Princeton University Athletics
Catherine Rao and Sophie Zhang-Murphy will join the Princeton women's golf program from the Class of 2026.
Photo by: Beverly Schaefer
National Top-Five Class Set to Join Ivy Champion Women's Golf Program
June 02, 2022 | Women's Golf
Catherine Rao and Sophie Zhang-Murphy will join the Princeton women's golf team this fall in what ranks as a top-five class in the nation.
Rao, ranked No. 9 individually in the class by the Golf Channel's Brentley Romine last December, was a Junior Solheim Cup Team USA member in 2021, and Zhang-Murphy was ranked No. 11 by Golfweek in May, combining to stand as Romine's No. 5-ranked class in the nation as of last December.
Princeton won its third Ivy League title in its last five chances last month, going on to turn in the program's best team finish at the NCAA regionals when it finished sixth. The top four Tigers who competed in the regional were non-seniors, able to return in 2022-23 and join Rao and Zhang-Murphy.Â
Honors:
• 2021 Junior Solheim Cup Team USAÂ
• 2020, 2021 Wyndham Cup Team West
• 2020, 2021 AJGA Junior All-American
• 2021 AJGA Scholastic Junior All-American
• Tied for ninth at the 2021 PGA Girls ChampionshipÂ
• Placed sixth at the 2021 PING InvitationalÂ
• Placed third at the 2020 PING Invitational
• Placed fourth at the 2020 Rolex Girls Invitational
• Finished 2nd at the 2022 AJGA Under Armour Girls Invitational, closing with a career-low round of 64
• Held top-10 rankings in all three major junior rankings, including AJGA, Golfweek and Junior Score Board, during 2021
• Placed third individually at the 2021 California state high school tournament
• Earned Girls Golfer of the Year honors from the Ventura County StarÂ
• Earned valedictorian honors at Oaks Christian
Honors:
• 2021 Rolex Junior All-American
• 2021 Rolex Scholastic Junior All-American
• 2021 USGA-AJGA Presidents' Leadership Award finalist
• Held a No. 11 Golfweek national ranking as of May 2022 and was ranked No. 15 by the AJGA
• Has won four times in AJGA events
• Tied for second at the AJGA's Mariah Stackhouse Girls Invitational at Stanford
• Top amateur at the U.S. Women's Open qualifier in Half Moon BayÂ
• Came within two strokes of tying the 54-hole AJGA tournament record at the Under Armour Alison Lee Championship, recording 16 birdies without a bogey over 47 consecutive holes to shoot 202 for the three rounds and win the event
• Finished second at the 2021 North & South Women's Amateur Championship
• Tied for sixth at the AJGA Girls Invitational at Stanford in 2020
• Placed sixth at the Rolex Girls Junior Championship in 2020
• Won the 2020 First Tee of Greater Baltimore junior championship
• Placed sixth at the Callaway Golf Junior Championship in 2020
• Alumna of The Harker School in San Jose, Calif.
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Rao, ranked No. 9 individually in the class by the Golf Channel's Brentley Romine last December, was a Junior Solheim Cup Team USA member in 2021, and Zhang-Murphy was ranked No. 11 by Golfweek in May, combining to stand as Romine's No. 5-ranked class in the nation as of last December.
Princeton won its third Ivy League title in its last five chances last month, going on to turn in the program's best team finish at the NCAA regionals when it finished sixth. The top four Tigers who competed in the regional were non-seniors, able to return in 2022-23 and join Rao and Zhang-Murphy.Â
Honors:
• 2021 Junior Solheim Cup Team USAÂ
• 2020, 2021 Wyndham Cup Team West
• 2020, 2021 AJGA Junior All-American
• 2021 AJGA Scholastic Junior All-American
• Tied for ninth at the 2021 PGA Girls ChampionshipÂ
• Placed sixth at the 2021 PING InvitationalÂ
• Placed third at the 2020 PING Invitational
• Placed fourth at the 2020 Rolex Girls Invitational
• Finished 2nd at the 2022 AJGA Under Armour Girls Invitational, closing with a career-low round of 64
• Held top-10 rankings in all three major junior rankings, including AJGA, Golfweek and Junior Score Board, during 2021
• Placed third individually at the 2021 California state high school tournament
• Earned Girls Golfer of the Year honors from the Ventura County StarÂ
• Earned valedictorian honors at Oaks Christian
Honors:
• 2021 Rolex Junior All-American
• 2021 Rolex Scholastic Junior All-American
• 2021 USGA-AJGA Presidents' Leadership Award finalist
• Held a No. 11 Golfweek national ranking as of May 2022 and was ranked No. 15 by the AJGA
• Has won four times in AJGA events
• Tied for second at the AJGA's Mariah Stackhouse Girls Invitational at Stanford
• Top amateur at the U.S. Women's Open qualifier in Half Moon BayÂ
• Came within two strokes of tying the 54-hole AJGA tournament record at the Under Armour Alison Lee Championship, recording 16 birdies without a bogey over 47 consecutive holes to shoot 202 for the three rounds and win the event
• Finished second at the 2021 North & South Women's Amateur Championship
• Tied for sixth at the AJGA Girls Invitational at Stanford in 2020
• Placed sixth at the Rolex Girls Junior Championship in 2020
• Won the 2020 First Tee of Greater Baltimore junior championship
• Placed sixth at the Callaway Golf Junior Championship in 2020
• Alumna of The Harker School in San Jose, Calif.
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