(Scottsdale, AZ) Sun Devil Women’s Golf sophomore Grace Summerhays has qualified for the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open.
GAINEY RANCH QUALIFIER
By virtue of her second place finish at the Gainey Ranch Golf Club U.S. Women’s Open qualifier in Scottsdale, Summerhays is one of two amateurs to advance to the LPGA Major Championship. The Sun Devil standout was able to earn one of the coveted spots after battling a 70-golfer field full of the top amateurs and even several professional competitors.
Summerhays finished with a 140 (-4) in the two-round qualifier, three strokes ahead of third-place. She put herself in great position after opening the event with a 68 (-4). While the pressure got to some of her fellow golfers in contention, Summerhays maintained her composure, firing a 72 (E) on the second day to secure her spot at the U.S. Women’s Open. Summerhays is one of 20 amateurs in the world to have qualified for this event so far.
COACH’S CORNER
“We are extremely proud of Grace for qualifying for the U.S. Women’s Open,” Coach Farr-Kaye mentioned. “Our program takes great pride in preparing our players for the professional level. Part of that process is challenging them to compete in qualifying events like this. She not only accepted the challenge, but exceeded expectations and will be representing Sun Devil Women’s Golf on an enormous stage. This is the first of many LPGA major appearances for Grace. We look forward to rooting her on in July.”
2023 U.S. WOMEN’S OPEN
The 78th edition of the U.S. Women’s Open will be Summerhays’ first appearance in a LPGA Major Championship. It takes place July 6-9 at iconic Pebble Beach Golf Links in California, which has been home to several previous U.S. and U.S. Women’s Open Championships. Live coverage of the event will air on Peacock, USA Network, and NBC throughout the weekend.
STRAIGHT FROM THE SOURCE
“Qualifying for the US Womens Open is so exciting and is something I have dreamed of,” Summerhays exclaimed. “It doesn’t get much better than being able to play at Pebble Beach against the best in the world. I have gotten a lot better this season and can’t wait to keep learning and gaining experience. I think it is super encouraging to see our ASU alumni playing so well and just shows that our program has been great for producing successful professionals!”
SUN DEVILS AT THE U.S. WOMEN’S OPEN
Past and present of the Sun Devil Women’s Golf program will meet at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open. Arizona State will be well reprsented at arguably the most important women’s golf professional tournament in the World. Grace Summerhays will be joined by fellow Sun Devils and current LPGA professionals Carlota Ciganda, Linn Grant, and Anna Nordqvist.
Missy Farr-Kaye‘s program takes pride in developing golfers to compete at the professional level while in college. This will be the fourth straight year an active member of the Sun Devil Women’s Golf team will compete in the U.S. Women’s Open. Alexandra Forsterling did it last year, Amanda Linner in 2021, as well as Linn Grant in 2020.
PEER REVIEW
Second Team All-American Ashley Menne served as the caddy for Summerhays during her qualification process and had a first-hand look at the performance.
“Caddying for grace was a breeze,” Menne reflected. “It was so much fun for me. It made the 36 holes only feel like 18. She played awesome during the qualifier. Made a lot of clutch putts out there. Super proud of her as a teammate and a friend. Such a well deserved accomplishment. Our team is deep and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
2023 SEASON
Summerhays her game to another level during a sensational sophomore season on her way to earning First Team Pac-12 All-Conference honors. She was responsible for three Top-10 and six Top-20 finishes. Over the course of the season, she registered 11 rounds of par or better, including two rounds in the 60s. Summerhays earned two straight Top-10 finishes to end the regular season, including a sixth place at the Silverado Showdown. Back in March, she shot a career-low 67 (-5) on the final day of the PING/ASU Invitational to move into the Top-10 (T-9th). She also tied for fourth at the Nexus Collegiate in the Spring, her best finish at a three-day event. She put together back-to-back rounds under par to cap the tournament. Summerhays stormed out of the gates at the Pac-12 Preview by shooting a 68 (-5) as part of Arizona State’s record-breaking round. She spent her winter break earning a tie for first at the Patriot All-American Golf Tournament, featuring the top collegiate players from around the country.
PAC-12 ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Arizona State landed four individuals on the Pac-12 All-Conference teams, tied with Oregon and USC for the most selections of any school. Grace Summerhays was one of only 12 golfers named to the First Team in arguably the deepest conference in the country. It was her second consecutive year earning All-Conference distinction.
FINAL RANKINGS
Golfstat and Golfweek released their final rankings of the 2022-23 collegiate women’s golf season. Grace Summerhays is the second-highest ranked Sun Devil in both polls, earning a Top-75 spot accoring to each major publication. Summerhays finished No. 56 according to Golfstat and ended No. 74 in Golfweek’s metrics, combining with Ashley Menne to provide a solid 1-2 punch for Arizona State at the top of the lineup.
ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT
Not only did she get it done on the course, Summerhays was also a high acheiver in the classroom This resulted in her earning a spot on the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. Each year, the CSC (formerly known as CoSIDA) recognizes the top student-athletes in each sport with Academic All-District and All-American distinction. Women’s Golf is in the at-large category – with only the highest achievers in sports excluding football, basketball, baseball, softball, and track & field – eligible candidates for the honor.
Summerhays earns the distinction thanks to a fantastic effort in the classroom this semester. The Communications major has maintained a 4.0 GPA during her sophomore season, leading by example on and off the course. She becomes the first member of Sun Devil Women’s Golf to earn the exclusive honor since 2018 Pac-12 Scholar Athlete of the Year Roberta Liti also accomplished the feat in 2018.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Connor Smith
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