Women's Golf Hosts Schooner Fall Classic

NORMAN – No. 6 Oklahoma competes in Norman for the only time this season when it hosts the fifth-annual Schooner Fall Classic at Belmar Golf Club. The three-day event takes place Saturday through Monday and is free for the public to attend. The 15-team tournament will be played with a par of 71 and 6,046 yards.

Hosted in partnership with the Toby Keith Foundation, the Schooner Fall Classic is a unique tournament that ties in a community service element for all participating student-athletes and coaches. Following Saturday's opening round, the golfers and staff members have the opportunity to interact with children staying at OK Kids Korral in Oklahoma City.

The Toby Keith Foundation works to encourage the health and happiness of pediatric cancer patients and their families through OK Kids Korral, which is a cost-free, comfortable home for pediatric patients receiving treatment. All proceeds from the Schooner Fall Classic benefit The Toby Keith Foundation as it enters its fourth year of helping children battling cancer.

“We're thrilled to host another year of the Schooner Fall Classic,” said OU head coach Veronique Drouin Luttrell. “This event continues to grow each season thanks to the help of the Toby Keith Foundation and Belmar Golf Club. The strong competition will be a great early-season test for our team and a great opportunity for the OU community to see some of the best collegiate golf in the country right here in Norman.”

Now in its fifth year, the Schooner Fall Classic continues to evolve as its final round will be televised live by Sooner Sports TV for the first time. The broadcast airs on Monday, Sept. 25 from 1:00-3:30 p.m. CT on Fox Sports Southwest and Fox College Sports Pacific. SSTV personality Chad McKee will provide play-by-play during the round, while former LPGA pro Stephanie Brecht and former OU golfer Kaitlyn Rohrback will serve as analysts.

The tournament field is the strongest it has ever been, highlighted by three top-10 teams (No. 4 Alabama, No. 6 Oklahoma and No. 10 Notre Dame). The remainder of the field includes Baylor, Central Florida, Clemson, Florida, No. 20 Florida State, Miami, Mississippi State, Texas, No. 18 Texas A&M, Texas State, Tulsa and Washington.

Oklahoma is coming off a strong season opening performance, claiming second place at the Jim West Challenge. The Sooners shot their second-lowest 54-hole score in program history with an 11-under 841. Junior Julienne Soo shot a 54-hole score of 204 (-9), the second-lowest individual tournament score in program history, to finish in a tie for third.

The Sooners aim to capture their first home tournament win since winning the 2012 Susie Maxwell Berning Classic at Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club. OU has finished in the top five in two of the previous four editions of the Schooner Fall Classic.

Round one of the Schooner Fall Classic is set to begin at 10 a.m. Saturday. Live scoring and results are available at BirdieFire.com.

OU LINEUP

1. Julienne Soo, junior: Opened the 2017-18 season by tying for third place at the Jim West Challenge, claiming her seventh career top-10 finish (third top-five)…Her 204 (-9) at the Jim West Challenge is the second-lowest 54-hole score in program history (also owns the lowest score of 203 from the 2017 Clover Cup)…Dating back to last season, has finished at par or better in 24 of her last 36 rounds…After averaging a 78.35 stroke average in her freshman season, she shot a program second-best 72.38 (+0.47) season-stroke average in 2016-17… Tied for 12th in last year's Schooner Fall Classic with a 1-under 212.

2. Sydney Youngblood, redshirt freshman: Claimed ninth place at the Jim West Challenge with a career-low 209 (-4) in her first tournament back with the Sooners after a season-ending injury in 2016-17…Played in OU's first three tournaments of 2016-17 before suffering a shoulder surgery and claiming a medical redshirt…Tied for 21st in the 2016 Schooner Fall Classic after shooting a 3-over 216.

3. Ana Ruiz, senior: Opened the season with a career-low 54-hole score of 212 (-1) to tie for 18th at the Jim West Challenge…Finished the 2016-17 with a 74.21 (+2.30) stroke average…Owns eight career top-20 finishes and three top-10 finishes…Fired a career-best 211 (-5) to finish in a share of fifth at the 2017 Clemson Invitational…Will be participating in her fourth Schooner Fall Classic, with her best finish coming in 2015 (tied for 19th) at 1-over 143 (tournament was shortened to 36 holes).

4. Kaitlin Milligan, freshman: Making her debut in the Sooner starting lineup, and doing so in her hometown of Norman…Competed as an individual at the Jim West Challenge, tying for 47th and shooting a 223 (+10)…2017 Oklahoma Class 6A State Champion at Norman North High School…Member of the 2017 All-State Golf Team…Oklahoma 6A Regional champion in 2017 and 2014…Named the Oklahoman's 2017 All-City Female Golfer of the Year.

5. Valerie Tanguay, senior: Tied a career-low round score of 69 (-2) last week in the second round of the Jim West Challenge…Tied for 26th at the Jim West Challenge with a 216 (+3)… Has finished in the top 20 of both previous Schooner Fall Classic appearances, taking 17th in 2016 (213, even) and tying for 19th in 2015 (143, +1)…Played in all 11 team events last season, putting together a 73.42 (+1.52) season-stroke average…Owns seven career top-20 finishes, including one ninth-place finish.

OU GOLFERS COMPETING AS INDIVIDUALS

Karen Arimoto, junior: First competition of the season…Placed 66th in the 2016 Schooner Fall Classic as an individual (255; +42)…Played as an individual at the 2017 O City Classic, finishing in a career-best share of third (220; +4).

Hannah Lee, freshman: Making her OU debut… Spent the past year on the National Canadian Development Team…Recorded 11 top-five performances in her junior career, including four first-place finishes.

Hannah Wood, senior: Her first competition of the 2017-18 season after missing the Jim West Challenge due to injury…Currently holds the best career scoring average vs. par in program history (+1.22)…Her 42 career par-or-better rounds rank second in program history…Competed in the 2016 U.S. Women's Open…Shot a career-low round score of 66 in the 2015 Schooner Fall Classic…Has finished in the top 16 of all three of her previous Schooner Fall Classic appearances - 7th place in 2016 (209, -4), tied for fourth place in 2015 (137, -5) and tied for 16th in 2014 (210, even).