Bulldogs To Tee Off At NCAAs On Friday

Georgia Women's Golf
NCAA Championship Notes
May 21-16 at Grayhawk Golf Club (Par 72, 6429 Yards)
Scottsdale, Ariz.
Live Scoring
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The Bulldogs' Lineup
1. Jenny Bae – 5-3; Jr.; Suwanee, Ga.
• Medalist at Columbus Regional
• Every round in 2020-21 has been counting score for UGA
• Named second-team All-SEC
• Ranked No. 10 by Golfstat/No. 12 by Golfweek after fall campaign

2. Candice Mahé – 5-8; Soph.; Gourin, Franace
• 2021 ANWA participant
• Career-bests for finish (t-5th), round (71 twice) and 54-hole score (217) at Columbus
• Shot 11-under to win 2018 French Girls' Amateur by 12 strokes

3. Isabella Holpfer – 5-7; Fr.; Vienna, Austria
• Competed in the 2021 Augusta National Women's Amateur
• Season-best t-5th at Columbus
• Ranked as high as No. 25 in WAGR
• Runner-up at the 2018 & 2019 R&A Girls' Amateurs

4. Caterina Don – 5-6; Soph.; Pinerolo, Italy
• 2020 second-team All-America selection by Golfweek
• One of nine golfers to make the cut at both the 2019 & 2021 Augusta National Women's Ams
• Nine top-20s in 15 career events

5. Jo Hua Hung – 5-4; Jr.; New Taipei City, Taipei
• 2021 U.S. Open Qualifier
• One of two UGA golfers to compete in all 10 '20-21 events
• Named 2019 SEC All-Freshman
• Finished 29th at the 2016 World Amateur Team Championship

Georgia Returns To NCAAs Following Regional Sweep
The No. 11-ranked Georgia women's golf team will open play in the 2021 NCAA Championships on Friday. The 24-team tournament will be contested from May 21-26 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The Bulldogs will be looking to continue their stellar play from NCAA Regional competition when they swept the team and individual titles in Columbus, Ohio. Georgia captured the team crown by a commanding 15 strokes over the field, while junior Jenny Bae earned medalist honors by a three-shot margin.

"It's probably the best we've played as a program in three or four years quite honestly, especially with the stakes on the line," head coach Josh Brewer said. "They seemed comfortable and relaxed leading into Regionals, and they seem that way after Regionals.

"It's a confidence factor," Brewer added. "You see it in golf. People or teams will get on runs of four or six or eight weeks where they just sort of dominate. We've been waiting for that. Now, let's ride it. Let's not be arrogant about it, but at the same time be very confident that we have five people who go out there and have a chance to win individually. That only helps the team get to the top and advance into match play."

Georgia grabbed the lead with a spectacular late-day surge in the second round in Columbus, playing the final three holes at 6-under as a team to garner a seven-shot edge. Concurrently, Bae birdied six of her final seven holes to move atop the individual leaderboard.

The Bulldogs closed out Regionals in impressive fashion, more than doubling that margin between the rest of the field in the final round.

Georgia will be the No. 11 seed in Scottsdale. The Bulldogs will be paired with No. 10 seed Arizona State, the tournament host, and No. 12 seed Baylor for the first two rounds, teeing off in 11-minute increments between 3:36-4:20 p.m. ET on Friday. On Saturday, The Sun Devils, Bulldogs and Bears will tee off from No. 10 between 10:36-11:20 a.m. ET.

Georgia, which has 20 top-10 finishes in the last 41 editions of the national championships, is returning to the NCAA finals for the first time since 2016. That year, the Bulldogs swept the Regional in Bryan, Texas, shooting 6-under as a team and with then-freshman Bailey Tardy tying for medalist honors with UCLA's Bronte Law. Georgia arrived at Eugene Country Club as the No. 6 seed with serious national championship aspirations only to finish a disappointing 18th.

"Last time we won (Regionals), we were sort of full of ourselves and expected to show up in Oregon and play great," Brewer said. "Unfortunately, we didn't. This is a little different. We've enjoyed it, but we're already focusing on the mindset of how to play the course out there and have the same focus as last week."

In Scottsdale, the Bulldogs will stick with the same playing five from Columbus. While that was obviously a given, it is worth noting Georgia has utilized seven different lineups in 10 tournaments this season.

Bae and Jo Hua Hung, who are juniors, are the only Bulldogs to play in every event. They will be joined by sophomores Caterina Don and Candice Mahé and freshman Isabella Holpfer. Caroline Craig is Georgia's reserve player.

Bae has been the most consistent Bulldog this season. She has three top-10 finishes and seven top-20 efforts and also leads Georgia in virtually every key statistic.

Don and Hung sport four and three top-20 efforts, respectively. Both have shined outside the collegiate game this season as well. Don is one of only nine golfers to make the final round cut of both Augusta National Women's Amateurs, finishing 12th in 2019 and 25th in 2021. Hung recently earned a spot in the 2021 U.S. Women's Open field by placing third at a qualifier at Druid Hills Golf Club in Atlanta on May 5.

Holpfer and Mahé posted their best finishes for Georgia in Regional play, tying for fifth individually. They own impressive competitive resumes and have a combined eight appearances in European Girls' and Ladies' Team Championships.

The NCAAs will feature 24 teams competing in 54 holes of stroke play on Friday-Sunday. The field will be cut to the top-15 teams and top-9 golfers not on advancing teams for an additional stroke play round on Monday. Following that round, the medalist will be crowned and the top-8 teams will advance to a match play bracket.

Bulldogs Boast Strong History In National Championship Play
Georgia has long been one of the college golf's premier women's programs, headlined by four total national titles – one team and three individual.

This is the 20th anniversary of the Bulldogs' 2001 NCAA team title. In addition, Terri Moody earned medalist honors at the 1981 AIAW Championships, while Cindy Schreyer and Vicki Goetze took home individual crowns at the 1984 and 1992 NCAA Championships, respectively.

Those national championships just headline an extremely significant history for Georgia, which has posted 20 top-10 and 26 top-20 team finishes at AIAW and NCAA Championships since 1979. Individually, Bulldogs have combined to record 36 top-20 individual finishes at the national championships.

Georgia is making its 23rd all-time appearance at the NCAA Championships' finals site. That ranks ninth-best nationally.

Georgia is one of only four schools to win NCAA titles in both women's and men's golf in the 2000s. Those schools are Georgia - women in 2001, men in 2005; Alabama - women in 2013, men in 2011; Stanford - women in 2007, men in 2015; UCLA - women in 2008, men in 2004 & 2011.

Remembering 20 Years Ago
This spring marks the 20th anniversary of Georgia capturing the 2001 NCAA Championship at Mission Inn Resort & Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla. The Bulldogs utilized three days of consistent golf to place themselves in contention and then put together a spectacular final-round effort to win UGA's first-ever team national title in women's golf.

Georgia shot 298 and was among three teams tied for fourth after the opening day but climbed to sole possession of third after a second-round 295. The Bulldogs improved to 293 in the third round but still trailed top-ranked Duke by four entering the final 18 holes.

Georgia seized contol early in the fourth round, tying the Blue Devils by No. 5 and then surging to a three-shot lead at No. 6. Duke never got closer than two shots thereafter.

Georgia clinched the title with steely resolve. After a trio of bogeys at No. 16, UGA played the par-5 No. 17 at 3-under to all but seal the national title. The Bulldogs' fourth-round score of 290 was six shots better than any other team in the field, as Reilley Rankin and Summer Sirmons carded a pair of 72s, while Laura Henderson and Angela Jerman both shot 73.

All four of those Bulldogs finished among the top 18 individuals, with Rankin tying for 10th at 292, Henderson and Jerman both tying for 13th at 294 and Sirmons tied for 18th at 296.

Georgia's Regionals Success
Georgia's captured its seventh and eighth NCAA Regional victories in Columbus. Since the NCAA went to a Regional format in 1993, Georgia has claimed five team and three individual titles.

The Bulldogs won East Regionals in 1993, 1998 and 1999, the Bryan Regional in 2016 and the Columbus Regional last week. Jenny Bae joined Reilley Rankin (1998) and Bailey Tardy (2016) as Georgia's Regional medalists.

Georgia's five team Regional crowns equals the fourth-most nationally, trailing Southern Cal (13), Duke (10) and UCLA (eight).

Georgia is one three programs to sweep Regional team and individual titles twice since 2016. The Bulldogs did so in Bryan, Texas (2016) and Columbus (2021). The others are Stanford (Albuquerque in 2017 and Stanford in 2021) and South Carolina (Baton Rouge in 2016 and Columbus in 2017).

Trio Leads Bulldogs
Jenny Bae, Caterina Don and Jo Hua Hung have combined to lead Georgia in nine of 10 tournaments this season.

Bae paced the Bulldogs five times – at the Blessings Invitational, The Ally, the Gamecock Intercollegiate, the SECs and the Columbus Regional. Don and Hung both did so twice. Don led Georgia at the Heroes Intercollegiate and Gators Invitational. Hung was top Dog at the spring Liz Murphey Classic and the LSU Tiger Classic.

Caroline Craig is the only other golfer to be Georgia's top individual finisher, tying for seventh at the Liz Murphey Fall Collegiate Classic.

Bae, Don Earn SEC Honors
Jenny Bae and Caterina Don were voted second-team All-SEC for the 2020-21 season in balloting of the league's head coaches announced on May 7.

This is the second season earning SEC accolades for both Bae and Don. Bae was named to the league's All-Freshman team in 2019, while Don was tabbed both second-team All-SEC and SEC All-Freshman a year ago.

Hung Surges To Grab Open Invite
Jo Hua Hung shot 2-under 142 to finish third overall and, more importantly, earned a spot in the field for the 2021 U.S. Women's Open on May 5.

Hung birdied three of her last six holes to grab the third in final spot allotted at the Open qualifier contested over three days at Druid Hills Golf Club in Atlanta. In addition, teammate Jenny Bae shot even-par 144 to earn the first alternate slot from Druid Hills.

This year's U.S. Women's Open will be contested on June 3-6 at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, Calif.

The Druid Hills qualifier began on Monday morning but was quickly plagued by prolonged weather delays. Hung completed just two holes on Monday before play was suspended and torrential rains flooded the course. On Tuesday, play didn't begin until the afternoon, and she finished No. 6 before the competition was halted again.

Hung returned on Wednesday knowing she would have a 30-hole day. She finished her first round at even par.

"After 18 holes I checked live scoring to see where I was, and I think the top five players were all shooting under par," Hung said. "I told myself that during the second 18 holes I had to be aggressive. I knew I had to get as many birdies as I could because if I shot par I probably had no chance."

Hung was 1-over through 28 holes, but she rallied to birdie No. 4, No. 5 and No. 7 to surge up the leaderboard late in the day.

All told, six UGA golfers have combined to earn eight spots in the fields of the last six U.S. Opens, including Rinko Mitsunaga and Bailey Tardy in 2016, Tardy in 2017, Céleste Dao and Jillian Hollis in 2018, Dao in 2019, Caterina Don in 2020 and Hung in 2021.

SEC Leads Field At NCAAs
A nation-leading seven SEC teams will be competing in Scottsdale. In addition to Georgia, Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, LSU, Ole Miss and South Carolina also have advanced.

Following the SEC are the PAC 12 with six, the ACC with five the Big 12 with three, the Big 10 with two and the MAC with one.

The SEC was one of only two major conference to compete in golf in the fall, along with the Big 12. All three fall events were in essence SEC-only events, while four of Georgia's five spring tournaments were SEC-heavy fields hosted by league schools.

Prior to Regionals, Josh Brewer said SEC coaches were "excited to get away from each other. We feel like we've had eight or nine SEC championships this season. We're hoping to have a reunion in Arizona."

That has indeed become a reality as two more SEC schools – Tennessee and Vanderbilt – have three individual golfers in the field. All told, flags for nine of the SEC's 14 schools will be flying in Scottsdale this week.

Brewer's Prophetic Quotes
Prior to last week's Columbus Regional, Josh Brewer offered an optimistic assessment of his team's intentions.

"We've been near the top of the leaderboard waiting for that first victory and are hoping we can get it in Columbus," Brewer stated.

Georgia recorded five top-5 team finishes in nine tourneys prior to emerging victorious last Wednesday in Columbus.

Caterina Don delivered the following quote prior to Regionals, which seems appropriate to re-purpose prior to nationals.

"We are all really excited," the sophomore stated. "Last year was really frustrating to have to go home just before our home event and the postseason. This year, we feel like we have a good chance to make a run at Regionals and to make a good run in the championships, too. I think we are all really, really excited to hopefully show how good we are as a team and how well we can do."

Don Breaks School Record
Caterina Don broke Georgia's single-round scoring record on February 8, firing an 8-under 64 in the second round of the LTWF Heroes Intercollegiate at The Founders Club.

Don's effort headlined an 11-under team day for the Bulldogs, which equaled the second-best team round in program history. In addition, Jo Hua Hung fired a 3-under 69 and both Jenny Bae and Céleste Dao carded 72s.

Don bettered the Georgia record of 7-under 65 shared by Vicki Goetze, who did so in the 1992 NCAA Championships, and current LPGA golfer Jillian Hollis, who shot 65 in the third round of the 2018 PING/ASU Invitational.

Don opened her loop on the shotgun start with a birdie at No. 9. She notched consecutive birdies at Nos. 12-13 and again at Nos. 15-16 to move to 5-under through eight. On the front side, Don's trio of birdies at Nos. 2-4 pushed her to 8-under, a stroke better than the record. She wrapped up her day with a quartet of pars, including a 10-foot putt at No. 8, her final hole, to secure the school record.

"I was just trying to go as low as I could go," Don said. "I knew I was really hitting it well and made a couple of birdies early. There was a par-3, and I didn't hit it well and put it in a tricky place. My chip went in for birdie, and I was like 'Oh. OK. I'll take that.' After that, I was 4- or 5-under pretty early and thought to myself 'Let's just keep this going.' It was fun."

Don also shot 64 in the 2019 European Girls' Team Championships in Spain. She celebrated her round by returning to the team hotel in time to listen to a lecture for an Ecology course.

UGA Hosts Liz Murphey Twice
Last spring, it appeared the 2020 Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic – one of women's college athletics' oldest events in any sport – would be canceled due to COVID-19.

That changed on September 16 when Josh Brewer announced the "Liz Murphey Fall Collegiate Classic" would take place as one of three SEC-only fall tournaments.

"Six months after it appeared the pandemic would force us to end this tradition, it is exciting to say we will be hosting the 2020 Liz Murphey," Brewer said. "We owe many thanks to the leaders at UGA and the SEC."

The 2020 event on Nov. 6-8 served as the 48th annual event, while the 49th edition of the LMCC was contested in its traditional spring window on March 26-28.

The tourney originally began in 1973 as the Georgia Invitational and was contested as the Women's Southern Intercollegiates from 1977-94. In 1995, the event was renamed in honor of Liz Murphey, UGA's Hall of Fame golf coach and long-time Senior Woman Administrator.

The list of golfers who have competed in the LMCC is headlined by hall of famers Beth Daniel, Betsy King and Julie Inkster. Recent medalists include current LPGA standouts such as Jillian Hollis, Cheyenne Knight and Gaby Lopez.

Bulldogs' Depth Provides For Numerous Lineups In 20-21
Georgia has utilized seven different quartets in 10 tournaments this season. The Bulldogs' playing five for the NCAA Championships will be together for just the third time.

That quintet opened the season with a fifth-place showing at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational in November and did not reconvene until the Columbus Regional.

"For me, it's been stressful," head coach Josh Brewer said after last week's Regional victory. "I'm sure it has been for them too. We know we're deep. We feel like it we could play seven or eight we could take on anyone in the country. We've had to figure out the five each week and to be honest, to their credit they kept battling.

"We qualified for Regionals," Brewer continued. "Only two people were exempt. We teed it up. I've always tried to recruit by telling them 'You're going to get chances.' It's nice to see them rewarded because we haven't had the success this spring that we wanted. No disrespect to any tournament we've played this spring up to this point, but I wouldn't trade winning any of them for this victory. Now, we'll try to go get one more."

Georgia Well Represented In Augusta
A trio of Bulldogs competed in the 2021 Augusta National Women's Amateur, contested roughly two hours east of Athens on March 31-April 2. Caterina Don, Isabella Holpfer and Candice Mahé were in the field featuring 82 of the world's premier golfers.

The tournament opened with 36 holes of play at Champions Retreat Golf Club. The field was then cut to 30 golfers for final round at famed Augusta National Golf Club. All 82 golfers played a practice round at Augusta National between the second and third rounds.

Don made her second ANWA appearance and became just one of nine golfers to make the cut in both 2019 and 2020. She finished 12th at the inaugural tournament and 25th in this spring. Don wrapped up her week with a 60-foot putt that started with her back to the pin.

"I made what I think was an incredible putt," Don said. "I hit a bad driver into the woods, and I laid it up. I didn't have a really good number and finished on the top level. My caddy said 'What do you have to lose?' (The putt) was a really nice way to finish this week. It's really nice because you get a lot of support and a lot of people said 'Go Dawgs' today."

Holpfer and Mahé, who made their ANWA debuts but did not make the cut, earned invites via their status in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. Holpfer has been as high as No. 25 in WAGR, while Mahé has ascended to as high as No. 30.

"It's a great honor to be able to compete in this tournament," Holpfer said. "I think it's an experience of a lifetime because not everybody has a chance. I think that's every golfer's dream – to be able to walk the grounds of Augusta National."

"I'm really excited to be here, especially with my teammates," Mahé said. "You can't stop smiling. It's definitely an experience of a lifetime. You're not going play courses like Champions Retreat or Augusta every day. You need to keep the right attitude about that. I think being really thankful is very important."

University of Georgia Athletics

Players Mentioned

Jenny Bae

Caroline Craig

Caterina Don

Isabella Holpfer

Jo Hua Hung

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