HOCKLEY, Texas – Sun Devil Women’s Golf mounted a massive comeback to force a team playoff for the Big 12 Women’s Golf Championship.
No. 8 Arizona State (+19/871) entered the day 11 strokes behind overall leader No. 30 Oklahoma State and five strokes shy of No. 19 Arizona, but the Sun Devils managed to finish even with both teams by the end of the third round on Thursday. A three-team playoff would ensue, with all five golfers hitting the course and the cumulative score serving as the deciding factor for the title. The Wildcats edged Arizona State by one stroke in the playoff to earn the Big 12 Women’s Golf Championship.
To even get to the playoff required an impressive performance, as Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye‘s team turned in the second-best round of the day. The Sun Devils moved from sixth place into a tie for first after shaving five strokes off their second round total, as they improved each day at The Clubs at Houston Oaks. Thanks to their big move up the leaderboard, the Maroon and Gold got a true taste of the competitiveness that postseason action brings.
“We are so proud of this team and how hard they fought back,” Coach Farr-Kaye reflected. “To force a playoff considering the position we were in heading into the day was simply incredible.”
Junior Beth Coulter (E/213) was a major reason behind the surge on the final day. She delivered one of the best rounds in program history at a conference championship. Coulter fired a 66 (-5), which tied conference medalist Kansas State’s Sophie Bert for the best score on the day and the tournament. In fact, it is tied for the second-lowest score in the history of the Big 12 Women’s Golf Championship. Coulter caught fire during an epic stretch to end the front nine, recording birdies on each of her final five holes to finish six-under halfway through her day. The round allowed her to move into a tie for second place, the second time she has finished as a conference runner-up in her career. She previously finished second at the 2023 Pac-12 Championship at Papago Golf Club.
“Beth’s round was absolutely amazing,” Coach Farr-Kaye exclaimed. “That is one of the best college rounds of golf I’ve ever witnessed. She just executed so dang well, which is even more impressive when you consider she had to come back after a busy week at Augusta National.”
Fellow junior Paula Schulz-Hanssen (+4/217) provided the necessary 1-2 punch for Arizona State. She also finished in the Top-10, ending in sole possession…
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