Norman, Ok. - After leading Team USA to victory last year, University of Findlay senior golfer Mary Kelly Mulcahy has been selected to represent her country at 29th playing of the Arnold Palmer Cup which will be played June 5-7 at Congaree Golf Club in Ridgeland, South Carolina. This is the second consecutive year that Mulcahy has been chosen to occupy Team USA's non-Division I spot in the lineup.
Selection for the Palmer Cup is one typically reserved for the top Division I players in the country, but a single spot is up for grabs by a non-division I male and female each year. That coveted spot is voted on by a committee and is reserved for a player who has shown she possess the elite skill necessary to contribute to Team USA's effort to secure victory. The defending Division II National Player of the Year and 13-time tournament winner, Mulcahy's resume stood above the rest, especially when considering the fact that last year she became the first non-Division I player in event history to have a perfect 4-0 record and was the only player at last year's competition to go unbeaten.
"Making Team USA again was something I had in the back of my mind all year", said Mulcahy.
"After such an incredible experience at last year's Palmer Cup, I know how special it was to be a part of that team and that definitely motivated me to keep improving throughout the season. Getting the call this time around honestly meant just as much, if not more. It is a huge honor and I'm grateful and excited for the opportunity to be a part of Team USA again."
Both the U.S. and International teams are made up 12 men and 12 women, including six automatic selections from rankings, five committee selections and one coach's pick, per gender. The result is two 24-player squads that will face off at the event in South Carolina.
Mulcahy has been brilliant again in this, her final season of collegiate golf. The Lima, Ohio native has won three times this year including, most recently, the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) Championship where she set both tournament and program records with a score of 205 (-8). At that event, Mulcahy became the first player to fire three rounds under par and, with her eight-shot victory, won by the largest margin in tournament history. Mulcahy has spent the year ranked in the top-five among Division II players and has finished in the top-ten of all but one tournament this year, the lone exception being a T14 finish at the Therese Hession Buckeye Invitational, hosted by Division I, Ohio State University.
Head Coach Dominic Guarnieri said about his player,
"The biggest thing about Mary Kelly that makes her who she is is her consistent work ethic. She never waivers. It is a year round process for her. She is incredibly deserving of selection to Team USA again and I am excited for her to represent her country and the University of Findlay again."
About the Palmer Cup (from ArnoldPalmerCup.com)
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 that features men and women playing side-by-side as partners.
Since its inception, over 245 former Arnold Palmer Cup alumni have gone on to earn cards on the PGA, DP World, or LPGA Tours; 44 have represented Europe or the USA in the Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup, or Solheim Cup and more than 90 have claimed over 415 victories on the PGA, DP World, or LPGA Tours, including 2023 major champions Jon Rahm (Masters Tournament), Lilia Vu (The Chevron Championship & AIG Women's Open), Wyndham Clark (U.S. Open), Allisen Corpuz (U.S. Women's Open), and Brian Harman (The Open), as well as 2023 FedEx Cup champion Viktor Hovland. The United States leads the Palmer Cup series 14-12-1.
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.
Palmer Cup Results
Congaree Golf Club
Situated on a historic 18th-century estate, and surrounded by over 2,000 acres of lakes and longleaf pine forests in South Carolina's Lowcountry, architect Tom Fazio designed the championship course to fit in with its natural surroundings.
Congaree was named Golf Digest's best new private course for 2018, and it was named the best golf course built during the decade of 2010–19. The club was ranked 39th in Golf Digest's America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses 2021–2022.
In the fall of 2023 Congaree was selected to host the 2025 Arnold Palmer Cup. The tournament is scheduled to be played at the course June 5–7 of that year. The Ryder Cup-style amateur event features the top men's and women's collegiate golfers, matching a U.S. team against a team of international players (12 men & 12 women per team).