Rose Zhang passes Tiger Woods, clinches NCAA Championship, again

Beating Tiger Woods at something is hard to do, but Rose Zhang has officially the best college resume in men’s or women’s golf.

Rose Zhang made history again on Monday by winning back-to-back NCAA individual titles. No one in NCAA women’s golf history has ever done that before, solidifying the argument that she has had the best collegiate career ever — she’s only a sophomore too.

Zhang has done so much at Stanford and continues to prove she will be the next great player to hit the LPGA. This win marks her 12th in 20 starts, marking the most career wins in Stanford history, regardless of gender. Yes, she has more collegiate wins than Tiger Woods himself.

The Stanford sophomore shot a bogey-free 4-under 68 to claim her second straight NCAA Championship. She hasn’t even turned 20 yet, and has already won the U.S. Women’s Amateur in 2020, the U.S. Girl’s Junior in 2021 and took home the Augusta National Women’s Amateur earlier this year.

Her middle name might as well be history because that is all Zhang does; make history. She can accomplish nothing else at this level because Zhang has already done it. Not even Lorena Ochoa was this accomplished.

Ochoa held the record with eight wins in a season, and Zhang tied that in 10 starts. Among those wins include the PAC-12 Championship and NCAA Pullman Regional this year. So she has won three straight events at this point. Her 12 career wins breaks the record that Woods and three others held.

“She’s the absolute GOAT,” Stanford coach Anne Walker said, per Golf Digest. “She is the best amateur of all time.”

She had to overcome a four-shot deficit to win her second-straight title. Zhang turns 20 later this month, but to have accomplished all this as a teenager is truly mind-blowing. While she has two years of eligibility, Zhang will likely move on to professional golf after the NCAA tournament ends.