CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL
PALM HARBOR, Fla. - The 2019 American Athletic Conference Women's Golf Championship begins tomorrow, April 14 at the Hammock Beach Resort Conservatory Course. The three-round, three-day championship tournament returns to the course for the third-straight year and sixth consecutive year at Hammock Beach.
Houston is the reigning American Athletic Conference Champion and has won two titles in the past three seasons but will once again face tough competition as the field battles for the league's automatic qualifier.
Led by the No. 10 overall player as ranked by Golfstat, senior Leonie Harm, the Cougars should be in prime position to become the first-ever team to repeat as conference women's golf champions. Houston is the only team in The American to boast two golfers in the Golfstat top-100 rankings with freshman Hannah Screen at No. 85.
Houston will face tough competition this season with four teams in top-65 of the rankings.
No. 51 UCF, which won American Athletic Conference titles in 2017 and 2015, will look to continue its streak of titles in odd years. The Knights and Cougars are the only American teams to win multiple league crowns.
UCF freshman Elizabeth Moon has had a strong season to lead the Knights as she ranks no. 81 nationally in just her first collegiate golf season.
In addition to Knights, four other teams are within 14 spots of UCF's ranking. No. 55 ECU, No. 61 SMU and No. 65 Memphis could all find themselves within striking distance of a title with strong rounds at Hammock Beach.
ECU boasts last season's runner-up in Dorthea Forbrigd as she was edged in a playoff the 2018 title.
Furthermore, eight of the 10 teams competing at the 2019 Championship are ranked in the top-100 of the Golfstat rankings.
Women's Team Top-100 Rankings
No. 34 Houston
No. 51 UCF
No. 55 ECU
No. 61 SMU
No. 65 Memphis
No. 84 USF
No. 86 Tulsa
No. 97 Tulane
Women's Individual Top-100 Rankings
No. 10 - Leonie Harm, Houston
No. 78 - Dorthea Forbrigd, ECU
No. 81 - Elizabeth Moon, UCF
No. 85 - Hannah Screen, Houston