BIRMINGHAM, Ala.– The Mississippi State women’s golf team played one of the most exciting golf matches you will ever see. Contrary to the final team score, the Bulldogs played a brilliant back nine on SEC Championship Sunday to force a playoff with Texas A&M for the title.
The Bulldogs struggled early on Sunday, trailing in all five matches for about the entirety of the front nine. However, the Bulldogs didn’t let that dictate the day’s outcome as they slowly made their comeback on the back nine of the round to force three championship playoff holes by freshman Surapa Janthamunee, who goes by SJ.
SJ, who trailed by as many as three on the front nine, kept playing her game and hung around until the 17th hole, where a birdie brought the match to a tie. After neither she nor Texas A&M’s Zoe Slaughter could win the 18th hole, the match moved to a playoff.
The two golfers went back-and-forth with Slaughter missing a putt in the first playoff to win it before the two halved the second playoff on hole 16. In the final hole of the Championship, SJ sent her tee shot into the front bunker while Slaughter’s tee shot reached the left side of the green, about 30 feet from the pin. Despite a great bunker shot from SJ to get to within 10 feet of the pin, winning the tee shot proved to be the difference as Slaughter was able to earn the par on the hole and deliver A&M their second SEC Championship in program history.
Abbey Daniel earned the first point for the Bulldogs with a 1UP decision. She was followed by a 2&1 victory from Julia Lopez Ramirez to give Mississippi State two points on the afternoon.
Quoting Head Coach Charlie Ewing
On the slow start on the front nine and strong finish
“I couldn’t be more proud of the fight that the team showed, especially after how things were playing out on the front nine. Everyone was down in their match on the front nine at some point, and for us to go to the back nine having not led any matches and then take the lead in two matches in the back nine and winning those two points and then getting it to where a playoff decided it is just an incredible display of toughness and I couldn’t be more proud of the them for fighting through it and never giving up and going do to the very end of [the Championship].
On SJ’s resilience to force a playoff
“I can’t say enough about SJ….
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