No. 11 Vanderbilt Women’s Golf began its 2025 season at the Carmel Cup in Pebble Beach, California. The Commodores placed second among a field of eight teams, led by Tillie Claggett who placed sixth as an individual. Vanderbilt had a 13-over team total, beating out fellow golf powerhouses Oklahoma State and Arkansas by three and six shots, respectively.
Elizabeth Rudisill, Kathryn Ha, Lynn Lim, Sara Im, Ava Merrill and Claggett earned the start at the infamous par-72 Pebble Beach Golf Course.
The Commodores started solid on Day 1, sitting in fourth place after 18 holes. Ha and Lim paved the way for the team, both firing rounds of even-par to shoot up the individual leaderboard. The pair knocked in a cumulative nine birdies but couldn’t limit the bogeys to advance further up the leaderboard.
Claggett and Merrill both shot 74 to keep Vanderbilt within striking distance of the lead, while Rudisill shot 77 to be Vanderbilt’s one non-counting score for the day.
Vanderbilt was 15 strokes behind leader Texas A&M after the conclusion of play on Day 1.
The Commodores made their move on Day 2, firing 7-over to vault up the team leaderboard into second place.
Claggett had the round of the day this time, finally finding red figures with a 4-under 68 to sit in fourth place individually. Seven total birdies, with four of those coming in the first six holes, marked a stellar day on the course for the senior.
“What a great round by Tillie. She was absolutely pounding her driving and looked in control of her game,” head coach Greg Allen said after the round.
Ha and Merrill paced the rest of the team with a pair of 73s, while Im and Lim shot 76 and 77, respectively.
“What an amazing start through the first six holes today and we saw a glimpse of how good this team can be,” Allen said after Day 2. “There is no quit in this team, so I expect them to fight from start to finish.”
The team stayed put in second place after Day 3, finishing with a 2-under-par final round.
“I am really proud of the fight we showed today and feel like everyone played with purpose,” Allen said after the conclusion of play. “I’m also proud of the way we finished the last few holes. We didn’t get off to a great start but showed a lot of patience and maturity hanging in there.”
Lim notched the only bogey-free round of the tournament for Vanderbilt, finishing with a 3-under 69 on the final day to finish in 12th place individually. All three of her birdies came on Pebble Beach’s famous final five holes.
Rudisill put together her best round of the event on the final day, shooting a 2-under 70 to finish in the top 30. The preseason All-American cashed in five birdies to find red figures for the first time that week.
Ha and Claggett both ended the event with 72s to finish in 11th and sixth place, respectively. Merrill and Im both finished in the top 35 to round out the Commodores’ final standings.
“We got big rounds from Lynn [Lim] and Elizabeth [Rudisill], and Tillie [Claggett] had a solid tournament,” Allen said. “Kathryn [Ha] made a big par putt on 17 and Ava [Merrill] two-putted 18 for birdie. At the time, those putts helped us get past Oklahoma State.”
The Commodores return home for their next event as they host the Mason Rudolph Championship at the Vanderbilt Legends Club from Sept. 19-21.
