ASU's men's and women's golf programs are making very similar progress under the guidance of two very different leaders: men's head coach Tim Mickelson and women's head coach Missy Farr-Kaye.
The men's program has competed in three different invites, taking two second places and one third place, while the ASU women's team has competed in two events, taking third and fourth place respectively.
The ASU men's golf began their season competing in the Olympia Fields invite where they took third place at the tournament. The team played consistently for the three rounds and saw seniors Alberto Sanchez and Jon Rahm in the top ten, where they tied for second and ninth respectively.
The women's team started their season competing at the Golfweek Conference Challenge where the Sun Devils took third place. The team played consistently in the first two rounds. In the third round, they were able to fix some of their little mistakes, hitting +9 and jumping from fifth to third place.
For their first competition, former All-American junior Monica Vaughn was able to take second place and freshman Madison Kerley also took eighth place at the same invite.
Vaughn said Farr-Kaye has improved her game and kept her poise in these tough moments.
"In Missy's world there is no giving up and I learned that early on," Vaughn said. "Her knowledge about the mental game and toughness and grit has really helped me to stay calm, focused and determined out on the course so I can play my best."
This confidence has rubbed off on the program, emboldened by Farr-Kaye's positive personality.
"My goal for this team this year is to believe in themselves and that together we can accomplish great things." Farr-Kaye said.
The Sun Devils went to Wilmette, Illinois, for the Windy City Classic where the team took fourth place. The team was only -1 away from jumping into the three-way tie for first place, but they did manage to place three of their players in the top ten. Kerley (-4) tied for 6th place with and both Vaughn and freshman Linnea Strom (-9) tied for ninth place with three other contestants.
At the Stanford Intercollegiate, the women's team entered the second round tied for 11th with +29.
The mens' team is at the Tavistock Invite in Orlando, Florida where they are tied for third place with a count of +3.
Mickelson's goal for the program is to close out the fall strong and set a solid foundation for the spring.
"I think we will play to the best of our ability every time," Mickelson said. "That's all I can ask of our guys, and they expect that of themselves as well. We can't look in the past and change it, but we can focus on the present and do everything we can so our future is full of success."
Related Links:
ASU men's golf surges to second place finish at Alister Mackenzie Invite
ASU women's golf rallies to fourth place finish at Windy City Classic
Reach the reporter at osoussi@asu.edu or follow @omarksoussi on Twitter.
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