- LSU Women's Golf photo
Shaking off Augusta National’s pollen appeared quite easy for Ingrid Lindblad in her return to Baton Rouge.
Just days after Lindblad’s push for the ANWA title came short, the LSU sophomore hiked up some extra momentum to win the LSU Tiger Golf Classic individual and team title, anchoring No. 4-ranked LSU to a 12-under, 285 team finish.
The tournament featured top-10 powerhouses such as Ole Miss, Auburn and Florida State, but the Tigers’ incredible 22-stroke margin helped them stay ahead of the pack.
That strategy included factoring the team’s home turf, where head coach Garrett Runion knew his Tigers had the perfect chance to strike.
“I knew that a lot of teams would get fatigued out here with the wind picking up and playing so hard and fast. Just being a long day with playing 36 holes,” Runion told LSU Athletics. “If we could finish strong and do the first round and really pick it up in the second round, we could gain a lot of ground and give us a little cushion going into the final round and that’s what ended up happening.”
LSU’s scoring only improved by the round, opening up the first round with a 1-over 289, following it up in the second round with a tournament-low team 278, and closing out the final round with 3-under, 285.
Lindblad’s 5-under finish amounted to her second individual win of the season after earning medalist honors at the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic.
Teammates Aiden Wallace and Latanna Stone posted solid 1-under and even tournament finishes, respectively, and helped supplement LSU’s runaway finish.
Paired beside fellow ANWA attendees Auston Kim and Kennedy Swann for the final round, Lindblad kept a steady pace after her first-round 71 and posted two back-to-back 70s in the final two rounds. A bogey-free back-nine and plenty of two-putts for par gave the sophomore the grand finale she was working toward.
“I think this is the first tournament during this season that I have shot under par in the last round,” Lindblad said, per LSU Athletics. “I have been struggling with the last rounds, so I am glad that I am feeling a little bit more solid on the last rounds.”
On her tail was Arkansas’ Brooke Matthews, whose final round 70 posed a threat to Lindblad’s consistency. She passed the test of wind and strung together an eagle and three birdies on her back nine, but it wasn’t enough to overcome her second round 74.
Up ahead for LSU is the SEC Championships at Greystone GC in Birmingham, Alabama on April 14-16, where Lindblad and her teammates are the second team to watch behind top-ranked South Carolina. With LSU’s outright domination and Lindblad in excellent form, the rest of the SEC has plenty to prepare against in the postseason.
ABOUT THE
LSU Tiger Golf Classic
54-hole college tournament hosted by the
Louisiana State women's golf team. Team (best four
scores out of five players each round) and individual
competitions.
View Complete Tournament Information