Breaking down the resumes of the Annika Award front runners heading into the postseason

USA Today

15-04-2025

Breaking down the resumes of the Annika Award front runners heading into the postseason
After a few years of runaway performances in the Annika Award race, there are numerous players in contention for the women's college golf Player of the Year award with a month left in the season.
The last four winners – Rachel Heck, Rose Zhang (x2) and Ingrid Lindblad – had dominant seasons and all but locked up the award heading into the postseason, and their performances down the stretch just cemented their name on the award. But in the 2024-25 season, there has been no player to separate from the field.
There are, however, numerous players still in contention for the award, and there are a handful more who could make their case with dominant performances in conference championships, NCAA Regionals and the NCAA Championship.
There's about a month left in the season, with the NCAA Women's Golf Championship concluding May 21 at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa. Voting for the Annika Award ends on the Monday of stroke play, May 19.
More: 2025 NCAA women's college golf conference championship dates and results
The three frontrunners for the Annika Award:
Kary Hollenbaugh
The junior at Ohio State has been dominant this spring. Hollenbaugh has won four of her five events in 2025, coming at the Therese Hession Regional Challenge, Spartan Suncoast Invitational, Clemson Invitational and the Therese Hession Buckeye Invitational. The only tournament she didn't win, the Darius Rucker, she tied for 13th.
Hollenbaugh's worst finishes this season are a pair of T-22s coming in the fall. But this spring, Hollenbaugh has been arguably the best in college golf, and she's riding a hot streak heading into the Big 10 Championship.
Jasmine Koo
If the college golf season had ended in the fall, the freshman at USC would've won the Annika Award by a landslide. She has had a stellar debut in college golf, collecting four wins at the Windy City Collegiate Classic, Stanford Intercollegiate, East Lake Cup and Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invitational.
Although Koo has only one win this spring, she has finished in the top six in four of her five starts. Her and Hollenbaugh in the Big 10 Championship will be fun to watch. There have been numerous standout freshmen this season on the women's side, but none have four wins like Koo.
Mirabel Ting
Ting, a junior at Florida State, has had a season for the ages. On the same squad as top-ranked amateur Lottie Woad, Ting has risen to the top of the NCAA golf rankings and No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. She has collected five victories this season, coming at the Folds of Honor Collegiate, Schooner Fall Classic, Collegiate Invitational at Guadalajara, Briar's Creek Invitational and the Florida State Match Up.
The five wins are the most in Power 4 Conferences, and Ting has lost to only five golfers all season in stroke-play events. She has put together a dominant resume that can become stronger with postseason success.
Note: Just because a player isn't mentioned here doesn't mean they're not in contention for the award.