Ashleigh Park Triumphs, Ducks clinch team title at Molly Collegiate Invitational

September 26, 2023 | by Amit Pandey of AmateurGolf.com

Oregon Ducks Women's Golf Team (Oregon Athletics Photo)

The Ducks secured the individual and Team titles at the Invitational.

Ashleigh Park, a senior at Oregon, shot 13-under 203 with rounds of 68-67-68 to win by four strokes at the Molly Collegiate Invitational played out at Bayonet Golf Course in Seaside, Calif.

Park's fellow Oregon Ducks, Minori Nagano, finished 8-under and recorded rounds of 70-69-69, securing a tied-5th finish, while Kiara Romero shot 5-under and posted scores of 71-71-68 for a solo 10th place finish, making it three players finishing inside the top-10 at the tournament.

Park entered the final round with a commanding two-stroke lead, having previously delivered exceptional performances of 4-under 68 and 5-under 67 on Monday. She continued asserting her dominance with another impressive round on the final day, carding a 4-under 68.

Despite an early bogey on the opening hole, Park swiftly rebounded, showcasing her prowess with three birdies on the front nine and making the turn at 2-under par.

Balancing a bogey on No. 12 with birdies on No. 11 and No. 13, she capped off her remarkable day with a sixth birdie on No. 16, ultimately securing a commanding four-stroke victory at an outstanding 13-under par.

The triumph marks the first individual medalist performance of Park's collegiate career and continues the Ducks' successful streak, following Romero's inaugural victory at the Annika Intercollegiate.

In the team competition, the Oregon Ducks, comprising Ashleigh Park, Minori Nagano, Kiara Romero, Ching-Tzu Chen, and Anika Varma, began the final day of competition at Bayonet Golf Course in third place, trailing the leader by three strokes.

However, they orchestrated a remarkable turnaround by collectively shooting an impressive 11-under 277 in the final round. This exceptional performance allowed them to catch up to California and finish in a tie for first place at 28-under par. Later, Oregon clinched the team title by winning the fifth-score tiebreaker against the Golden Bears.

The trio of Park, Minori Nagano, and Kiara Romero was particularly instrumental in this comeback victory, combining to shoot 11-under par in the final round and providing fuel for Oregon's triumphant surge to the top.

Results: Molly Collegiate Invitational

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Ashleigh Park	Irvine, CA	600	68-67-68=203
T2	Alice Johansson	, Sweden	400	69-72-66=207
T2	Kajsa Arwefjall	, Sweden	400	70-70-67=207
T2	Lucia Lopez-Ortega	, Spain	400	68-69-70=207
T5	Minori Nagano	, Japan	300	70-69-69=208

View full results for Molly Collegiate Invitational

About the Molly Collegiate Invitational

Ashleigh Park Triumphs, Ducks clinch team title at Molly Collegiate Invitational

54-hole women's college tournament co-hosted by Oregon State and Cal. Team (best four scores out of five players each round) and individual competitions.