Rose Zhang battled a brutal back injury all week at The Standard Portland Classic, an issue that started with a “topped” shot on the back nine of her first round. This thing didn’t let up, getting worse every single day until she actually needed a physio mid-round on Saturday. She looked like she might not even finish, but Zhang, being Zhang, gutted it out.
The Grind Was Real, Folks
Talk about a fight! Zhang told Golf Channel after the third round, “Honestly, I felt like I put up a fight. I know that I wasn’t good at hiding it, which I wish I was. That I was playing tennis out there grunting. I felt like, you know, I just tried my best and that’s kind of what you have to do in golf.” You could practically hear the grit in her voice, right? To see her out there, clearly in pain, grunting through shots, pushing for every single stroke, that’s what being a competitor is all about. How she even kept going, who knows? Then on Sunday, she showed up again, ignoring the pain, and closed with a phenomenal 68 to finish in a share of eighth place. Playing injured and still shooting that low? Incredible. This isn’t just a decent finish either; it’s her first top 10 since the Ford Championship way back in late March. That’s a huge step forward, especially considering the circumstances.
Solheim Cup Dreams on the Line
Now, let’s talk about what this T8 finish really means. Zhang has been a member of the past two U.S. Solheim Cup teams, so she knows the pressure. She’s currently sitting at 73rd in the Rolex Rankings, which is 14 spots behind Lindy Duncan, who’s barely holding onto the second and final qualifying spot right now at 60th. Alison Lee is also lurking close by at 61st. This gritty T8 performance in Portland, against all odds, could be the key to bumping Duncan out with just one week to go before qualifying officially ends. Five American players have already punched their tickets to the 12-person team: Nelly Korda, Angel Yin, Jennifer Kupcho, Auston Kim, and Yealimi Noh. Captain Angela Stanford even called Kim and Noh this week to confirm their spots. That leaves three captain’s picks to be announced after next week’s CPKC Women’s Open. Zhang’s incredibly determined fight in Portland definitely gives Captain Stanford something serious to think about when she makes those final decisions.
So what’s next for Zhang? She’s already entered into next week’s event in Canada, the absolute final qualifying event for the U.S. Solheim Cup team. This is it. One last shot to climb those rankings, prove her worth, and show Captain Stanford she absolutely belongs on that team. With that kind of determination, playing through pain to put up a T8, who knows what she’ll pull off next week? It’s going to be a must-watch week for golf fans everywhere, no doubt about it.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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