FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, May 21st, 2019

Notable Quotes: NCAA Women’s Golf Championships – Arkansas’ Maria Fassi Wins Individual National Championship at 8-under par

GOLF Channel Notable Quotes
NCAA Women’s Golf Championships
Individual Stroke Play Championship, Final Round
Blessings Golf Club, Fayetteville, Ark.
Monday, May 20, 2019

**GOLF Channel has adjusted its airtimes for the quarterfinal and semifinal matches on Tuesday:

Golf Channel / NCAA Tuesday airtimes:
Quarterfinals – Team Match Play Noon-2:30 p.m. ET
Semifinals – Team Match Play 5-9 p.m. ET

**Arkansas senior Maria Fassi captured the 2019 NCAA DI Women’s Golf Individual Championship at 8-under par. As a result of the victory, she receives exemptions into the LPGA Tour’s Marathon Classic Presented by Dana and the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship.

Individual Stroke Play National Championship
Maria Fassi (Arkansas) -8
Sierra Brooks (Florida) -4
Bianca Pagdanganan (Arizona) -2
Hailee Cooper (Texas) -1
Amanda Hollandsworth (Virginia Tech) Even

Eight Schools Advance to Team Match Play:
Texas +6
Duke +14
USC +17
Arkansas +24
Wake Forest +26
Arizona +28
Stanford +30
Auburn +39

QUOTES

On Arkansas senior Maria Fassi, 2019 NCAA Individual Champion at 8-under par (5-under par 68 on Monday)
Steve Burkowski – “From Augusta to Arkansas, she has displayed herself with the utmost class, and also sharing with the world just how impressive of a golfer she is and how she will be in the future.”
Kay Cockerill – “I don’t know what is more impressive, the amount of birdies she has made or that she has not made any bogeys.”
Bob Papa – “What a brilliant round of golf under these conditions.”
Curt Byrum – “Considering Fassi started the day one shot behind, she absolutely took care of business in a bigtime way.”
Karen Stupples – “The two players who deferred their LPGA membership. Jennifer Kupcho, she got rewarded by winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. And now Maria Fassi is rewarded by winning the NCAA Individual Championship.”
Cockerill – “She knows every inch of this place and its showing.”
Cockerill – “Coach Shauna Taylor’s tagline this year, her main statement is “Be a warrior, not a worrier.” I love that. Maria Fassi has been exemplary in that attitude.”
Cockerill – “Just like we saw at Augusta, the sportsmanship is showing itself in this group, especially with Maria and Albane, rooting each other on.”
Karen Stupples – “Being a senior and having played this course for the past four years, she obviously knows every single inch of this golf course really well. She has seen it in all different conditions.”
Stupples – “This means so much to her and to everyone that is her supporting her today. to see her putting herself in a position to realize her dream, having sacrificed early LPGA Tour golf to do this is really impressive and says a lot about her heart.”

Arkansas coach Shauna Taylor speaking with Golf Channel’s Lisa Cornwell
Shauna Taylor (on her conversation with Maria Fassi walking up 18) – “Just, ‘I love you, your hard work pays off and thank you for staying and believing in Arkansas.’ This is the end of the beginning, we have to get back out there as a team but I’m just so proud of Maria and what she did out there and what a fantastic round of golf in these conditions. I just can’t say enough about her as a person and a player.”
Taylor –“It definitely is going to vie for first place. What a special moment for her and our team and our University to have such a great person like Maria lead the way.”

Maria Fassi speaking with Lisa Cornwell following her round
Maria Fassi – “It is amazing, the crowds this week have been unbelievable. Just so nice to see how many people we’ve had out here and everybody supporting the Hogs and just walking down 18 was a dream. I had Shauna by my side, the team was behind the green, my mom was watching. Everyone calling the Hogs. I just get goose bumps thinking about it again. It was so much fun.”
Fassi – “I think not winning at Augusta was probably the best thing that could have happened to me. I can say that now that I have reflected. I know that not winning was probably what needed to happen because I knew I was going to learn a lot more from coming in second vs. pulling that one off. Of course I hate losing, but coming here I knew what I was going to be put up against. I know the golf course and I knew it was going to be hard. I like these conditions. They bring out the best in me. They keep me focused and in the present moment. Luckily it was a good week for me and I was able to come out on top this time.”
Fassi – “After a pretty perfect year that my junior year was with the ANNIKA Award and the amount of times that I won, winning SEC’s with the team and then heading to nationals and playing pretty bad golf was not fun. It was a feeling that I never wanted to feel again. I think I just grew from that. I don’t like feeling that way, I don’t like finishing second. I think those are things that fuel me. They make me wake up early, go work out and stay here to dark practicing. I think those are the things that have helped me this year.”
Fassi – “I think the three and a half years that I’ve been here in college have been the best of my life. I had my fun. I’ve met amazing people and have grown as a person and as a player. I think we should stay as long as we can. I think coming back was the best decision I ever made and it paid off today.”

Sierra Brooks (Florida), in 2nd at 4-under par (even-par 73 on Monday) joining the broadcast booth following her round
Sierra Brooks – “Today I was out there playing for my team. It takes pressure off the individual title. Obviously, the goal coming in to this is to win as a team and to make the match play. We’ve worked hard all season to do that. Every round, those birdies are out there for my team.”

On the Augusta National Women’s Amateur
Brooks – “It was like I was living a dream. And I was. And for my dad on the bag too, it was very special for me. I was able to build on a lot of momentum from that event. It was just an unreal experience and I’m so thankful I was able to play in the inaugural event.”

Sierra Brooks on Golf Central Pre Game discussing her final round
Brooks – “It was filled with a lot of highs and lows. I was able to build on a lot of momentum on the front nine. Came in at 2-under. Went to the back and started to get a little bit nervous. The wind picked up, but I felt like I kept my cool and I was able to bounce back after mistakes. The wind picked up and it played tough on me on the end.”

On whether she had a target score today
Brooks – “Not necessarily. I wanted to be under par today and I tried to take advantage of every birdie opportunity I had. I didn’t change my game plan. I just stuck with the same one that I had the first two days and was fighting for my team.”

On playing with Kaylee Benton and Maria Fassi
Brooks – “I played with Kaylee Benton the first day and I learned a lot from her since she and I hit similar distance. Maria Fassi, well, she plays a different golf course than the one I play. I did take a few notes here and there when I could. They play it pretty aggressive.”

-NBC Sports Group-