CARLSBAD, Calif. — If Farrah O’Keefe hadn’t grown up in Austin, Texas, there’s no telling where she would be in the golf world. With little national recognition from AJGA events and other events, she wasn’t seriously recruited by college programs, and the University of Texas was basically trying to get a local kid into college without a scholarship. They had nothing to lose.
Within one semester, they realized they had someone special.
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Possessing unrivaled athleticism and attitude, O’Keefe has gone from virtual obscurity to shooting 64 shots in one tournament as a freshman in 2024, and by her sophomore season, had achieved feats such as finishing in the top 10 at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and finishing runner-up at the Scottish Women’s Amateur Championship.
“She was a diamond in the rough,” Texas head coach Laura Iannello concluded.
Iannello, who was hired by Austin after O’Keefe was already there, was happy to watch O’Keefe’s talents come together this season, and the highest individual award of his career was presented Monday on the North Course at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
Pressed on the front nine by University of Southern California senior Catherine Park, who at one point led by just one stroke, O’Keefe hit one beautiful fairway bunker shot, recovered from a shank and triumphantly birdied the final two holes for a 2-under 70 and the third individual title in Texas program history. O’Keefe finished at 12 under par, beating Stanford senior Megha Ngannou (70) by two strokes. Park (74) ended up in 4th place with 8 under par, one spot behind Duke University’s Leanne Maxilli (69).
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O’Keefe’s performance earned Texas a spot in the final eight teams when match play competition begins on Tuesday. The No. 4 seeded Longhorns will face Eastern Michigan, the surprise team of the tournament. Stanford University, which won the top seed with an overwhelming total of 22 under par, will face Pepperdine in hopes of regaining the championship from the Cardinal, who suffered a crushing loss to Northwestern University in last year’s final. Elsewhere, No. 2 seed USC played Duke, and Arkansas tied with Oklahoma State.
In the aftermath of her victory, O’Keeffe was torn. She was excited, but in her heart she knew the real celebration would have to wait because the work wasn’t done.
“I want to win the national championship in the team competition,” he said. “I’d love to bring Nats back to Austin. It would be the highlight of my life.”
In terms of aspirations, one of the goals O’Keefe once wrote down and posted on her wall as a young girl was an individual NCAA title. She beamed at the thought Monday. “Now I can erase it,” she said with a laugh.
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The fact that O’Keefe won at La Costa speaks volumes about her growth as a golfer. As a freshman at the tournament, she didn’t play very well, but she wasn’t shy and caught the attention of Longhorns men’s coach John Fields. He was one of the leaders in making La Costa the championship’s permanent home, and the first time the tournament was held here in 2024 was probably a year too early, but on the still-growing renovated North Course.
“The first year, the greens were concrete, so I said to Coach Fields, ‘Look, this isn’t going to work,'” O’Keefe recalled. “You guys are kind of embarrassing. We have some really good players that are struggling. I think it gets into dangerous territory when good shots don’t pay off.”
O’Keefe was still finding his way last year, but preparing for La Costa has remained a priority this season. “It bothered me,” she said. O’Keefe won three games in the spring and her game was trending at just the right time, as she entered contention over the weekend at April’s LPGA Major Chevron Championship.
By the time O’Keeffe got here, she had a complete plan in place.
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“It may sound strange, but I think being conservative really pays off on this golf course,” she said. “Very aggressive shots, whatever the reason, will be punished.”
Over 72 holes, O’Keefe had his ups and downs, totaling eight bogeys, including four in the final round. Of course, it also helps to be both gritty and extremely talented, and O’Keefe showed that several times Monday. At the short par-4 11th hole, he hit an awkward lie in a bunker on the left side of the fairway and hit a great shot for a birdie. “It’s the best (fairway) bunker shot I’ve ever hit,” O’Keefe said.
More serious trouble occurred on the difficult par-4 14th, when O’Keefe caught his drive in high straw on the bank. She tried to play aggressively, but caught the ball with her hosel and ended up losing it in the creek. O’Keefe, who held a small lead at the time, said he took a practiced 55-yard shot 15 feet from the hole and calmly sank the putt for a spectacular bogey.
“I said, ‘If we succeed, great. If we fail, we move on,'” O’Keefe recalled. “I just happened to let that shot roll. … That’s golf. Sometimes you hit it on the face. Sometimes you hit it on a little curve and it goes all the way to the right. You don’t break a sweat. The best players in the world hit that shot.”
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It’s that kind of attitude that endears O’Keefe to his coaches and teammates.
“The most important thing about a girl like Farrah O’Keefe is, in the recruiting process, when you find a woman who is super athletic, has power, strength, has really good technique, but also loves to compete, loves the game, has a good attitude and is kind, that’s a good recipe,” Coach Iannello said.
O’Keefe now has to make a big decision. The win earned her a spot in the U.S. Open next week at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles. But the following week, he is scheduled to play for the U.S. Curtis Cup team at Bel Air Country Club. She will then head to Scotland to compete in the Women’s Amateur Championship at Muirfield. Her 21st birthday also falls on the Saturday of the US Open.
With such a schedule, she was a little hesitant to say she would commit to the Riviera opportunity. “We need to make a decision here quickly,” O’Keefe said.
Looks like she’s going to be a little busy over the next few days trying to get her second “Nutty”.
