⛳ Three Jayhawks Finish in the Top 10 at the Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Three Kansas women’s golf seniors finished tied for 10th as the Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational concluded Tuesday at Colbert Hills Golf Course.

KU seniors Lauren Heinlein, Pear Pooratanaopa and Abby Glynn each shot a three-round 223 (+7) and tied for 10th in the 62-golfer field. On Tuesday, Heinlein shot the low round of the KU trio with a 2-under 70 that included five birdies. Glynn, who played as an individual and had four birdies Tuesday, was one shot behind Heinlein at 71 (-1). Pooratanaopa shot 1-under on the par 3s for her three rounds, which tied for the best score on the par 3s for the event.

“This week was a grind,” Kansas head coach Lindsay Kuhle said. “We saw a lot of great things from Lauren the last two rounds and from Pear all three rounds. The course was challenging with the wind and there were some difficult hole locations today. It was a learning tournament and one that we can take a lot from.”

KU super-senior Sera Tadokoro finished tied for 15th with a three-round 224 (+8). Her best round came Monday afternoon where she shot a 71 (-1). Freshman Caroline Wales finished two shots behind Tadokoro at 225 (+10), while freshman Jordan Rothman shot a 231 and sophomore Hanna Hawks a 234.

“I am really proud of Pear, Lauren, Abby and Sera for playing well under difficult conditions at times and all shooting even or better at least one round,” Kuhle said.

Like the second round Monday afternoon, Kansas was rock solid in Tuesday’s final round shooting a 300, which was the third-lowest round of the day in the 10-team field. KU’s 293 in the second round Monday afternoon was the second lowest recorded in that round. For the tournament, Kansas shot a three-round 899, which was one shot behind runner-up and host Kansas State (898).

Nebraska brought two teams to the event and the Nebraska ‘B’ squad won the tourney finishing with a three-round 885 (+21), which was six shot ahead of runner-up Sam Houston State (891), then Kansas State and Kansas. Individually, Nebraska’s Nicole Hansen and Lindsey Thiele tied for first with a three-round 219 (+3).

Kansas will play next play at the Golfweek Conference Challenge, Sept. 27-29, at the Red Sky Ranch Golf Club in Vail, Colorado.

“We need to really work on our wedges and pitches and lag putting,” Kuhle said about what the team will be working on prior to its trip to Colorado. “We hit it great off the tee and make a lot of pars when we hit the green. But it’s taking advantage of having wedges in our hands and converting more birdie opportunities. We will continue to grow and learn from this tournament and come out stronger.”