New-look South Carolina starts with a win

South Carolina’s lineup is nearly unrecognizable from four months ago, but a crew of international players have learned quickly over the past few weeks. Last season, with a roster loaded with experience, the Gamecocks won four times in the regular season and occupied the No. 1 spot in Golfweek’s rankings for a chunk of it.

One tournament into the fall, South Carolina’s women are on top again,

Anderson having won the ANNIKA Intercollegiate on Sept. 15 by seven shots. The Gamecocks went 14 under for three days at Royal Golf Club in Lake Elmo, Minnesota, and held off Duke for the win.

“This team never let down the entire week,” head coach Kalen Anderson said. “I’m very proud of their fight and discipline, especially in this elite field.”

Oklahoma prevails at Maridoe

Last spring, Oklahoma ended the season with a runner-up finish to Pepperdine at the national championship. But three key members of that squad have since graduated: Garett Reband, Quade Cummins and Jonathan Brightwell.

With some new blood in the lineup, notably Chris Gotterup and Drew Goodman, the Sooners won the Maridoe Collegiate on Sept. 15 by edging Hybl Big 12 foe Texas.

“We’re young, we’re hungry, we’ve got a lot to prove,” Oklahoma head coach Ryan Hybl said.

News and nuggets

h North Carolina’s men took their fall record to 2-0 by winning the Olympia Fields/Fighting Illini Invitational a week after starting the season with a win at the Rod Myers Invitational. Junior Austin Greaser, recent runner-up in the U.S. Amateur, holed out from 168 yards for a birdie on the final hole to clinch medalist honors for the first time in his college career.

h Brooke Matthews, a redshirt senior at Arkansas, played the 54-hole Cougar Classic in 25-under par, breaking the NCAA record of 19 under set by Ohio State’s Jaclyn Lee in 2018. Matthews won the title at Yeamans Hall Club in Charleston, S.C., by 13 shots.