Women’s golf aims to fine-tune skills for postseason at Chambers Bay Invitational
Coach Carrie Forsyth and No. 17 UCLA women’s golf will take on their final regular-season tournament of the year starting Sunday. (Jeremy Chen/Daily Bruin staff)
WOMEN’S GOLF
Chambers Bay Invitational
Monday to Tuesday
University Place, Washington
By Joseph Crosby
April 9, 2022 2:03 p.m.
The Bruins will have the opportunity to finish strong in their last tournament of the regular season.
No. 17 UCLA women’s golf is headed to Washington to compete in the Chambers Bay Invitational on Monday and Tuesday. While three Bruins competed individually at the Silverado Showdown from Monday to Wednesday, the tournament will be the first team event for the blue and gold since the PING/ASU Invitational, which concluded March 27.
Coach Carrie Forsyth said the focus of the tournament will be making final tuneups prior to the start of the postseason.
“I’m hoping that the team shows a really strong finish,” Forsyth said. “We, as coaches, are going to be able to make a determination about who’s going to be playing in the lineup at Pac-12, and I’m hoping that we can get a win under our belt.”
The Bruins have not won a tournament since September 2018 but reached as high as second place three times this season. Through four tournaments in the spring, UCLA has achieved a top-five finish on three occasions.
Forsyth said it has been difficult for the whole team to play well at the same time.
“You need to have five players who can score, and we haven’t had that,” Forsyth said. “We haven’t put it together as a team.”
Forsyth said the one exception was during the final round at the PING/ASU Invitational, when the team shot a 5-under 283, with junior Emilie Paltrinieri posting a 2-under 70 as an individual. The 5-under-283 line was the best team round for the Bruins all season and one of four under-par team rounds.
The Pacific Northwest tournament will be hosted at the Chambers Bay golf course, the future site of the 2022 U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship in the summer. Forsyth said the ability to play at Chambers Bay will present a unique experience.
“I thought it was a great addition to our schedule to give our players who are likely to be at the U.S. Women’s Amateur the opportunity to see this golf course,” Forsyth said. “It’s a championship golf course, so I think it will be a fantastic test.”
While three Bruins competed in the Silverado Showdown a week ago, junior Emma Spitz played in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur on Wednesday through Saturday, shooting a 5-over 221 and tying for 12th place overall after making the cut in rounds one and two.
UCLA will tee off Monday in its regular-season finale.
