University of Georgia Athletics
Great Success And Great Surprises
May 19, 2016 | Women's Golf
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
The Georgia women's golf team's season began with high expectations, thanks in part to the arrival of a stellar three-player freshman class, of which much was also expected. Regardless of what happens when the sixth-seeded Bulldogs tee off at the NCAA Championships Friday in Eugene, Ore., all those expectations have been met, and exceeded.
"It's everything we've wanted and more," said one of the freshmen, Jillian Hollis.
Georgia, which hadn't advanced out of the NCAA Regional stage since 2009, not only earned a spot in Oregon during the Bryan Regional earlier this month in Texas, it swept the regional. The Bulldogs won by six strokes and freshman Bailey Tardy shared medalist honors.
The freshmen — Tardy, Hollis and Rinko Mitsunaga — have been great, with each of them winning at least one tournament. Much was expected and much was delivered. Tardy even qualified for the U.S. Open on Monday.
"They're a pretty confident bunch and they believe they belong and they should be the best in the world, and that makes it fun every day in practice because they're competitive as heck," coach Josh Brewer said.
As season of high expectations that have been met still featured plenty of surprises. Georgia has shot par or better 11 times this season; in the first 35 seasons of the program, featuring 413 tournaments, that happened six times. That's a nice surprise.
Junior Harang Lee, twice a runner-up in tournaments this season, has broken through and become one of the best, most consistent players in the country. Lee finished her sophomore season ranked No. 226 in the nation, and she's now No. 17, with a scoring average of 72.41, well below last season's mark of 76.00.
Brewer said the arrival of the freshmen and the competitive push they provided have been the biggest difference for Lee this season.
"She was already an important piece for us in building this program and I just think she needed this freshman class to come in here and push her," he said. "She and Rinko have become almost inseparable; they room together, they room together on the road and they've created a bond and a friendship that I think really helped Harang believe in herself and give her confidence."
And then there's the fifth player in the lineup, Mary Ellen Shuman, who hasn't played a lot this season. She earned her spot in team qualifying before the Bryan Regional and will be teeing it up this weekend, as well.
"She's kind of rededicated herself," Brewer said of Shuman. "It started in the fall and then over the winter and unfortunately it took until April or May to play great, and for the team it's perfect timing because we needed a fifth player to stand up and play for us.
"It's neat to see because she never gave up. She's always out here working and grinding away."
Rather than picking his lineup during the regular season, Brewer lets the players decide the top five based on their play in team qualifying. There are exceptions, like if you finish in the top 15 of the previous event, you're in for the next one — but finish out of the top 15 in that one and you're back to qualifying.
In March, Hollis failed to qualify for the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate in Hilton Head. She said it was the best thing that happened to her. While Georgia went on to place second in the event, she went home to Ohio to work with her coach, talk to her mom and clear her head.
"We're fighting each week to keep our spot," she said. "I missed the Darius Rucker tournament and had the opportunity to work on my game and work even harder, and then go win a tournament."
Hollis was the medalist in Georgia's next event, the Mountain View Collegiate in Tucson, Ariz., which the Bulldogs won. In all, Georgia has five team wins (third most in program history) and four medalists (second most).
The weekly qualifying has been a big part of all that success.
"Who's playing best in September doesn't matter in Oregon during the national championship," Brewer said. "It usually will tell you, but with this team, no, it did not. You just want the best players competing at the right time."
Shuman had played well when she played, tying for ninth at the Cardinal Invitational and one shot out of the top 10 at the Bulldog Invitational, but she couldn't always crack the lineup. She missed qualifying for the SEC Championships by one shot, which was, in her words, "a bummer."
She was frustrated at times, but not discouraged. Then, with only the fifth spot up for grabs in the qualifying for the NCAA Regional, she shot 68 to claim it.
"I played really well in the qualifier, probably the best I've played all year," she said.
Shuman played solid golf in helping Georgia win the Bryan Regional and despite playing just 13 rounds of tournament golf all season, she'll be in the lineup Friday as the Dogs pursue a national championship.
"I went home (last) weekend and everyone knew about it, and that was when I really started thinking about it," she said Monday. "I was like, wow, I'm really going to the national championship."
One of many pleasant surprises for the Bulldogs this season.
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
Players Mentioned
