HONOLULU – The 2019-20 University of Hawai'i women's golf team saw its season cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic but not before posting some impressive records in a year that featured its share of ups and downs.
Head coach
Stephen Bidne completed his fourth season with the Rainbow Wahine and led the squad to a 304.4 stroke average, which is the third lowest in program history and all under Bidne. The team's Par 5 scoring average of 5.04 was a new single-season mark while its Par 3 average (3.32) and Par 4 average (4.37) also ranked in the Top 5.
Going Out With A Bang
In what turned out to be their final appearance on the course, the Rainbow Wahine turned out a season-best performance at their very own Dr. Donnis Thompson Invitational at the Kāne'ohe Klipper Golf Course. UH placed fifth, besting eight higher ranked squads with a 54-hole total of 886, the fourth-best score in program history. The team's final round 1-over 289 was the third lowest 18-hole score ever.
Leading the way was junior
Tyra Tonkham, who carded a final round 69, tied for the third-lowest 18-hole score in program history. She finished at ever par 216 for the tournament and tied for eighth place for her third career Top 10. Earlier in the season, she carded a 3-under 213 at the Rainbow Wahine Invitational, which was the second-best 54-hole score ever.
In three seasons in Mānoa, the Arleta, Calif., native posted her best statistical campaign with a 75.5 average, which ranked No. 6 in school history. Her two eagles on the year were tied for the most ever by a Rainbow Wahine while her Par 5 scoring average of 4.81 is No. 1. Tonkham also had the fifth most rounds of par or better (5) and moved up to No. 2 all-time with four career eagles and No. 7 with 133 career birdies.
Aloha Seniors!
Senior
Megan Ratcliffe wrapped up her four-year career with her best 54-hole score in relation to par at 3-over 219 and a tie for 13
th place at the Donnis Thompson Invite. On the year, her 3.15 average on Par 3s was the second lowest in program history and best since Dale Gammie's 3.13 average in 2006-07. In 31 career tournaments and 89 rounds, Ratcliffe finished with a 76.8 average and her 116 career birdies ranks No. 9 all-time.
Fellow senior
Malia Ebersberger also put a bow on her Rainbow Wahine career. Her injury-plagued tenure was limited to nine tournaments and 24 rounds with an 80.4 average. Last season proved to be her most efficient with a 78.6 average and two Top 30 finishes.
A Major Addition
During the offseason, Bidne added former U.S. Open champion
Scott Simpson as an assistant coach. Simpson brings an impressive resume that includes 27 years on the PGA Tour and seven PGA wins. He also had 15 runner-up finishes and another win in the PGA Champions Tour.
The year began with the Hobble Creek Fall Classic and Cowgirl Desert Intercollegiate, where UH posted only one sub-300 round. The team turned it around with a pair of ninth place finishes at the Pat Lesser-Harbottle Invitational and Rainbow Wahine Invitational, the latter of which Hawai'i hosted at the Kapolei Golf Club and where Tonkham tied for fourth place at 3-under 213.
The spring season started with the Battle at the Rock for the fifth consecutive year but this season's event was cancelled after heavy winds wreaked havoc on the golf course. Instead the spring opener proved to be the GCU Invitational and the Rainbow Wahine tied for sixth place with a 601 total in an event that was shortened to 36 holes. UH turned the corner with the Donnis Thompson Invite, improving its score each round with an opening 302 followed by 299 and culminating with a season-best 289.
In addition to Ratcliffe and Ebersberger, junior
Haruka Shintani will not return next season. However, Tonkham and fellow four-year senior-to-be
Sahara Washington will headline the squad that will also return
Zoey Akagi-Bustin and
Kralyn Salazar. In her third season, Washington posted her best season average of 76.1 with two Top 20 finishes and a tie for 21
st at the Donnis Thompson Invite.
Bidne's fourth Rainbow Wahine campaign included a lot of memorable moments but an unfinished season will linger for the 2019-20 squad who will never know if they could've captured the program's first Big West Conference title.
#HawaiiWGOLF
