Some of America’s greatest golfers have graced the fairways at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J.
Jack Nicklaus won two U.S. Opens and Phil Mickelson conquered the difficult greens to win the 2005 PGA Championships.
And yesterday, the Penn women’s golf team made history at the legendary course, when it won its first Ivy title since its inaugural season in 2000.
“The girls did all the work,” said coach Mark Anderson. “I’m so proud of how they played, especially on such a tough golf course.”
Penn set the tone from the beginning of the three-day meet, holding a five stroke lead at the end of the first round.
While the Quakers widened the gap to eight on the second day, it was the last round that made the difference. Penn registered the lowest team score in any round of the entire competition and finished 22 strokes ahead of second-place Yale.
Freshman Isabel Han’s score was good for second overall, while sophomore Tiffany Cheung sat right behind her in third.
“It was great to see [Han] be able to put herself in that situation, and then deal with it so well,” Anderson said.
Seniors Lisette Vitter, Meredith Kotowski and Catherine Elliot supplemented the two underclassmen, finishing in the top third of 35 competitors.
Meanwhile, on the men’s side, Penn sophomore Scotty Williams was also stepping into the shoes of golf greats.
Williams had been at the top of the pack throughout the tournament, but found himself tied for first at the end of the final round with Columbia’s Clark Granum, who overcame a six-stroke gap.
On the first playoff hole, Williams hit within five feet of the pin. He went on to birdie — just like Mickelson in 2005 — securing Penn’s second ever individual medalist honor since the initial championship in 1975.
“I played three solid rounds of golf... and I was hitting the ball pretty well, so I was hoping everything would come together,” Williams said. “And it ended up coming together for me.”
Though Williams won the individual title, the Quakers placed third overall and Columbia won its third consecutive championship.
Penn was just two strokes behind the Lions entering the last round of competition, but Columbia surged ahead while the Quakers faltered down the stretch.
“We were disappointed,” said coach Scott Allen. “In the previous two weeks, we had beaten Yale and Columbia … and we really felt like we had an excellent shot to win. We just didn’t play our best in the final round.”
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