Amari Avery Named To WGCA All-American First Team

Freshman Amari Avery, who just completed one of the best seasons in USC women's golf history featuring three wins and seven top 10 finishes, has been named a 2022 WGCA All-American first team selection, announced Wednesday (May 25).

Avery, who was a finalist for the 2022 ANNIKA Award as well as the WGCA Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year honors, managed all of that despite joining the Trojans as a spring semester freshman.

She is USC's first freshman to earn All-American first team notice since Annie Park and Kyung Kim both did in 2013. She is the 19th different Trojan to capture All-American first team honors, something USC golfers have earned a combined 28 times.

Avery is the third All-American first team selection under fourth-year Head Coach Justin Silverstein.

Said Silverstein: "Amari put together one of the best semesters of golf we have ever had at USC and she deserves all the postseason accolades she's getting. Her incredibly hard and smart work has paid off since arriving at USC and the sky is the limit for how good she can get."

Avery posted three wins (including at NCAA Regionals), a tie for second, a tie for fifth, a tie for sixth and a tie for eighth among her first eight stroke-play starts.

Her three wins this season are tied with Sophia Popov for fourth on USC's season-chart behind NCAA winners Annie Park (2013) and Mikaela Parmlid (2003) and All-American Irene Cho (2006), all of whom had four.

Avery finished with seven top 10 finishes (all in the top 8) in nine stroke play events, tied for sixth on USC's all-time season list, two off the record shared by LPGA stars Lizette Salas, Jennifer Song and Candie Kung.
 
Her stroke average is 71.64 in 28 rounds is good for sixth on USC's all-time season chart behind only All-Americans Park, Kim, Jennifer Song and Allisen Corpuz.

She led USC with 10 rounds in the 60s, tied for second-most in a season at USC Annie Park and one back of Kim, both set in 2014.

Avery's 10 rounds in the 60s already puts her in Troy's all-time career top 15, tied for 13th. She finished the season with 13 rounds under par and 14 of par or better.

Avery won her first college hardware at 15-under 201 (65-71-65) at the Icon Invitational, clinching her one-stroke win with a short par on 18 after seven birdies on the day. Her 15-under tied the USC record for most under par in a 54-hole event and she is the first Trojan to post a pair of 65s in one tournament. She then won at The Gold Rush at 5-under 211 (69-74-68) for her second straight crown.

Avery captured her third win at the NCAA Stanford Regional at 9-under 204 (69-67-68). She built a three-stroke final-round lead before finishing with a one-stroke win over Stanford's top-ranked Rose Zhang.

Her five top 8s in a row to start her season is the best freshman start in at least two decades. Avery, who tied for fifth at the Pac-12 Championships, was also named Pac-12 Golfer of the Month for February.

Dotting Avery's summer schedule will be stints playing for the U.S. in both he Curtis Cup and the Arnold Palmer Cup.