By Michael Haag | Sports Editor
No. 18 Baylor women’s golf notched a tie for third place after a 12-over 864 on Tuesday at the Therese Hession Regional Challenge in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.
Freshman Silje Ohma finished tied for second individually, securing her third-straight top-five finish to open the spring slate. Junior Rosie Belsham, the overall winner of the Bears’ last event, carded her second-straight top-five finish as she tied for fifth on the heels of a final round 67.
Collectively, Baylor ended the event six shots back of No. 5 University of Oregon, which won thanks to a 6-over 585. The Ducks wound up five shots ahead of second-place and No. 1 Stanford University and its 11-over 863.
“I think our team is uniquely equipped to play our best on difficult golf courses, and that’s exactly what we got out here this week,” head coach Jay Goble said. “This course forces you to be patient and pick your spots, and I thought we did a tremendous job of that all week, so I am really proud of how we played against some of the best players and teams in college golf.”
Ohma opened things up on No. 6 with a bogey, but was able to get back into red figures with a couple of birdies at Nos. 11 and 12. After falling back to par a few holes later, Ohma birdied at No. 18. She wrapped up her day at even par across the final five holes and led the field with 14 birdies.
Belsham shot the round of the day with a 4-under 67 to jump 17 spots on the individual leaderboard, putting her tied for fifth. Belsham sank birdies at six different holes to overcome back-to-back bogeys at Nos. 1 and 2. She finished at 4-under on the round.
Sophomore Sera Hasegawa returned from injury to take part in her first tournament of the spring. Hasegawa completed her day tied for 31st after a 4-over 75 on Tuesday. She closed out the opening nine with four-straight pars but bogeyed at No. 2 and No. 4 to finish her day.
Senior Hannah Karg carded a 3-over 74 to end the week tied for 37th. Karg played the course even-par on the opening nine thanks to a pair of birdies at No. 12 and No. 14. The second nine wasn’t as friendly as Karg finished with three bogeys at No. 18, No. 3 and No. 6.
Senior Anika Veintemilla concluded the event tied for 70th following a 2-over 73, her best round of the week. Veintemilla struggled early with two bogeys in her first four holes, but birdies at No. 14, No. 17 and No. 18 helped her play a seven-hole stretch at 3-under par.
Goble said he was pleased to see strong individual performances from Belsham and Ohma.
“Rosie was amazing,” Goble said. “Today was absolutely the hardest day, and for her to go out and shoot a 67 just shows just how well she is playing right now. This is the second tournament in a row that Silje has played really well, which bodes well for her and for our team. She has the confidence to know she can go toe-to-toe with the best players in college golf.”
Baylor now looks ahead to the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate at Long Cove Club in Hilton Head Island, S.C., scheduled for Feb. 27 to March 1. The event will be broadcast live on the Golf Channel each day from 1:30-4:30 p.m. CT.
