By Tan Nguyen
Daily Bruin Contributor
The UCLA women’s golf team travels to Auburn this week to
play in the eighth annual Auburn Tiger Derby Invitational
“Tribute to America,” with momentum on their side and
expectations at a season high.
After all, it was only in their last tournament, the Stanford
Pepsi Invitational, that the Bruins recorded a scorching final
round which head coach Carrie Leary herself described as “the
best round” she had ever coached.
Making up the talented field will be seven of the top ten
schools in the country: No. 1 Auburn, No. 2 Tulsa, No. 4 Duke, No.
5 Texas, No. 7 Tennessee, No. 8 Georgia and No. 9 Oklahoma State.
Additionally, seven of the top 10 individuals in the country will
also be in attendance, including the 2000 United States Women’s
Amateur Champion, Laura Myerscough of Arizona.
The host golf course will be the par 72, 6229-yard Auburn
University Club. With its undulating Bermuda greens, putting will
be a challenge for UCLA. The team has not played on Bermuda greens
since last year’s National Championship.
Trying to compensate for the Bruins’ lack of exposure to
the Bermuda greens, Leary has put particular emphasis on the short
game during recent practices.
Though putting will be a challenge, Leary feels it will not be
the key ingredient for success.
“A key factor for us this week will be course
management,” Leery said.
The Bruins will need to manage their round in order not to leave
themselves in precarious situations. When a golfer goes for that
impossible heroic shot, such as that tucked-behind a bunker flag,
and fails, that person leaves oneself in the dangerous spots where
round debilitating bogeys, and double-bogeys occur. This is what
Leary hopes the team will avoid.
Playing in this week’s tournament will be Gina Umeck,
Alicia Um, Melissa Martin, Vivan Phosomran and Charlotte Mayorkas.
Umeck, Um, Martin and Phosomran played impressively in Stanford
Pepsi Invitational, with all four placing in the Top 25
individually. Martin, a sophomore, has seen her game dramatically
improve.
“I’ve been practicing diligently and as a result, my
game has stepped up since last season,” Martin said.
With impressive rounds of 294 in each of their last four rounds,
the Bruins will be riding a wave of momentum into the Auburn Tiger
Derby Invitational, one they’re hopeful will yield an
impressive finish.