Indiana women’s golf wrapped up play in the Badger Invitational Tuesday afternoon, locking up a seventh-place finish in the 15-team field. The Hoosiers shot a team score of 887, 23-over par over three rounds.
Sophomore Chloe Johnson led the way for the Hoosiers with a third-place finish, scoring a 211, 5-under par including tying a career-low single round score of 66, 6-under par in the second. Johnson’s 66 is the second-lowest single round in program history and tied the tournament record.
“She’s extremely steady on the golf course,” Indiana head coach Brian May said Wednesday. “Her demeanor was the best part of her game, and she’s a really consistent player tee-to-green.”
Indiana started poorly, scoring a 302, 14-over par in round one to find itself tied for 12th. Johnson scored a 73, 1-over par, but the remaining Hoosiers all scored 76, 4-over or 77, 5-over.
The Hoosiers turned their fortune around in the second round, however. Led by Johnson’s record-tying round, Indiana scored a 287, 1-under par, vaulting up to a tie for sixth in the team standings. Aside from Johnson, senior-plus Caroline Craig and redshirt sophomore Maddie May each put up 73, 1-over par rounds in the second-round effort.
“(I’m) very proud of how we came back in round two,” May said. “I think they showed a lot of heart. We challenged them in their mindset, and they approached that really well.”
Indiana’s third-round score regressed by 11 strokes with a 298, 10-over par to settle the tournament in seventh place. Johnson and Craig both posted even-par rounds of 72 to pace the Hoosiers.
Johnson’s 211, 5-under par comfortably led the way while the other four Hoosiers provided a balanced attack. Craig finished with a 222, 6-over par to finish in a tie for 26th followed by May, who scored 227, 11-over par to tie for 46th overall.
Redshirt junior Caroline Smith trailed May closely with a total of 228, 12-over par to finish tied for 50th, and sophomore Faith Johnson rounded out the Hoosiers’ team lineup with a 232, 16-over par good for t-64.
Competing as an individual and not qualifying for team scores, senior Dominika Burdova shot a 217, 1-over par to finish t-7 in her first appearance of the season. Had Burdova’s scores counted towards Indiana’s, the Hoosiers would have finished tied for third with an 874, 10-over par.
It was a polarizing tournament for the Hoosiers, whose inconsistencies show in the box score. Indiana ranked third in total birdies, accumulating 41, but ranked 14th in pars with 163. One area of strength for Indiana was par 5s, in which the Hoosiers ranked third with a scoring average of 4.97.
Moving forward, May said Chloe Johnson and Burdova secured their spots in the lineup for next week’s tournament, but the remaining voids will be determined in practice. May said most spots are always open for competition, with the exception of strong enough tournament performances.
Up next for Indiana is a trip to Toledo, Ohio for the Glass City Invitational. The two-day tournament will take place Sept. 25 and 26 at the Inverness Club.
