The LSU women’s golf team is set to begin its spring season at the Puerto Rico Classic, held at the Grand Reserve Golf Club in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. The event, hosted by Purdue University, is scheduled to start on Sunday with plans to play 36 holes due to anticipated weather disruptions early in the week.
This tournament marks the beginning of a five-event regular season for LSU, as the team aims for a sixth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Women’s Championship in Carlsbad, California. The field includes several highly ranked teams such as Arkansas (4), North Carolina (14), Ole Miss (15), Northwestern (20), and Vanderbilt (10).
“It’s always nice to start the spring off somewhere tropical and that’s exactly what we’re doing for the third year in a row going back to Puerto Rico,” said LSU Women’s Golf Coach Garrett Runion. “It’s a place we’ve had some success and are getting more comfortable with. This will be our 5th different line up in as many tournaments. I am very optimistic with this group, after not having the fall we all had hoped for, they put in some work over the break and have come back with a new level of focus. Our practices have been very competitive and productive. I know what this group is capable of doing individually; we just need to piece it together as a group and we will be able to accomplish some pretty impressive things.”
LSU’s lineup features sophomore Francesca Fiorellini, who transferred from UCLA and posted a stroke average of 70.56 during the fall season. Sophomore Rocio Tejedo returns after participating in one fall event, joined by seniors Taylor Riley (71.08) and Elsa Svensson (71.92). Freshman Ryleigh Knaub and Lucia Iraola are also included, along with sophomore Josephine Widal.
Following Puerto Rico, LSU will compete at the Moon Golf Invitational in Melbourne, Florida from February 15-17. The team will then participate in nationally televised events such as the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate in Hilton Head, South Carolina from March 1-3.
Other March tournaments include stops at Betsy Rawls Invitational in Austin and The Clemson Invitational at Sunset, South Carolina. The Southeastern Conference Championship is scheduled for April 17-21 at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida.
Play begins at 6:30 a.m. CT on Sunday with live scoring available through scoreboard.clippd.com. The Grand Reserve Golf Club course will be set up as par 72 over 6,305 yards.
