Regular Season Wraps at Silverado Showdown

NAPA, Calif. - The Oregon women's golf team will close out the 2023-24 regular season beginning on Monday at the Chevron Silverado Showdown, which is co-hosted by the Ducks and Colorado at Silverado Resort and Spa.

The No. 16 Ducks have co-hosted the Silverado Showdown since 2013-14, finishing in the top five six times in nine years. Oregon won the event in 2014-15, and finished second in 2021-22 on its way to being the Pac-12 champions and NCAA national runners-up.

Oregon is coming off an 11th-place finish at the PING/ASU Invitational the last time out. On the season, the Ducks own a 56-42-1 competitive record and have placed in the top three in four of seven stroke-play tournaments.

The Ducks are one of eight top-25 teams in the Silverado Showdown field. Oregon will have eight total players competing in Napa, with Sonja Tang and Karen Tsuru set to make their UO debuts as individuals along with Baylee Hammericksen.

2024 Chevron Silverado Showdown
Dates: Monday, April 8 - Wednesday, April 10
Course: Silverado Resort and Spa
Par/Yardage: Par 72/6,146 yards
Format: Three rounds of stroke play - one round each day

The Field (16 Teams)
No. 4 UCLA, No. 8 Texas, No. 9 USC, No. 11 Northwestern, No. 14 Arizona, No. 16 Oregon, No. 17 Pepperdine, No. 25 California, Colorado, Denver, Iowa State, Oregon State, San Francisco, San Jose State, TCU, Washington

How to Follow
Live scoring for the PING/ASU Invitational will be available on Golfstat. Live updates will be provided on Twitter at @OregonWGolf.

Teeing Off for the Ducks (Scoring Average)
1. Kiara Romero (70.44)
2. Ching-Tzu Chen (73.33)
3. Minori Nagano (72.11)
4. Anika Varma (74.58)
5. Ting-Hsuan Huang (76.17)
Ind. Sonja Tang (NA)
Ind. Karen Tsuru (NA)
Ind. Baylee Hammericksen (77.67)

Romero Returns to Lineup
Oregon will get a big boost to its lineup in Napa as star freshman Kiara Romero returns after missing the PING/ASU Invitational. The No. 3 ranked player in the nation, Romero did not compete in Tempe as she prepared for the Augusta National Women's Amateur, where she fired a 1-under 71 in the opening round. Romero has been dominant to begin her collegiate career, posting two wins and five top-20 finishes in just six stroke-play tournaments. Romero claimed individual medalist honors at the San Diego State Classic earlier this spring, her second win in just her fifth collegiate stroke-play tournament . Romero was named the Pac-12 Golfer of the Week for the second time in 2023-24 after shooting 69-70-68 to win by four strokes with a 9-under 207, tied for the fifth-best 54-hole performance in program history. The victory was fueled by a hole-in-one in the opening round, the first of Romero's college career and astounding ninth in her lifetime on a 193-yard par 3. Romero claimed her first collegiate win in her first tournament as a Duck to kick off the fall season, tying for first at the Annika Intercollegiate with an 8-under 208 (67-71-70). Her career-opening 5-under 67 featured five birdies and zero bogeys, and was the first of 10 straight par-or-better rounds to begin her Oregon career. Romero has shot par-or-better in 15 of her first 18 rounds with six sub-70 performances, and she leads the Ducks with a stellar 70.44 scoring average. Romero is the top-ranked Pac-12player at No. 3 in the nation, and has flown up to No. 26 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.

Nagano Posts Top-Five Finish in Tempe
Senior Minori Nagano put together her best performance of the season the last time out at the PING/ASU Invitational, shooting 69-71-71 (-5) to tie for fourth individually. It was Nagano's second top-five finish of the season; she also tied for fifth at the Molly Collegiate Invitational. Nagano's opening-round 69 was her fourth sub-70 performance of the season, and she has now shot par-or-better in 13 of 18 rounds. Nagano was one of just eight players in the field in Tempe to finish par-or-better in all three rounds, and she tied for the best score in the field on par-3s at 3-under par. Nagano ranks second among Ducks with a 72.11 scoring average this season.

Chen Chasing All-Time Birdie Record
Fifth-year senior Ching-Tzu Chen made seven birdies at the PING/ASU Invitational to give her 319 in her career, passing Cathleen Santoso (317, 2014-17) for No. 5 in program history. Chen sits just 19 birdies back of Kendra Little (338, 2008-11) for No. 4 all-time, and is chasing Cassy Isagawa (377, 2012-15) for the all-time program record as she nears her final postseason with the Ducks.

Huang Leads Ducks in Match Play
Oregon's spring season got off to an unexpected start, when the Therese Hession Regional Challenge was moved up a day and switched from stroke play to match play due to weather in the Los Angeles area. The Ducks went 2-1 with a pair of top-25 wins over No. 25 Mississippi State and No. 19 San Jose State, as well as a narrow loss to No. 6 South Carolina. Freshman Ting-Hsuan Huang led Oregon with a perfect 3-0 record, and Kiara Romero picked up the signature win of the week with a 3&2 victory over a top-five ranked opponent in Mississippi State's Julia Lopez Ramirez.

Park, Ducks Win Molly Collegiate Invite
The Ducks picked up their first win of 2023-24 and eighth under head coach Derek Radley at the Molly Collegiate Invitational in the fall, their second tournament of the season. UO won with a final score of 28-under par behind a historic performance by senior Ashleigh Park, who claimed her first collegiate victory by four strokes at 13-under par (68-67-68). Park's 13-under 203 was the second-best 54-hole performance in program history, and her 5-under 57 in the second round was just one stroke off the best round of her career. Park was named the Pac-12 Golfer of the Week for her victory, joining Romero (twice) as Ducks to win the honor so far in 2023-24.

Up Next
Oregon will head to Pullman, Wash., for the 2024 Pac-12 Championships on April 21-23.