By: Max Bechtoldt
The Annika Award, named for women’s golf legend Annika Sörenstam, has been given out annually since 2014 to the best collegiate women’s golfer in the nation, as voted on by players, coaches and the media. It is the most prestigious award in women’s college golf and acts a bit like the Heisman Trophy for the sport. Here are all the past winners of the award:
2014 – Alison Lee, UCLA
Alison Lee was the first winner of the Annika Award all the way back in 2014. Lee, now a star on the LPGA Tour, won the award as a freshman, while leading the nation in scoring average. She won three events on the season, including the Pac 12 Championship, and finished top 10 in all but two events.
2015 & 2017 – Leona Maguire, Duke
Before there was Rose Zhang, Leona Maguire had a great argument as the greatest amateur player ever. While Maguire is most known for her dominance in the Solheim Cup now, at Duke she was a superstar. Maguire had three wins in each of her Annika Award winning seasons, and led the nation in scoring average both times.
2016 – Bronte Law, UCLA
Law was the second winner from UCLA, and was dominant down the stretch in her 2016 season. In her last four events, she never finished lower than second place, winning two of them. This included a win at her regional qualifier, which was the third win on the season.
2018 & 2019 – Maria Fassi, Arkansas
The second two-time winner of the Annika Award was also the first back-to-back winner. Fassi was an absolute superstar for Arkansas, winning six events in her first Annika Award winning season. While her 2019 season wasn’t necessarily as strong, she did win the most important tournaments, the SEC Championship and the NCAA Individual National Championship.
2020 – Natalia Srinivisan, Furman
Probably the most unique winner of the Annika Award, Natalia Srinivisan is the only player that didn’t attend a power school. Srinivisan never made the LPGA Tour, and appears to not be pursuing professional golf anymore, choosing in 2023 to pursue medical school. Srinivisan won three tournaments in 2020 and was a runner up in another.
2021 – Rachel Heck, Stanford
Before there was Rose Zhang, there was Rachel Heck, who as a freshman won the NCAA Individual National Championship and the Annika Award. She won five additional events, setting the Stanford record for single-season wins at the time. She also won the conference and regional championships. While injuries slowed her Stanford career down, she came back with a vengeance in her senior year, winning regionals once again and was a major part of the Stanford team National Championship.
2022 & 2023 – Rose Zhang, Stanford
Rose Zhang was undeniably great as a freshman in 2022, winning four events including the NCAA Individual National Championship, and leading her team to the team championship. But its really her sophomore season that made her the greatest college golfer of all time. Zhang won a startling eight tournaments in 10 events. She won the Pac 12 Championship, the Regional and the Individual National Championship for a second year in a row.
