Hello Illini Nation!
This is sophomore Anna Ritter, and I am so excited to head back to campus in a week and get the 2023-2024 season off and running!
Before I head back to school, I am doing some reflection on this past summer, on and off the golf course. I knew coming into this summer I wanted to play in a variety of different individual tournaments in order to continue to work on my game to get ready for the upcoming season. Summer golf grants me the opportunity to play with girls I meet and see on different teams, such as Princeton or SMU for example, throughout our season in the fall and spring. In addition, playing in golf tournaments over the summer allows me to travel with my family to different places while improving my golf game and competing in the sport I enjoy working at every day.
I started the summer by traveling to Seattle, Washington, where I competed in the USGA Women's Four Ball at the Home Course. When I show up to tournaments in my Illini gear, people come up and talk to me about the U of I. In Seattle, I met an alumnus who was a volunteer for the tournament. After he would finish volunteering on the range in the mornings he would come out and watch me play in the afternoons. It was comforting and exciting to meet someone who experienced life at the U of I being so far from Champaign and be able to say I-N-I back to someone's I-L-L!
The summer traveling finished off in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where I competed at the Canadian Women's Amateur at the New Course at Ashburn Golf Club. This was my first time competing in a tournament outside of the United States. It was a great experience for me to meet new people and see a different style of golf course with different playing conditions. While I was there, I was also able to explore Halifax. My family and I went to the Harbor Front which is one of the main tourist spots in Halifax. We went through shops and ate at some incredible restaurants that had a variety of food.
I am so excited to get back together with my teammates and begin to prepare for our season together as we seek to repeat our Big 10 title!
Go Illini!
Anna Ritter
