CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — The No. 2/No. 3 Vanderbilt women’s golf team looks to continue its excellent form this weekend at the 43rd Annual Ruth’s Chris Tar Heel Invitational, a 54-hole tournament starting Friday at the University of North Carolina.
The Tar Heel Invitational will be the Commodores’ first tourney since an impressive 11-stroke team victory in the Mason Rudolph Championships, which was shortened to 36 holes due to heavy rain on the Vanderbilt Legends North course.
Seventeen teams, including several ranked among the nation’s Top 10, will join the Commodores in the Tar Heel Invitational field.
Due to expected rains late Thursday from the remnants of Hurricane Michael, the tournament will feature a shotgun start Friday at 10 a.m. CT. On Saturday and Sunday, a more traditional start with players teeing off holes No. 1 and 10 will start at 8:10 a.m.
The Vanderbilt starting five will be junior Abbey Carlson, freshmen Auston Kim and Annie Kim, sophomore Louise Yu and senior Courtney Zeng. Sophomore Morgan Baxendale will participate in the individual competition.
The Commodores are paired with players from South Carolina and Virginia in the opening round.
Vanderbilt head coach Greg Allen wants his Commodores to continue the form they showed in the Mason Rudolph win and a strong runner-up finish in the season-opening Powerade Cougar Classic near Charleston, S.C.
“I’m looking forward to getting back in competition against another really strong field,” Allen said. “We look to build on our momentum from the first two tournaments and pick up where we left off at the Mason (Rudolph) – make a lot of birdies, play smart confident golf, and have fun.
“We’ve shown a lot of firepower thus far, but even more than that, our team chemistry has been unbelievable. Everyone has been supportive of each other and that makes for a winning atmosphere. I look for more of that this week,” Allen added.
The Commodores have been led by junior Abbey Carlson, freshman Auston Kim and senior Courtney Zeng this year. Carlson is coming off an individual win at the Mason Rudolph after posting consecutive rounds of 6-under par 66. Zeng is playing the best golf of her collegiate career and notched a runner-up result at the Powerade Cougar Classic. Kim has started her collegiate career with back-to-back Top 10 finishes.
Carlson, Kim and Zeng are ranked in Golfweek’s individual Top 25, with Carlson ranked No. 3, Kim ranked No. 15 and Zeng ranked No. 23. Only UCLA and USC also have three Top 25-ranked players.
Talented field awaits Commodores
The Ruth’s Chris Tar Heel features an extremely deep field. The invitational features six teams ranked the top 15 nationally by Golfweek: No. 2 Vanderbilt, No. 7 Virginia, No. 9 Arkansas, No. 10. Duke, No. 11 Wake Forest and No. 13 Furman.
Other teams entered are Clemson, Charlotte, Louisville, Michigan, Michigan State, NC State, Ohio State, Rollins College, South Carolina, Tulane, UNC-Wilmington and host North Carolina.
How Vanderbilt has fared previously
Vanderbilt hopes to capture its second Tar Heel Invitational title, repeating a trophy-winning performance from 2006. Besides the line title, the Commodores have finished second in 2013, third in 2008 and fourth in 2009. Last year, the Commodores finished 10th in the team standings.
Vanderbilt is searching for its first individual medalist at the Tar Heel Invitational. Five former Commodores have registered top five finishes: Kendall Martindale, second in 2014; Jennifer Hahn, second in 2013; Marina Alex, second in 2009; Jacqui Concolino, third in 2007 and fourth in 2008; and Chris Brady, fourth in 2006.
On-campus tournament venue
The invitational will be contested at University of North Carolina Finley Golf Course, regarding among the nation’s premier college facilities. The par-72 6,379-yard course designed by internationally-renowned golf course architect Tom Fazio, is located just two miles from the UNC-Chapel Hill campus.
