CHICAGO, Ill. —The golf course was different but the results were very similar as the Georgia women’s golf team won the Windy City Collegiate Classic for the second straight year on Tuesday, October 4th, 2016. The Bulldogs closed with a 2-over 290 to finish at 10-under 854 and secure the team title by four shots over Stanford.
A year ago playing at the Westmoreland Country Club, the Bulldogs shared the team title with No. 3 Arizona and No. 6 Northwestern at 12-under 852.
“I’m super happy with our team and how they performed today,” head coach Josh Brewer said. “We had a chance last week at the Annika and didn’t get it done. We got right back out there this week and put ourselves in contention again. Hats off to our team. They played great all week. This victory is a big statement early in the year for us on where we are and how we can compete on a national level.”
Georgia’s counting scores on Tuesday were a 1-under 71 from Jillian Hollis, an even-par 72 from Bailey Tardy, a 1-over 73 from Rinko Mitsunaga and a 2-over 74 from Harang Lee. Mary Ellen Shuman’s 75 was the Bulldogs’ drop score.
“It seemed like we were leading, but you never know,” Brewer said. “You can never think you’ve won when you’re playing against the best teams in the country because you know they’re going to make birdies. You know you have to keep playing as well as you can, and that’s just what we did. I was finally able to breathe when the scorecards were signed.”
The Cardinal inched past Southern Cal late to finished second four shots back at 858. The Women of Troy finished third at 859 and rounding out the top-10 teams were Florida at 865, Duke at 872, Purdue at 873, Northwestern at 876, Arizona at 879 and Oklahoma State and Oregon both 880.
Tardy finished as individual runner-up, her third top-5 finish in as many events this season. All told, Tardy, a sophomore, now has nine top-5, 11 top-20 and 13 top-20 performances in 20 tournaments for Georgia.
Hollis and Lee also posted top-10 finishes, tying for 10th at 1-under 215, while Mitsunaga tied for 16th at 1-over 217 and Shuman tied for 73rd at 236.
“One month in we’ve proven we are one of the best teams in the country,” Brewer said. “The way we’re playing, I wish national championships started on October 4, but they don’t come until next May. We have to continue to work and play great golf, but it’s hard to win in this sport and this is a special victory. We’re excited and going to enjoy it.”