Alabama
Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic
Polly Mack Earns Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic Medalist Honors, Alabama Women’s Golf Finishes in Fourth Place
3/27/2022 4:52:00 PM | Women's Golf
Mack carded the lowest round of the tournament with a 3-under-par 69 Sunday
ATHENS, Ga. – Polly Mack earned her first career medalist honors in the regular season finale at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic Sunday, leading wire-to-wire at the University of Georgia Golf Course (par 72, 6,317 yards) to record a 3-under-par 213 (70-74-69) tournament total. The fifth year closed out her final round with back-to-back birdies on holes Nos. 17 and 18 to turn in the lowest score of the tournament with her 3-under-par 69 Sunday.
Mack, who led the tournament wire-to-wire, finished four strokes clear of second place and as the only golfer under par. Ranked No. 14 in the nation according to Golfstat, Mack won the individual title while competing in a field that included seven of the nation's top 15 individual players, including No. 2 Amari Avery of USC, No. 3 Rachel Kuehn of Wake Forest, No. 7 Sara Kouskova of Texas, No. 9 Hannah Darling of South Carolina, No. 13 Benedetta Moresco of Alabama and No. 15 Carol Lopez-Chacarra of Wake Forest.
The Crimson Tide finished in fourth place as a team thanks to a 30-over-par 894 scorecard, the Tide's seventh finish inside the top four through eight tournaments in 2021-22. Alabama carded its best round of the tournament Sunday, posting an 8-over 296 after back-to-back rounds of 299 Friday and Saturday.
The Crimson Tide found fourth place in the 15-team field that included eight teams ranked in the top 25 of the latest Golfstat rankings. No. 3 Wake Forest, No. 4 South Carolina, No. 11 Texas, No. 12 Alabama, No. 13 Southern California, No. 16 Texas A&M, No. 17 Arkansas and No. 22 Ole Miss were joined by Southern, Houston, Georgia, Mercer, Mississippi State, Louisville and Charleston to complete the field.
South Carolina took home the tournament title at 10-over-par 874, firing off an even-par 288 Sunday to lock in the triumph. Texas A&M finished eight strokes back of the Gamecocks in second place at 18-over-par 882, followed by Wake Forest in third place at 24-over-par 888. Alabama followed in fourth place on a 30-over-par 894 tournament total, while Georgia and Southern California rounded out the top five in a tie for fifth place at 37-over-par 901.
Benedetta Moresco surged into the top 25 Sunday after turning in an even-par 72 in the final round, finishing in 22nd on a 9-over-par 225 tournament total. The All-American rallied three birdies on the back nine to jump 14 spots on the individual leaderboard, continuing her streak of eight straight top-25 finishes this season.
Isabella van der Biest carded a 7-over-par 79 in the final round, finishing tied for 33rd place overall on a 7-over-par 228. The freshman began the tournament strong with rounds of 75 and 74 on Friday and Saturday, respectively, but battled through the middle of the course Sunday, posting a trio of double bogeys.
Angelica Moresco concluded the regular season finale tied for 37th place on a 13-over-par 229 tournament total, posting a 5-over-par 77 Sunday. The graduate student contributed all three of her rounds to Alabama's team total throughout the weekend, including her second-round 73, the lowest score of the round for the Crimson Tide's lineup.
Sarah Edwards finished at 22-over-par 238, putting together a 6-over-par 78 in the final round to finish tied for 63rd.
From Head Coach Mic Potter
"We are very excited, but not surprised, that Polly (Mack) is the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic individual champion. Polly has all the tools to become one of the top players in women's golf, so this is only the beginning for her. Congratulations to her coach at home Gregor Tilch who has been an outstanding teacher and mentor to her over the years. This is a confidence builder for Polly heading into the post season, and hopefully an inspiration to the rest of the team!"
From Polly Mack
"Going into the second and third round leading the tournament kind of made it harder for me because I'd rather chase than lead before the final round, but I'm glad it turned out the way it did. The Valspar Augusta tournament we played in last week was great practice regarding the windy conditions, so I was able to keep my ball in play and skip any high numbers. Knowing that I had a good chance of winning after the second round, I tried to stay in the present and not predict the future nor look back on what happened so far. So, whenever I caught my mind slipping away, I brought myself back to the present and focused on the next shot."
Results
- 1 Polly Mack 3-under-par 213
- 22 Benedetta Moresco 9-over-par 225
- T33 Isabella van der Biest 12-over-par 228
- T37 Angelica Moresco 13-over-par 229
- T63 Sarah Edwards 22-over-par 238
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Players Mentioned
