Golf (14–2–2) competed in two tournaments this weekend, with athletes participating in the Independent International Invitational (III) Tournament at Fox Hopyard. Andover ultimately placed sixth. On Monday, Andover’s female athletes traveled to the 40th Pippy O’Connor Independent Girls Golf Classic at Shuttle Meadow, at which it collectively placed second.
Both tournaments followed multi-round formats with competitive fields and challenging environmental conditions. Scores were added over the weekend, with the top scores in each round contributing to the final team standings.
Zihan Zhao ’28 highlighted a teammate’s standout performance while reflecting on the tournament’s conditions and overall experience.
“I would give a big shoutout to Ian Kim ’28. He shot a huge 72 on Sunday. It was going to be an interesting weekend, with rain and lightning delaying the first day. I was a bit nervous since it was my first major tournament with the team, going out and driving a couple of hours to play 36 holes of golf,” said Zhao.
At the Pippy O’Connor Tournament, Andover navigated a challenging course against a large field of NEPSAC schools. Helena Lai ’29 reflected on her first appearance at the event, highlighting the course’s conditions and praising her teammates and the tournament’s overall atmosphere.
“It was my first [time at the tournament], so it was a really good experience overall. The course was really nice. We played at Shuttle Meadow in Connecticut, and it was a tricky course, but it was really fun. I want to shout out Zorah Williams [PG]’26 for being a really good leader, and she’s always in a positive mood. I recognized a lot of people because I used to play golf with a lot of them, so it was fun seeing them again,” said Lai.
Ten players competed at the III Golf Tournament at Fox Hopyard, facing a competitive field across a challenging course over the weekend. Rocco Fawcett ’28 reflected on the overall experience, describing the team environment while praising the support from the coaching staff.
“It was really fun because we stayed in a hotel and went to dinner, and had seafood at a restaurant. The team energy was great, and we were just trying to keep the spirits high because we were all practicing and ready to go. I want to shout out the coaches, [Head] Coach [Brian] Faulk [’00], [Assistant Coach Chris] Odden, and [Assistant Coach Tedd] Parker for helping the team prepare for the tournament and for the competition to run smoothly,” said Fawcett.
Golf will face Phillips Exeter Academy (Exeter) this weekend.
