Colorado State University Athletics
Tuesday, September 24
Fort Collins, CO / Ptarmigan CC
Colorado State
vs
Ptarmigan Ram Classic Day 2
Rams Finish Third on Emotional Day
9/24/2024 3:14:00 PM | Women's Golf
Birdies help send seniors off home course
At the end, a tournament is taken in its entirety.
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Along the journey, its stroke by stroke, hole by hole and round by round. Add it up at the end and take it all for what it was.
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Same with a career. In the case of the Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Tuesday's final round was a bit bittersweet for Colorado State seniors Pemika Arphamongkol and Lacey Uchida. This was the last hurrah at their home golf event at the Ptarmigan Country Club. Both were convinced they were going to cry when their teammates gathered for a photo.
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And they were right.
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"Oh my gosh. I'm on the verge of tears," Uchida said. "We've won here, we've had some hard times here too. We played solidly, just some other teams played more solidly than we did. It's been a long four years."
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The Rams finished third in the event, finishing at 1-over for the two-day, three round trek. The final day went opposite of what teams gun for on the final day – the Rams were 5-over, their worst round – after entering the final day 4-under.
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Kara Kaneshiro had the best round for the Rams with a bogie-free 2-under, putting her at 6-under for the tournament, good enough for a fifth-place finish. Arphamongkol placed sixth, finishing at 5-under.
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UC Davis won the tournament at 21-under (843), moving past Cal Poly (852) – the only two teams to finish under par. Individual medalist honors were shared by Alice Johnson of Washington State and Abigail Leighton of UC Davis, both at 11-under 205s.
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Uchida, like Kaneshiro, had a final round in red numbers, shooting 1-under for the day to finish at 4-over, getting a couple of late birdies for a strong finish. After the first day, she came back ready to attack a new day, leaving the past behind.
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The true mark of a senior who has experienced highs and lows prior.
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"I think it's freeing. No pressure. It can't get any worse than that," Uchida said. "I thought I'd go out there, play my game, stick to my game plan and hope some putts drop. It was a different mindset (Tuesday) than (Monday). I think freshman Lacey was more timid and more emotional. Senior Lacey is more, it's just golf. If I have a few bad rounds, its OK. I'm going to get mad, but it's not the end of the world, there's still tomorrow. Luckly, I played better today."
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Arphamongkol was the opposite, sitting at 8-under when the day started. She had a rough stretch on the back nine but found the moxie to close out with two birdies.
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"It feels great to drain those putts. I really needed it, honestly," . That was a long putt, but I had a good feel for it. I'm happy with myself overall. I played pretty good on the 36 holes; a lot of birdies. I feel pretty good about myself overall. A good start really means a lot."
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Which is what CSU coach Laura Cilek likes about upperclassmen for the most part, but these two in particular. Players sign with a program to become better golfers, and as a coach, that's a big part of the job.
Â
It doesn't end there. Some of those lessons have dual meanings and watching them take hold from the first year to the final one is a gift.
Â
"They're grinders. They're never out of it," CSU coach Laura Cilek said. "They might hit a lull in their round, and that's something you can't teach. They're never going to be out of it, having a bad day, they're going to grind it out. That's something you look for in your seniors and your leaders.
Â
"That's confidence, not just in golf. It's them as people, in the classroom, in their personal lives. I think the confidence has grown in all of them, and as coaches, we're not just working with them on golf. We work on holding them accountable for being on time, hard conversations, how to learn and grow. We ask a lot of them, so to see them transform through their four years is pretty cool."
Â
Confidence is the descriptor both seniors used about the day and the path which led them to this point. Four years seems like a long time, but also like a blip on the screen.
Â
Also, part of what had them feeling the way they did, saying goodbye to an event, full well knowing there's a long, final season ahead of them.
Â
"I'm kind of emotional right now," Arphamongkol said. "It's good to be emotional."
Â
Â
Along the journey, its stroke by stroke, hole by hole and round by round. Add it up at the end and take it all for what it was.
Â
Same with a career. In the case of the Ptarmigan Ram Classic, Tuesday's final round was a bit bittersweet for Colorado State seniors Pemika Arphamongkol and Lacey Uchida. This was the last hurrah at their home golf event at the Ptarmigan Country Club. Both were convinced they were going to cry when their teammates gathered for a photo.
Â
And they were right.
Â
"Oh my gosh. I'm on the verge of tears," Uchida said. "We've won here, we've had some hard times here too. We played solidly, just some other teams played more solidly than we did. It's been a long four years."
Â
The Rams finished third in the event, finishing at 1-over for the two-day, three round trek. The final day went opposite of what teams gun for on the final day – the Rams were 5-over, their worst round – after entering the final day 4-under.
Â
Kara Kaneshiro had the best round for the Rams with a bogie-free 2-under, putting her at 6-under for the tournament, good enough for a fifth-place finish. Arphamongkol placed sixth, finishing at 5-under.
Â
UC Davis won the tournament at 21-under (843), moving past Cal Poly (852) – the only two teams to finish under par. Individual medalist honors were shared by Alice Johnson of Washington State and Abigail Leighton of UC Davis, both at 11-under 205s.
Â
Uchida, like Kaneshiro, had a final round in red numbers, shooting 1-under for the day to finish at 4-over, getting a couple of late birdies for a strong finish. After the first day, she came back ready to attack a new day, leaving the past behind.
Â
The true mark of a senior who has experienced highs and lows prior.
Â
"I think it's freeing. No pressure. It can't get any worse than that," Uchida said. "I thought I'd go out there, play my game, stick to my game plan and hope some putts drop. It was a different mindset (Tuesday) than (Monday). I think freshman Lacey was more timid and more emotional. Senior Lacey is more, it's just golf. If I have a few bad rounds, its OK. I'm going to get mad, but it's not the end of the world, there's still tomorrow. Luckly, I played better today."
Â
Arphamongkol was the opposite, sitting at 8-under when the day started. She had a rough stretch on the back nine but found the moxie to close out with two birdies.
Â
"It feels great to drain those putts. I really needed it, honestly," . That was a long putt, but I had a good feel for it. I'm happy with myself overall. I played pretty good on the 36 holes; a lot of birdies. I feel pretty good about myself overall. A good start really means a lot."
Â
Which is what CSU coach Laura Cilek likes about upperclassmen for the most part, but these two in particular. Players sign with a program to become better golfers, and as a coach, that's a big part of the job.
Â
It doesn't end there. Some of those lessons have dual meanings and watching them take hold from the first year to the final one is a gift.
Â
"They're grinders. They're never out of it," CSU coach Laura Cilek said. "They might hit a lull in their round, and that's something you can't teach. They're never going to be out of it, having a bad day, they're going to grind it out. That's something you look for in your seniors and your leaders.
Â
"That's confidence, not just in golf. It's them as people, in the classroom, in their personal lives. I think the confidence has grown in all of them, and as coaches, we're not just working with them on golf. We work on holding them accountable for being on time, hard conversations, how to learn and grow. We ask a lot of them, so to see them transform through their four years is pretty cool."
Â
Confidence is the descriptor both seniors used about the day and the path which led them to this point. Four years seems like a long time, but also like a blip on the screen.
Â
Also, part of what had them feeling the way they did, saying goodbye to an event, full well knowing there's a long, final season ahead of them.
Â
"I'm kind of emotional right now," Arphamongkol said. "It's good to be emotional."
Â
Players Mentioned
Laura Cilek Press Conference
Thursday, August 07
Colorado State Golf (W): Ron Moore Recap
Monday, October 11
Colorado State Golf (W): Ron Moore Day 1 Highlights
Friday, October 08
Women's Golf Coach Laura Cilek and CAM the Ram Spread Ag Day Orange Out Across Campus
Thursday, September 19