Three Players in the Top 11 at the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate Invitational
FORT WORTH, Texas – The Wildcats’ women’s golf team is in good company near the top of the leaderboard at the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate Invitational after playing 36 holes at the Ridglea Country Club North Course (par 71, 6,298 yards) in Fort Worth, Texas, on Monday.
Going just 4-over in the first round this morning and 6-over in the second round this afternoon, the University of Kentucky women’s golf team is tied for fourth place in the stacked field of 11. UK is seven shots behind No. 15 Wake Forest in first place and just four shots behind No. 19 Texas A&M and No. 21 Oklahoma State sharing second place.
Elin Pudas Remler, fresh off being named the Southeastern Conference Freshman Golfer of the Week, is pacing the Wildcats after an impressive first round. She went 4-under through the first 18, recording six birdies, including three back-to-back-to-back right out of the gate. Her next 18 wasn’t as potent, letting six bogeys overshadow a few more birdies.
Altogether, the rookie, who owns a 72.2 stroke average this season, has a 1-under tournament total thus far, sitting in a share of fourth place among the 60 participants. She is right in the mix, too, just two shots off the three players tied for the lead.
Marta López Echevarría is right behind Pudas Remler, going a perfect even-par through 36 holes for a share of eighth place. The senior went 1-over in her first round but came back with a 1-under in her second round. She found two more birdie opportunities in her second 18, including three in her final five holes of the day. Like Pudas Remler, López Echevarría isn’t out of reach of the lead, just three shots off the trio tied at the top.
Competing in her first lineup for the Blue and White, Anastasia Hekkonen gave the team a huge boost in her debut. The freshman went just 2-over in the first round, then she dropped to 1-under in her second lap around the golf course. A birdie on the par-4 No. 8 and an eagle on the par-5 No. 9 bolstered her scorecard in the second round, followed by two more birdies in her final four holes of the day.
Hekkonen is just 1-over for the tournament thus far, sharing 11th place in the 60-person field.
Cathryn Brown, a sophomore from Eddyville, Kentucky, paired her first-round 76 with a second-round 76, earning a share of 42nd place. Brooke Oberparleiter, also a sophomore, had an uncharacteristic day, going 12-over in her first round before shedding four strokes off her score with an 8-over in her second round. She is in 60th place.
Kentucky will tee off in the final round of the tournament and the final round of the fall schedule Tuesday beginning at 9:30 a.m. ET, paired with SMU and hosts TCU.
Scorecard
T4 Elin Pudas Remler 67, 74 … 141 (-1)
T8 Marta López Echevarría 72, 70 … 142 (E)
T11 Anastasia Hekkonen 73, 70 … 143 (+1)
T42 Cathryn Brown 76, 76 … 152 (+10)
60 Brooke Oberparleiter 83, 79 … 162 (+20)
For the latest on the Kentucky women’s golf team, follow the team on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.
