FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas had three players selected to the 2018 Arnold Palmer Cup team, the Golf Coaches Association of America announced today.
Junior Maria Fassi was the top pick for the international team while senior Alana Uriell and junior Dylan Kim were coach’s picks for the U.S.A. Razorback men’s golfer Alvaro Ortiz was an automatic pick on the men’s international team bringing the Arkansas total to four players – more representatives than any other college team.
Fassi has been spectacular this season playing her way to four individual titles while leading the No. 3 Razorbacks to four team titles in six events. She currently ranks No. 2 on the ANNIKA Award Watch list for the top female college golfer and ranks No. 2 in the Southeastern Conference, No. 2 in the Golfstat.com standings and No. 4 in the Golfweek.com rankings.
Uriell and Kim have had a back-and-forth battle for the No. 2 spot on the Razorback team. Uriell currently ranks No. 14 in Golfstat and No. 17 in the Golfweek.com rankings. She was a 2017 Walmart NWA Championship and U.S. Women’s Amateur participant last summer. She has counted 100% of her scores toward the team total and leads Arkansas with 220 par holes in competition.
Kim ranks No. 13 in the Golfweek standings and No. 16 in the Golfweek rankings. She finished tied for fourth at the 2018 Mexican Amateur and the Dixie Amateur. She was a 2017 U.S. Women’s Open participant and earned a runner-up finish at the 2017 Women’s Western Amateur.
The Palmer Cup takes place July 6-8, at the Evian Resort Golf Club, the host of the LPGA major, The Evian Championship.
The top six golfers from the final ranking in the Spring from both the United States and International men and women – 12 total golfers – make up the 24 individuals selected to compete in the Arnold Palmer Cup. The 2018 Arnold Palmer Cup will be the first using the expanded format of United States men’s and women’s collegiate golfers versus their counterparts from around the world.
Using Golfstat’s NCAA Player Ranking as a base, the Arnold Palmer Cup Ranking awards bonus points for wins and high finishes and a penalty for poor finishes. The ranking also contains a strength of schedule component.
The remaining six men’s and women’s spots for the United States consist of five committee selections, including at least one non-Division I golfer, and a coach’s pick. The balance of the International team will include the men’s and women’s winners of The R&A Scholars Tournament, four committee selections and a coach’s pick.
