SE: Jaffrey Adds to K-State Legacy with Individual Title; Wildcats Win Home Tournament
Sep 20, 2017 | Women's Golf, Sports Extra
Connie Jaffrey had never been so happy to be sprayed with a water bottle.
Once the senior for K-State women's golf sank a short birdie putt on the 18th hole at Colbert Hills Golf Course, the green became much more populated. The entire K-State team rushed to Jaffrey to celebrate an individual and team championship, with multiple teammates blasting her with a celebratory stream of water.
"It was amazing. That moment when your team is cheering and they run on to the 18th green squirting you with water bottles, it's a good feeling," Jaffrey said. "It makes you feel like you've worked hard and you have a really supportive team around you involved in the effort. It was a great feeling."
Jaffrey won the three-day Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational with a 6-under 210. When she tapped in a short birdie putt — her 12th of the tournament — to wrap up her third-career victory at K-State, she was able to celebrate a team victory as well.
It marked the first event in which K-State claimed a tournament title and an individual title since 2014, Jaffrey's freshman season.
"It does mean a lot more," she said of the team title. "We have to work as a team, and we work hard as a team. It means everyone's happy and it's great heading into the rest of the season."
While the wind and weather conditions changed with each day of this week's tournament, Jaffrey and her team's name stayed atop the leaderboard.
Jaffrey opened up the tournament with a blistering 6-under 66, collecting seven birdies en route to acquiring a comfortable lead. She followed with a pair of even-par 72s to win by six strokes over Tulsa's Johanna Samuelsson.
"I'm not going to lie, it was pretty difficult. I don't think my scores reflect how difficult the course was playing. I just played it the right way and I played it well," Jaffrey said. "The pin positions were really difficult and then the wind picking up (Tuesday) just made it a lot harder for hitting greens, hitting tee shots. You just have to be really, really precise and stick to your plan."
To be fair, Jaffrey's been developing her plan for Colbert Hills — K-State's home course — for years. She knows the course better than anyone on her team and undoubtedly had a mental advantage over every player in the field.
"I knew where to miss it and I've played in every wind out there. The wind switched all three days, so I knew exactly what types of shots to play and club differences," she said. "I think I had a big advantage."
The win added to Jaffrey's legacy as one of the best women's golfers in K-State history. Only Christine Boucher (6) has won more tournaments in a K-State uniform. Of the six 54-hole scores at or below 212 in K-State history, Jaffrey's name sits next to four of them.
"I don't think about it much. I just go out and enjoy it and try to do the best I can," Jaffrey said of those types of achievements. "If the best I can is winning a tournament, then that's what I take in that moment. But it's always nice to see that you are leaving a mark and you're bringing more potential to the team that follows after me when I leave."
Jaffrey sees plenty of promise in this year's team, which claimed its first tournament title of the season with a 17-over par 881. It was the Wildcats' first victory in the Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational, with K-State and Kansas alternating as hosts, since 2014.
"We played good and we won the championship this week, but we know we left a few shots out there, so there were mistakes," Jaffrey said. "The coaches will analyze that, analyze our stats from this week and then we'll work on that in practice, improving those areas of the game."
K-State jumped out to a 12-stroke lead with a 1-under par 287 in the first round. The Wildcats extended their advantage in the next two rounds to beat second-place Kansas by 17 strokes.
Junior Chloe Weir finished third individually with a 2-over 218, while freshman Reid carded a 5-over 221 to tie for fifth. Sophomore Tash Carlsson (233) and freshman Niamh McSherry (235) finished tied for 30th and tied for 34th, respectively.
"I was really proud of how they went out the first day and really made a statement," K-State head coach Kristi Knight said after her 10th-career team title with the Wildcats. "They stayed composed. We had some bad holes here and there, but they didn't get rattled."
While only through two tournaments this season, K-State holds an impressive 292.2 stroke average, currently 5.8 strokes better than last year's average and 5.1 better than the school record.
"I see a great amount of potential," Jaffrey said of her team, which travels to Starkville, Mississippi, to play in the Mississippi State Magnolia Cup from October 1-3. "I played one of the best tournaments I've played in a while. Other players, their game wasn't as good as it could be, but I know they're able to shoot 6-under, no problem. If we just work a bit harder, we can get there and win more team tournaments."
Once the senior for K-State women's golf sank a short birdie putt on the 18th hole at Colbert Hills Golf Course, the green became much more populated. The entire K-State team rushed to Jaffrey to celebrate an individual and team championship, with multiple teammates blasting her with a celebratory stream of water.
"It was amazing. That moment when your team is cheering and they run on to the 18th green squirting you with water bottles, it's a good feeling," Jaffrey said. "It makes you feel like you've worked hard and you have a really supportive team around you involved in the effort. It was a great feeling."
Jaffrey won the three-day Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational with a 6-under 210. When she tapped in a short birdie putt — her 12th of the tournament — to wrap up her third-career victory at K-State, she was able to celebrate a team victory as well.
It marked the first event in which K-State claimed a tournament title and an individual title since 2014, Jaffrey's freshman season.
"It does mean a lot more," she said of the team title. "We have to work as a team, and we work hard as a team. It means everyone's happy and it's great heading into the rest of the season."
While the wind and weather conditions changed with each day of this week's tournament, Jaffrey and her team's name stayed atop the leaderboard.
Jaffrey opened up the tournament with a blistering 6-under 66, collecting seven birdies en route to acquiring a comfortable lead. She followed with a pair of even-par 72s to win by six strokes over Tulsa's Johanna Samuelsson.
"I'm not going to lie, it was pretty difficult. I don't think my scores reflect how difficult the course was playing. I just played it the right way and I played it well," Jaffrey said. "The pin positions were really difficult and then the wind picking up (Tuesday) just made it a lot harder for hitting greens, hitting tee shots. You just have to be really, really precise and stick to your plan."
To be fair, Jaffrey's been developing her plan for Colbert Hills — K-State's home course — for years. She knows the course better than anyone on her team and undoubtedly had a mental advantage over every player in the field.
"I knew where to miss it and I've played in every wind out there. The wind switched all three days, so I knew exactly what types of shots to play and club differences," she said. "I think I had a big advantage."
The win added to Jaffrey's legacy as one of the best women's golfers in K-State history. Only Christine Boucher (6) has won more tournaments in a K-State uniform. Of the six 54-hole scores at or below 212 in K-State history, Jaffrey's name sits next to four of them.
"I don't think about it much. I just go out and enjoy it and try to do the best I can," Jaffrey said of those types of achievements. "If the best I can is winning a tournament, then that's what I take in that moment. But it's always nice to see that you are leaving a mark and you're bringing more potential to the team that follows after me when I leave."
Jaffrey sees plenty of promise in this year's team, which claimed its first tournament title of the season with a 17-over par 881. It was the Wildcats' first victory in the Marilynn Smith/Sunflower Invitational, with K-State and Kansas alternating as hosts, since 2014.
"We played good and we won the championship this week, but we know we left a few shots out there, so there were mistakes," Jaffrey said. "The coaches will analyze that, analyze our stats from this week and then we'll work on that in practice, improving those areas of the game."
K-State jumped out to a 12-stroke lead with a 1-under par 287 in the first round. The Wildcats extended their advantage in the next two rounds to beat second-place Kansas by 17 strokes.
Junior Chloe Weir finished third individually with a 2-over 218, while freshman Reid carded a 5-over 221 to tie for fifth. Sophomore Tash Carlsson (233) and freshman Niamh McSherry (235) finished tied for 30th and tied for 34th, respectively.
"I was really proud of how they went out the first day and really made a statement," K-State head coach Kristi Knight said after her 10th-career team title with the Wildcats. "They stayed composed. We had some bad holes here and there, but they didn't get rattled."
While only through two tournaments this season, K-State holds an impressive 292.2 stroke average, currently 5.8 strokes better than last year's average and 5.1 better than the school record.
"I see a great amount of potential," Jaffrey said of her team, which travels to Starkville, Mississippi, to play in the Mississippi State Magnolia Cup from October 1-3. "I played one of the best tournaments I've played in a while. Other players, their game wasn't as good as it could be, but I know they're able to shoot 6-under, no problem. If we just work a bit harder, we can get there and win more team tournaments."
Players Mentioned
K-State Women's Golf | Carla Bernat ANWA Recognition
Tuesday, November 11
K-State Women's Golf | Behind The Scenes Photoshoot
Tuesday, November 11
K-State Men's Golf | Wildcat Invitational
Tuesday, November 11
K-State WGOLF | Carla Bernat Augusta National Women's Amateur Recognition
Saturday, November 01
