With four players on the sideline generating the same energy as thousands of fans, Texas seized its final Big 12 women’s golf championship title before transitioning to the Southeastern Conference. Three freshmen and two sophomores captured No. 11 Texas’ eighth Big 12 Championship.
“I’m happy that we won this golf tournament. Doing it like we did with a young team — I’m particularly happy about that,” head coach Ryan Murphy said to Texas Athletics. “It’s the youngest team I’ve ever taken to a golf tournament.”
The young team showed their mature hand by improving their mid and long game, which was lacking in the 2023 championship. The victory marks their fifth Big 12 Championship in the last seven years and eighth overall.
The Longhorns, who were notably the only team to finish under par, ending the championship one-under-par, won by twelve strokes. This gap separated them from the rest of the competitors, such as second place Iowa State (11-over-par) and third place Kansas State (14-over-par).
Freshmen Farah O’Keefe and Lauren Kim had phenomenal individual performances, both finishing tied for third, both bringing an albatross home. Their scores earned them Big 12 All-Tournament Team honors. Together, the duo carded eight birdies in the championship’s final round.
“Farah O’Keefe’s tournament here was incredible and her entire season has been fantastic,” Murphy said. “She is going to be an All-American (and) Lauren Kim is going to be an All-American. I’m proud of them both.”
Sophomore Cindy Hsu struggled a bit in her first round, shooting a 76 (five-over-par), but she rebounded nicely in her next two rounds, shooting a 71 and 69, respectively. Hsu’s two-under-par performance on Saturday made her shoot up 13 spots on the final individual leaderboard to finish tied for 12th.
Freshman Selina Liao, who has been catching the attention of coach Murphy for her late season surge, carded three perfectly consistent rounds of 73 to finish at six-over-par and tied for 21st. This solid performance comes off the heels of the Silverado Showdown a couple of weeks ago, where Liao finished fourth overall in only her third ever collegiate tournament.
Rounding out the Longhorns roster was sophomore Angela Heo, who shot rounds of 73, 75 and 72 to finish at seven-over-par and tied for 26th behind Liao.
“We played some really good golf,” Murphy said. “Perhaps the best we have played this season and I was really proud of them.”
Though this is their best team victory of the season, the Longhorns are far from done. By winning the Big 12 Championship, the team has earned an automatic bid to the NCAA women’s regionals. They will find out where they are headed for the NCAA Regional Championships on Wednesday at 1 pm. CT during the NCAA Women’s Selection Show, airing on the Golf Channel.
