KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii - Sun Devil Women's Golf is in prime position following day one of the Nanea Invitational.
Hosted at Nanea Golf Club on the Island of Hawaii, the field features three of the Top-10 teams in the latest Scoreboard rankings. No. 8 Arizona State fired a 281 (-11) in the first round, which is good enough for second place in the 11-team field. They only trail No. 1 Stanford by two strokes, with No. 47 San Jose State, No. 6 Texas, and Colorado rounding out the rest of the Top-5. The Maroon and Gold combined for 23 birdies as a team, tied with Stanford for the most in the field.
The Sun Devils were led by freshman Isla McDonald-O'Brien, who delivered an excellent effort on Monday. She opened the event with a career-best 67 (-6), putting her in a tie for first after 18 holes. She was bogey-free and enjoyed a stretch of four straight birdies on her front nine. Not far behind is junior Paula Schulz-Hanssen, as her 70 (-3) has her tied for sixth. She recorded a team-best seven birdies, the second-most of any golfer on day one. Redshirt sophomore Patience Rhodes makes it three Sun Devils in the Top-15, as she made an impressive return to the course. She caught fire during an incredible stretch on the back nine in which she had five birdies in a seven-hole stretch. Grace Summerhays managed her round well and finished even (73), settling into a tie for 21st. Beth Coulter rounded out the lineup with a 74 (+1) and gives ASU five golfers in the top-half of the 60-golfer field as she is tied for 26th.
Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye's team is in contention for the team lead, with Isla McDonald-O'Brien tied in the individual race. A big reason for the Sun Devils' strong performance is their play on par-five opportunities. They have a tournament-best 4.55 scoring average on such holes. The Maroon and Gold were also able to limit their mistakes, with the 10 bogeys as a team representing the second-fewest (Stanford) on day one. Arizona State will attempt to continue their strong play in the second of three rounds starting tomorrow at 10:30 AM MST.
Live Scoring
Round breakdown
Isla McDonald-O'Brien (-6/67/T1)
Birdies (6): Hole 3 (Par 4; 389 yards), Hole 4 (Par 5; 466 yards), Hole 5 (Par 4; 319 yards), Hole 6 (Par 5; 462 yards), Hole 13 (Par 5; 464 yards), Hole 15 (Par 4; 372 yards)
Paula Schulz-Hanssen (-3/70/T6)
Birdies (7): Hole 2 (Par 4; 342 yards), Hole 4 (Par 5; 466 yards), Hole 8 (Par 3; 166 yards), Hole 9 (Par 4; 366 yards), Hole 15 (Par 4; 372 yards), Hole 17 (Par 3; 191 yards), Hole 18 (Par 5; 536 yards)
Patience Rhodes (-2/71/T12)
Birdies (6): Hole 5 (Par 4; 319 yards), Hole 12 (Par 4; 400 yards), Hole 13 (Par 5; 464 yards), Hole 14 (Par 4; 303 yards), Hole 16 (Par 4; 346 yards), Hole 18 (Par 5; 536 yards)
Grace Summerhays (E/73/T21)
Birdies (3): Hole 2 (Par 4; 342 yards), Hole 3 (Par 4; 389 yards), Hole 18 (Par 5; 536 yards)
Beth Coulter (+1/74/T26)
Birdies (1): Hole 18 (Par 5; 536 yards)
Quotables
"We played very well today," Coach Farr-Kaye reflected. "Isla is really settling in well and playing some great golf. We will continue to focus on our process and let the outcome happen. Our entire line up played well today. We look forward to another amazing day on the Big Island of Hawaii!!"
Team standings
| Place | Team | 1 | To Par |
| 1 | #1 Stanford | 279 | -13 |
| 2 | #8 Arizona State | 281 | -11 |
| 3 | #47 San Jose State | 286 | -6 |
| 4 | #6 Texas | 290 | -2 |
| 5 | Colorado | 292 | E |
Individual standings
| Place | Player | 1 | To Par |
| T1 | Isla McDonald-O'Brien | 66 | -6 |
| T1 | Lucia Lopez Ortega, San Jose State | 66 | -6 |
| T1 | Megha Ganne, Stanford | 66 | -6 |
| T6 | Paula Schulz-Hanssen | 70 | -3 |
| T12 | Patience Rhodes | 71 | -2 |
| T21 | Grace Summerhays | 73 | E |
| T26 | Beth Coulter | 74 | +1 |
Tee times
Arizona State will begin the second round of the Nanea Invitational on Tuesday at 10:30 AM MST, as the field will undergo a shotgun start. ASU will be paired with Stanford, San Jose State, and Texas which are the top three teams in the standings. The Sun Devils will be spread out between holes 1-5 to start the day.
| Pairing | Texas, San Jose State, Stanford |
| Time | 10:30 AM MST |
| Hole | GOLFER |
| 1 | Isla McDonald-O'Brien |
| 2 | Paula Schulz-Hanssen |
| 3 | Patience Rhodes |
| 4 | Grace Summerhays |
| 5 | Beth Coulter |
The competition (Scoreboard Rankings)
The Nanea Invitational features a competitive field with ranked teams including #1 Stanford, #6 Texas, and #8 Arizona State. In total, seven of the 11 teams in Hawaii for the event are ranked inside the Top-50.
In the Field (11 Teams): BYU, California, Colorado, Hawaii (Host), Michigan, San Jose State, Stanford, Texas, USC, Washington
The format
Holes: 54 (18 each day)
Days: 3 (Mon.-Wed.)
Scoring: 5 count 4
Par: 73
Yardage: 6,449
The course
Since the inaugural event in 2013, the Nanea Invitational (formerly Pac-12 Preview) has been permanently hosted at the Nanea Golf Club located in Kailua Kona on the island of Hawaii. The Par-73, 6,449-yard private course opened in 2003. Billionaires Charles Schwab and George Roberts partnered up to create the club located on the slopes of Mount Hualalai.
History at Nanea Invitational
Previously called the Pac-12 Preview, the Nanea Invitational reunites some teams from the disbanded conference with Hawaii serving as the host. It will be the 12th time in the past 13 years that Sun Devil Women's Golf has had the opportunity to compete at an event in Hawaii. During their last appearance, Coach Farr-Kaye's squad set a new program record for 18-hole team score vs. par, shooting -17 to open the 2022 event. Arizona State wraps up the Fall and will have a three-month break before resuming play in the Spring.
2024-25 Arizona State Women's Golf Schedule
Arizona State will be tested throughout the campaign as Coach Farr-Kaye built one of the nation's toughest slates once again. The Maroon and Gold will compete in a total of ten regular season events, five in the Fall and five in the Spring. The postseason begins April 15 at the Big 12 Championship, with NCAA Regionals and NCAA Championships scheduled for the month of May.
ANNIKA Intercollegiate – Sept. 9-11 (Lake Elmo, MN)
Mason Rudolph Championship – Sept. 20-22 (Franklin, TN)
Windy City Collegiate Classic – Sept. 30 - Oct. 1 (Wilmette, IL)
Stanford Intercollegiate – Oct. 18-20 (Stanford, CA)
Nanea Invitational - Oct. 28-30 (Kailua-Kona, HI)
Match in the Desert – January 27 (Gold Canyon, AZ)*
Therese Hession Regional Challenge – Feb. 2-4 (Palos Verdes, CA)
Darius Rucker Intercollegiate – March 3-5 (Hilton Head Island, SC)
Clover Cup – March 10-12 (Litchfield Park, AZ | Wigwam Golf Club)*
PING/ASU Invitational – March 28-30 (Phoenix, AZ | Papago Golf Club)*
Big 12 Championship – April 15-17 (Hockley, TX)
NCAA Regionals – May 5-7 (Columbus, Ohio; Lexington, Kentucky; Norman, Oklahoma; Lubbock, Texas; Charlottesville, Virginia; Gold Canyon, Arizona)*
NCAA Championship – May 16-21 (La Costa, CA; Omni La Costa Resort & Spa, Champions Course)
Italicized = Home Tournament
*Held in the state of Arizona
Empty the notebook
- Arizona State is one of ten teams that made the 2024 NCAA Championship and returns four members from that team.
- The Sun Devils will face a team in the Top-10 of GOLF Channel's preseason rankings a total of 28 times this year.
- Missy Farr-Kaye enters her ninth season as the Head Coach of Sun Devil Women's Golf. She is tied with Bobby Hurley (Men's Basketball) and Greg Powers (Hockey) as the second-longest tenured Sun Devil Athletics Head Coach. She trails only Zeke Jones, who is getting ready for his 10th year at the helm of the Sun Devil wrestling program.
- ASU has the chance to play in the state of Arizona up to four times this year. Regular season events have them playing Superstition Mountain Golf Club (Gold Canyon), Wigwam Golf Club (Litchfield Park), and Papago Golf Club (Phoenix). Should they qualify for a regional, the Sun Devils would compete at Superstition Mountain Golf Club a second time, serving as one of six regional hosts.
Top finishes in 2024-25
T5th - Beth Coulter, Stanford Intercollegiate
T5th - Patience Rhodes, Windy City Collegiate Classic
T5th - Patience Rhodes, Mason Rudolph Championship
T6th - Patience Rhodes, ANNIKA Intercollegiate
T9th - Beth Coulter, ANNIKA Intercollegiate
T10th - Beth Coulter, Windy City Collegiate Classic
T10th - Paula Schulz-Hanssen, Windy City Collegiate Classic
14th - Paula Schulz-Hanssen, ANNIKA Intercollegiate
T15th - Isla McDonald-O'Brien, Windy City Collegiate Classic
T16th - Paula Schulz-Hanssen, Mason Rudolph Championship
T18th - Grace Summerhays, Windy City Collegiate Classic
T18th - Isla McDonald-O'Brien, Stanford Intercollegiate
12 TOTAL TOP-20 FINISHES BY SUN DEVILS THIS YEAR
Best rounds in 2024-25
---> 67/-6 Isla McDonald-O'Brien (Nanea Invitational First Round/Oct. 28, 2024)
67/-5 Paula Schulz-Hanssen (Mason Rudolph Championship Third Round/Sept. 22, 2024)
67/-5 Patience Rhodes (Mason Rudolph Championship Second Round/Sept. 21, 2024)
68/-4 Isla McDonald-O'Brien (Mason Rudolph Championship Third Round/Sept. 22, 2024)
68/-4 Patience Rhodes (Mason Rudolph Championship First Round/Sept. 20, 2024)
68/-4 Beth Coulter (ANNIKA Intercollegiate Third Round/Sept. 11, 2024
68/-4 Paula Schulz-Hanssen (ANNIKA Intercollegiate Third Round/Sept. 11, 2024)
68/-4 Patience Rhodes (ANNIKA Intercollegiate First Round/Sept. 9, 2024)
68/-3 Beth Coulter (Stanford Intercollegiate First Round/Oct. 18, 2024)
69/-3 Paula Schulz-Hanssen (Windy City Collegiate Classic Second Round/Sept. 30, 2024)
69/-2 Beth Coulter (Stanford Intercollegiate Second Round/Oct. 19, 2024)
---> 70/-3 Paula Schulz-Hanssen (Nanea Invitational First Round/Oct. 28, 2024)
70/-2 Patience Rhodes (Windy City Collegiate Classic Third Round/Oct. 1, 2024)
70/-2 Beth Coulter (Windy City Collegiate Classic Second Round/Sept. 30, 2024)
70/-2 Beth Coulter (ANNIKA Intercollegiate Second Round/Sept. 10, 2024)
70/-2 Patience Rhodes (ANNIKA Intercollegiate Third Round/Sept. 11 2024)
70/-2 Paula Schulz-Hanssen (Mason Rudolph Championship First Round/Sept. 20, 2024)
70/-2 Beth Coulter (Mason Rudolph Championship First Round/Sept. 20, 2024)
70/-1 Paula Schulz-Hanssen (Stanford Intercollegiate First Round/Oct. 18, 2024)
70/-1 Isla McDonald-O'Brien (Stanford Intercollegiate First Round/Oct. 18, 2024)
70/-1 Isla McDonald-O'Brien (Stanford Intercollegiate Second Round/Oct. 19, 2024)
70/-1 Beth Coulter (Stanford Intercollegiate Third Round/Oct. 20, 2024)
22 TOTAL ROUNDS OF 70 OR LOWER
Birdies by Sun Devil (2024-25 Season totals)
Paula Schulz-Hanssen (51 birdies)
Isla McDonald-O'Brien (48 birdies)
Patience Rhodes (42 birdies; 1 eagle)
Beth Coulter (42 birdies)
Grace Summerhays (37 birdies; 4 eagles)
Total (220 birdies; 5 eagles)
Career appearances
Grace Summerhays, 38 (35 stroke; 3 match)
Beth Coulter, 29 (26 stroke; 3 match)
Paula Schulz-Hanssen, 29 (26 stroke; 3 match)
Patience Rhodes, 15 (13 stroke; 2 match)
Isla McDonald-O'Brien, 5 (5 stroke)
Total 111 (100 stroke; 11 match)
Career top-20 finishes
Grace Summerhays, 15 (7 Top-10)
Paula Schulz-Hanssen, 13 (5 Top-10)
Beth Coulter, 11 (5 Top-10)
Patience Rhodes, 7 (4 Top-10)
Isla McDonald-O'Brien, 2
Total 48 (21 Top-10)
Fantastic five
Patience Rhodes, Grace Summerhays, Paula Schulz-Hanssen, and Beth Coulter all return having gained another year of valuable experience. Highly-touted incoming freshman Isla McDonald-O'Brien joins the program, forming a talented 2024-25 roster under the direction of Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye and Assistant Coach Mikayla Tatman.
How to follow
Live scoring for the Nanea Invitational can be found at the following link. For the latest updates and information on the Sun Devil Women's Golf program, follow our Twitter/Instagram accounts (@SunDevilWGolf), like our Facebook page (facebook.com/sundevilwgolf/), and visit our website (sundevils.com). Find Coach Farr-Kaye (@missymkaye) and Coach Tatman (@CoachMikayla_) on X as well.