Women’s Golf Back in Action, Set to Play at The Golf Rush

Sarah Busey (photo courtesy West Coast Conference)

Posted: Feb 21, 2021

SANTA CLARA, Calif. – With one tournament under its belt, Santa Clara women's golf will participate in a familiar event.

The Broncos tee off Monday in The Gold Rush, a 54-hole event at Old Ranch Country Club in Seal Beach, California.

The two-day tournament features 11 teams and Santa Clara will send six members of the roster.

"We had a really good week of practice," head coach Krystal Kelly said. "We made some good strides so it will be fun to see how it transfers to competition."

Sarah Busey, Naomi Wong, Marie Jordaan and Lauren Shew played in The Valley Invitational two weeks ago in Bakersfield, California, and they will be joined by Emily Sumner to comprise to the five-women team at The Gold Rush. Olivia Venderby will play as an individual.

"There were challenges at the first tournament with only four players available and no practice time," Kelly said.

The team did not return to campus until the third week of January and had to go through a quarantine period before hitting the links.

"The first time I saw them play this season was during our practice round for The Valley Invitational," Kelly said. "I knew we would have some rust like most collegiate teams returning back to competition."

Despite being down a player, the Broncos managed a ninth-place showing at The Valley Invite. Wong finished tied for 19th at 19-over-par while Busey and Shew each tied for 29th at 27-over.

Sumner has played in 19 career tournaments and Venderby will be making her collegiate debut on the par-72, 6,218-yard course.

"We are all very excited to be back out together and doing what we love," Kelly said. "We are very appreciative of all the efforts from the athletic department to make sure we get the opportunity to practice and compete."

Santa Clara has been a regular participant in this event, appearing for the fifth-straight season.

"I have seen this course many times and feel comfortable out there," Kelly said. "In order to post a good score it will just come down to sticking to our game plan, focusing on course management and making more putts."

Teams will play 36 holes on Monday and 18 on Tuesday. Tee times start at 7 a.m. Follow the action on Golfstat.com.