eliminated in the first round of match play. The performance was also at odds with her typically strong showings during the regular season.
This past season, Gulugian’s 74.5 scoring average was good for fourth on the team, and she had four top-20 finishes, all of which came in her last six tournaments. Her best performance came in April at the Pac-12 Championships, where she finished 11th.
The rising senior will be a key member of the team next year as its oldest and most experienced golfer. Along with rising junior Erynne Lee, Gulugian will be a key leadership figure, relied on to set the pace for the team’s younger members.
Zheng will be one of these younger players, having signed with the team in November. From Bradenton, Fla., she comes to the Bruins already having established herself as a potent amateur golfer. Having placed second at the AJGA Quad Cities Junior in June 2012, Zheng qualified for a junior spot at the 2013 Guardian Retirement Championship on the basis of her strong showing at the IMG Junior Tour qualifying events, including three top-10 finishes.
Zheng’s recruiting class has been ranked as one of the top classes nationwide. Her fellow freshmen, Bronte Law and Allison Lee, are two of the top-15 amateur golfers in the world. Law, who hails from Manchester, England, competed in the 2012 Junior Ryder Cup, as well as the Women’s British Open and the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship. Lee, from Valencia, Calif., is a five-time AJGA All-American who finished third in stroke play at the 2012 U.S. Women’s Amateur.
With such a talented core of freshmen, the women’s golf team looks set to continue its recent trend of success next year. Team members will look to improve upon this year’s fourth-place finish at the NCAA championships – and it looks as if they have the talent and leadership to do so.
Compiled by Anay Dattawadkar, Bruin Sports contributor.