The 6,366-yard dairy farm-turned-golf course awaits as BYU women’s golf gets set to compete in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma in the annual Route 66 Invitational honoring Dale McNamara at Cedar Ridge Country Club on Oct. 13-14.
McNamara was the head coach of Tulsa women’s golf for 26 years. She began the women’s golf program in 1974 as a volunteer coach and quickly developed Tulsa into a national powerhouse. She led Tulsa to four national titles — the 1980 and 1982 AIAW Championships and 1982 and 1988 NCAA Championships.
McNamara’s teams placed second nationally five times, and she was named the National Coach of the Year in 1985 after her team won eight of 13 tournaments and placed second at the NCAA Championship.
She was then inducted into the National Collegiate Golf Hall of Fame in 1988, coached her teams to more than 60 tournament victories, and produced more than 25 first- or second-team All-Americans and numerous LPGA Tour players.
This tournament pays homage to a key figure in the growth of women’s golf, and the Cougars are fortunate to participate once again.
Last season, the Cougars finished fourth with Kanyanol (Naji) Aramkul who led the way finishing with a 4-over-par score that landed her in sixth place, best finish of her BYU career.
BYU will start the following five golfers: senior Lily McCauley, junior Maria Jose “MJ” Barragan, sophomore Ava Schroeder, junior Whitney Banz and junior Lilly DeNunzio, who is making her first start of the season.
DeNunzio enters the field with a career low of 68 through 18 holes and a 54-hole score of 212 (−4).. Her best finish was a tie for 14th at the 2024 Red Raider Invitational (70-72-74–216; E).
Among the Cougars are 14 other teams competing at Cedar Ridge. The field includes Oral Roberts, Oklahoma, Florida Gulf Coast, Arkansas, Montana State, Wisconsin, Cal Poly, Minnesota, Sam Houston, Alabama, Rutgers, Georgia Southern and the host, Tulsa.
Notably, the Arkansas Razorbacks are currently ranked No. 2 in the country, with Georgia Southern and Alabama coming in at Nos. 32 and 34 respectively. BYU sits at No. 54 according to Scoreboard.
On Monday, the Cougars will play rounds one and two, both 18 holes apiece, and finish the third round of 18 on Tuesday.
The event tees off at 7:30 a.m. MDT on Monday. To follow the live scoring, visit the Scoreboard website and follow the team’s Instagram and X accounts for live updates.