UTRGV Invitational
Budnik earns first individual title at UTRGV
3/9/2016 6:03:00 PM | Women's Golf
Sam Houston State women's golfer Nicole Budnik is the 2016 UTRGV Invitational individual champion, winning the event by six strokes while helping the Bearkats, who finished third, move up the team leaderboard for a second consecutive day at McAllen Country Club.
After shooting a first-round 80, Budnik fired a second-round 68, the lowest among the 60-player field and second-lowest in team history. The senior entered Wednesday's final round with a one-stroke lead, before pulling away with a 73, the field's low score once again, finishing 8-over, 221.
“It was really rewarding to finally get a win,” Budnik said. “I have been working hard. Last year I had a tough year. I have been close so I was really happy and excited. I still don't really realize that I won. It's nice to finally see something good from my hard work my last four years.”
The individual title is the second this season, along with Heather Shake's Bob Hurley ORU title, and marks the fifth in less than two years for a Sam Houston women's golfer. Budnik led the field with eight birdies and finished 4-over on the course's par-4s, three strokes ahead of the second-place opponent.
“Nicole played great,” associate coach Tommy Chain said. “She had the low round the last two days and maintained her focus. Her putting was really on. She made a lot of putts that kept her in both rounds. It rained twice during the round.”
Teammate Sarah Black logged her third straight top 25 finish, ending tied for 11th at 21-over, 234. The sophomore shot an opening round 79 followed by a second-round 74 and final-round 81. Black fared particularly well on the courses par-5s, shooting 2-over.
“The first day the wind blew 40 miles per hour from one direction,” Chain said. “It made for a totally different course. There had to be a lot of thought into different wind direction as to what club to hit. I feel like (Black) was able to focus in on that with the different conditions and was able to maintain her composure in very tough conditions.”
Shake (83-74-78) moved up one spot on the final day, finishing 16th at 22-over, 235. The result was Shake's sixth top-20 finish in eight tournaments during her first season since transferring from UH-Victoria. The junior ranked tied for second on the course's par-5s finishing even-par.
Jenna Phillips (90-77-81) also continued her surge up the leaderboard. The freshman vaulted ahead seven spots from 42nd to 35th and finished 35-over, 248. Despite difficulties during a first-round that saw overpowering winds, the finish was another strong one for the newcomer who finished 19th in her last competition at the Islander Classic.
Celeste Lo shot a two-day score of 165 after posting a second-round 79 and final-round 86. The junior shot 2-over on the course's par-3s to rank tied for fifth.
“As individuals, they all have played extremely well at one time or another,” Chain said. “The progression is great. When they put it together, we're as good as anyone. One thing I like is that they are able to regain their composure after a bad round and bring back two good rounds to make for a strong finish. We are close to where we need to be but we aren't quite there.”
Southland Conference member Lamar claimed the team title at 67-over, 919, followed by Wichita State at 70-over, 922. Houston Baptist took fourth (91-over, 943) and A&M-Corpus Christi rounded out the top five at 100-over, 952.
“We all work hard all the time,” Budnik said. “When we got those two wins, everything seemed to work out. The key is to keep working hard on our short game and mental game. I think by the time conference comes, if we can keep working hard, we have a chance of winning it.”
Sam Houston returns to play two weeks from Monday at the two-day HBU Huskie Women's Intercollegiate from Riverbend Country Club. The tournament is the second to last contest before the Southland Conference Championship at Stonebridge Ranch Country Club in McKinney.
“I feel very confident about our chances at conference because the girls are working hard,” Chain said. “I think the mindset of the team is very positive. They know on any given day they can put together a low round as they've proven time and time again. The whole key is doing it three days in a row.”
