Sun Devils Complete Day One at Bruin Wave

Leaderboard

SOMIS, Calif. – Sun Devil Women's Golf wrapped up the first round at the Bruin Wave Invitational, held at The Saticoy Club on Monday.
 
Navigating windy conditions as one of the first groups to tee-off this morning, Arizona State still managed to deliver one of the best rounds of the day. Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye's team finished with a 309, which puts them in second place after the first round.

"Today was a bit of a struggle with difficult hole locations and wind," Coach Farr-Kaye remarked after the round. "The scores across the board were quite high. We are ready to make some adjustments tomorrow so we can get ourselves on top of the leaderboard. I have a lot of faith that this team will come back fighting hard tomorrow!"
 

The Sun Devils trail overall leader Oregon by just three strokes with plenty of golf left to be played. After improving their scores down by seven strokes while finishing on the front nine, the Maroon & Gold built momentum heading into the second round. The team's 12 birdies were tied for the most of any team in the field, with potentially even more opportunities available if calmer conditions are in effect tomorrow.
 
Picking up right where she left off following her third consecutive individual title, Linn Grant is once again in the mix after 18 holes in another strong field. Grant carded a 73 (+1) thanks to some excellent work on the front nine, which was where she finished her day. 
 
Birdies on two of her last four holes helped Grant elevate the Sun Devils into second place. Shrewd adjustments throughout the round allowed her to cut three strokes off her score after making the turn. She trails leader Briana Chacon and Ching-Tzu Chen by only one stroke.

 
Alessandra Fanali joins Grant in the Top-10, settling in a tie for eighth at the conclusion of the day. Fanali opened up with the best back nine of any Sun Devil, and finished strong with two birdies in her final four holes. Fanali and Grant tied for the best stroke average (4.25) of any golfer in the field on par-five holes.
 
The next highest-finishing Sun Devil was Ashley Menne, who made her debut in the lineup at the No. 3 spot. The coaching staff's trust in her paid off, as she ended with the third-best score on her team. Menne avoided making many mistakes to open up her day on the back nine, and recorded her two birdies of the day after making the turn on the front nine. 
 
Olivia Mehaffey looks to build off of two birdies on the front nine while Amanda Linner chopped her score by three strokes on the back nine and gained some confidence heading into tomorrow.
 
Playing as an individual, Alexandra Forsterling had bright moments and is tied with Mehaffey after 18 holes. One of her two birdies came on the second to last hole of the day, allowing her to finish even over her final five holes and cut her score by five strokes after making the turn. 
 
Arizona State will get a later tee-time on Tuesday thanks to their finish in the Top-3 of the team standings. They will be paired with familiar foe Oregon and New Mexico on an important day two of the Bruin Wave. Here is how the Sun Devils will tee-off:
 
HOLE 1: Linn Grant - 11:34 AM

HOLE 1: Alessandra Fanali – 11: 23 AM
HOLE 1: Ashley Menne – 11:12 AM
HOLE 1: Olivia Mehaffey – 11:01 AM
HOLE 1: Amanda Linner – 10:50 AM
HOLE 10: Alexandra Forsterling – 9:55 AM 
 
HOW TO FOLLOW
Live scoring will be provided by Golfstat at the following link. For the latest updates and information on the Bruin Wave Invitational and the Sun Devil Women's Golf program, follow our Twitter/Instagram accounts (@SunDevilWGolf), like our Facebook page (facebook.com/sundevilwgolf/), and visit our website (thesundevils.com).

 
HISTORY AT THE BRUIN WAVE
This is the 12th edition of the Bruin Wave Invitational, which is an annual event jointly-hosted by Pepperdine and UCLA. Arizona State will be participating in the event for the fourth time in program history and looking for their first title. The Sun Devils have previously finished as the runner-up twice and third at their last appearance in 2019.
 
Olivia Mehaffey won the first of three Individual Titles during a brilliant 2018-19 campaign at the 2019 Bruin Wave Invitational. She became the first Sun Devil to win the event and joined Carlota Ciganda (2010), who finished fifth back in 2010, as the only Sun Devils to finish in the Top-5.