Skip to main content

Women's Golf Back at Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge

Mar 10, 2022

TEMPE, Ariz. - Sun Devil Women's Golf is back on the road, heading to California to compete at the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge.

Arizona State will play 54 holes over three days, with teams completing 18 holes Sunday, March 13 – Tuesday, March 15. The Sun Devils are very familiar with this event, having appeared in every edition of the tournament hosted by Ohio State at Palos Verdes Golf Club in Palos Verdes Estates, California.

"The team has been working hard to be prepared for this quick turnaround," Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye remarked. "We love playing at this event as it will make us better and bring us closer as a team."

THE FIELD
Arizona State faces yet another loaded field filled with highly-ranked teams. ASU is one of 16 teams to make the trip to Palos Verdes Estates, 10 of which are ranked in the latest Golfstat Top-25. 13 of the 16 teams competing are ranked inside the Top-50, including four Top-10 teams. Coach Missy Farr-Kaye's team has had a ton of success against ranked teams this year, recently beating out seven Top-25 teams to finish third at the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate.
 
NORTHROP GRUMMAN REGIONAL CHALLENGE TOP-25 TEAMS (GOLFSTAT)
#2 Oregon
#5 Wake Forest
#6 Virginia
#10 Texas
#12 Arizona State
#13 USC
#18 Auburn
#19 Baylor
#21 Duke
#22 Arizona
 
There is plenty of individual star power competing in the Regional Challenge as well. An impressive 18 of the Top-50 golfers in Golfstat's individual rankings are in the field, including Arizona State's own Calynne Rosholt (No. 10) and Alexandra Forsterling (No. 12). A total of 33 of the Top-100 golfers in the nation highlight an excellent field presenting a resume-building opportunity.

THE LINEUP
After a difficult qualifying session, Coach Farr-Kaye selected a deep and talented group of five to represent the Maroon & Gold. Pairings, tee-times, and starting holes will be announced later. Calynne Rosholt earned to top spot this week coming off an impressive Darius Rucker performance. Fellow Top-15 golfer Alexandra Forsterling follows up in the No. 2 spot. Returning All-American Ashley Menne qualified third, followed by Amanda Linner at No. 4. Alessandra Fanali is back in the lineup for her third Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge appearance.
 
NORTHROP GRUMMAN REGIONAL CHALLENGE LINEUP
Calynne Rosholt
Alexandra Forsterling
 
Ashley Menne
Amanda Linner 
Alessandra Fanali
 

The first tee-times for the first round on Sunday are scheduled for 9 AM, split between holes 1 and 10. The same is the case for the second round on Monday, followed by a 8:00 shotgun start for the final round on Tuesday.
 
HISTORY AT NORTHROP GRUMMAN
The annual tournament was not held last year because of COVID-19. Palos Verdes Golf Club, in partnership with Ohio State University, will again play host in Palos Verdes Estates, California. This is the 22nd time Arizona State has appeared, competing in every edition since 2000.
 
The Sun Devils won the tournament back in 2009 with a dominant performance, finishing 18-strokes ahead of the second-place finisher. Individually, Juliana Murcia won the the event in 2009, one of four Sun Devils to capture medalist honors at the event. Most recently, Olivia Mehaffey earned co-medalist honors at the 2018 edition. Monica Vaughn was the last sole winner for the program, doing so back in 2016. Some of the best names in the history of Sun Devil Women's Golf have used this event to help catapult their careers, including a win in 2011 by Carlota Ciganda preceeded by two second place finishes for Azahara Munoz in 2007 and 2008. 
 
LAST TIME OUT
Sun Devil Women's Golf finished in third place behind the strength of two individuals finishing in the Top-10 at the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate. The three-day tournament, which was the first ever regular season women's college golf event broadcasted live on GOLF Channel, was held at Long Cove Club. Arizona State took home third place in an extremely prestigious field, as Missy Farr-Kaye's team thrived under pressure. 

Calynne Rosholt and Alexandra Forsterling led the way individually for the Sun Devils, each finishing in the Top-10. Rosholt set the pace by tying for third place, the best finish of her young career. The freshman proved to be one of the best in the field made up of 22 of the Top-100 golfers, with a 212 (-1) earning her bronze. Forsterling was not far behind her teammate in a tie for sixth, her ninth career Top-10 finish. Three of those have come during a breakout senior season, where she has yet to finish outside the Top-20 at any tournament.

SUN DEVILS IN THE RANKINGS
Coming off arguably their best performance of the season, Arizona State continues to climb up the national polls. The Sun Devils are ranked No. 12 by Golfstat, No. 13 team by Golfweek/Sagarin, and are the No. 11 team in the Mizuno WGCA Coaches Poll. With another challenge this upcoming week, the Maroon & Gold will have a chance to improve upon that ranking.
 
Several Sun Devils continue to move up the individual national rankings, as Arizona State features one of the most talented rosters in the country. Alexandra Forsterling is now in the Top-10, ranked as the No. 7 golfer in the country according to Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, the highest ranking of any Sun Devil. The same publication tabbed Calynne Rosholt as the No. 14 player in the nation. Golfstat also looks favorably upon several Sun Devils, ranking two in the Top-15. Calynne Rosholt came in at No. 10 and Alexandra Forsterling  is right behind her at No. 12, giving ASU one of the most decorated duos in the country.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW
Live scoring will be available on Golfstat at the following link. For the latest updates and information on 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).