TCU women’s golf climbed into second place in Japan as Gracie McGovern and Claire Swathwood enter the final round tied for ninth overall.
FORT WORTH - TCU women’s golf is officially in the hunt in Japan.
The Horned Frogs moved into second place after Thursday’s second round of the Pan Pacific University Golf Super League at Grand Fields Country Club in Shizuoka, putting themselves in position for a strong finish with only 18 holes remaining.
TCU posted an 8-over 296 in Round 2, bringing its two-day total to 12-over 580. That leaves the Horned Frogs 16 shots behind tournament leader Nihon University, but more importantly, three shots clear of San Jose State and the University of St. Andrews, which are tied for third.
The individual race is just as interesting for TCU.
Gracie McGovern and Claire Swathwood are tied for ninth at 3-over 145, giving the Frogs two players inside the top 10 heading into Friday’s final round.
Freshman Ella Forss made the biggest move of the day.
Forss fired an even-par 71, climbing 10 spots into a tie for 14th at 4-over 146. The Gothenburg, Sweden, native played the back nine in 1-under 34 and finished with four birdies, matching McGovern for the team lead.
That’s the kind of round TCU needed on a day when scoring conditions were difficult across the board. No team in the field finished Round 2 under par, and the Horned Frogs still managed the third-best team score of the day.
McGovern and Camille Min-Gaultier each carded 2-over 73s. Min-Gaultier sits tied for 19th at 6-over 148, while Yvette O’Brien remains inside the top 25 at 7-over 149.
That means all five TCU golfers are still positioned inside the top 25.
The broader context matters, too. This is the Horned Frogs’ first competition outside North America or the Caribbean, and they’re competing against a field that includes programs from Japan, Europe, South Korea, Taiwan and several NCAA Division I schools.
Now comes the final test.
Nihon University has created breathing room at the top, so winning the team title would require a huge final-round swing.
But second place is very much TCU’s to protect.
And with McGovern, Swathwood and Forss all within striking distance individually, Friday still carries plenty of stakes for the Frogs.
