NORMAN, Okla. -- Graduate student Crystal Wang has been selected to compete in the 2023 Arnold Palmer Cup as part of Team USA, it was announced Tuesday, April 25, on Golf Channel.
Wang will make her debut at the prestigious Ryder Cup-style event, which will be played June 8-10 at Laurel Valley Golf Club, located outside Ligonier, Pa. She will also be joined on Team USA by Tommy Kuhl of the Illini men's golf program. The Diamond Bar, Calif., native will be the first Illini women's golfer to compete in the event.
Wang, ranked No. 8 nationally by Golfstat, is coming off a historic performance at the Big Ten Championships at Fox Chapel Golf Club in Pittsburgh, Pa. She claimed the individual title at 12-under, becoming Illinois' first medalist since her coach (formerly Renee Heiken) won in 1993. Wang shot a 9-under 62 in Sunday's final round, the lowest round ever at an NCAA conference tournament, to help capture the Illini's first Big Ten title in program history. She picked up all-championship honors as well as winning the Mary Fossum Award, presented to the Big Ten golfer with lowest stroke average relative to par this season according to the Golfstat rankings.
Wang has placed in the Top 10 eight times in 11 tournaments this season, including six Top 5 finishes. She has won two of her last three events, winning her first-career tournament on March 26 at the Clemson Invitational. She is currently posting a scoring average of 70.09 this season and has fired 15 of her 33 rounds under 70 strokes.
Wang and the Fighting Illini will be back in action on May 8 for NCAA regional play. The Orange and Blue will discover their destination tomorrow, April 26, during the NCAA Regional Selection Show at 12:00 p.m. CT on Golf Channel.
2023 Arnold Palmer Cup Teams
Team United States
Amari Avery (Southern California)
Zoe Campos (UCLA)
David Ford (North Carolina)
Nick Gabrelcik (North Florida)
Austin Greaser (North Carolina)
Derek Hitchner (Pepperdine)
Ben James (Virginia)
Rachel Kuehn (Wake Forest)
Tommy Kuhl (Illinois)
Antonia Malate (San Jose State)
Ashley Menne (Arizona State)
Emilia Migliaccio (Wake Forest)
Olivia Mitchell (Dallas Baptist)
Maxwell Moldovan (Ohio State)
Ashleigh Park (Oregon)
Jennie Park (Texas A&M)
Alex Price (Christopher Newport)
Amanda Sambach (Virginia)
Gordon Sargent (Vanderbilt)
Megan Schofill (Auburn)
Preston Summerhays (Arizona State)
Caleb Surratt (Tennessee)
Michael Thorbjornsen (Stanford)
Crystal Wang (Illinois)
Team International
Carla Bernat (Tulane; Spain)
Karisa Chul-Ak-Sorn (Iowa State; Thailand)
Santiago de la Fuente (Houston; Mexico)
Mats Ege (East Tennessee State; Norway)
Mateo Fernández de Oliveira (Arkansas; Argentina)
Ryan Griffin (Maynooth; Ireland)
Charlotte Heath (Florida State; England)
Maddison Hinson-Tolchard (Oklahoma State; Australia)
Max Kennedy (Louisville; Ireland)
Frederik Kjettrup (Florida State; Denmark)
Christo Lamprecht (Georgia Tech; South Africa)
Andrea Lignell (Ole Miss; Sweden)
Julia Lopez Ramirez (Mississippi State; Spain)
Christiaan Maas (Texas; South Africa)
Lorna McClymont (Stirling; Scotland)
Caley McGinty (Ohio State; England)
Herman Sekne (Purdue; Norway)
Tyran Snyders (Texas Tech; South Africa)
Chiara Tamburlini (Ole Miss; Switzerland)
Mirabel Ting (Augusta; Malaysia)
Karl Vilips (Stanford; Australia)
Lauren Walsh (Wake Forest; Ireland)
Lottie Woad (Florida State; England)
Sampson Zheng (California; China)
ABOUT THE ARNOLD PALMER CUP
The Arnold Palmer Cup was co-founded by Arnold Palmer and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) and began at the Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Orlando, Fla., in 1997. The event is a Ryder Cup-style tournament featuring the top men's and women's university/college golfers matching the United States against a team of International players. The Palmer Cup has been played at some of the world's greatest courses, including The Old Course at St. Andrews, The Royal County Down, Royal Portrush, Baltusrol, The Honors Course, and Cherry Hills. Beginning with the 2018 matches at Evian Resort Golf Club, the Palmer Cup is the only major tournament which features men and women playing side-by-side as partners.
Since its inception, over 125 former Arnold Palmer Cup alumni have gone on to earn cards on the PGA, DP World, or LPGA Tours; 34 have represented Europe or the USA in the Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup, or Solheim Cup and more than 75 have claimed over 315 victories on the PGA, DP World, or LPGA Tours, including 2022 major champions Jennifer Kupcho (The Chevron Championship) and Justin Thomas (PGA Championship). The United States leads the Palmer Cup series 13-12-1.
The Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation supports the Palmer Cup, which provides a platform for perpetuating Arnold Palmer's commitment to youth character development and the growth of amateur/collegiate golf. For more information, please visit ArnoldPalmerCup.com.
