Stanford Remains Women's College Golf's Ultimate Destination

In women's college golf, it's beginning to feel like there's Stanford—and then there's everyone else. And that's not to take away from the many stars surrounding junior and amateur golf, but as a collective, Coach Anne Walker's team are the ones to beat.

The Cardinal have reached a point where recruiting elite talent no longer feels like a victory, it feels inevitable.

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Three national championships in the last five seasons, totaling four overall, has created pipeline that has produced some of the biggest names in the LPGA. Think Andrea Lee, Rose Zhang, Aline Krauter, and most recently Megha Ganne and Kelly Xu have joined the Epson Tour in hopes of earning their LPGA cards as early as next year.

We're in an era where the depth of women's college golf has never been stronger, and Stanford hasn't just kept up—it's continued to separate itself from the pack—that's why Aphrodite Deng's commitment matters.

The teen, and second ranked player on the AJGA (behind only Asterisk Talley, who is also a Stanford commit) has emerged as one of the most accomplished junior golfers in the world. She's won the junior division of the Mizuho Americas Open (an official LPGA event) in back to back years. She's the reigning U.S. Girls' Junior champion, and just last month shared the lead at the U.S. Women's Open at Riviera at one point.

Deng's rise hasn't gone unnoticed, either. As the youngest member of Team Malbon, she's also one of the first amateur golfers the brand has made a significant investment in, officially announcing the partnership during this year's Augusta National Women's Amateur.

Augusta National/Getty Images

The 2028 high school grad will enter the collegiate space already having significant professional experience and will compliement the level of talent of Asterisk Talley well I think. They both feel like mini LPGA pros, having sponsors and media obligations, but that dynamic of being on a team under the leadership of a coach like Anne Walker will only help to mature their games. The pair of future teammates will tee it up in next week's Amundi Evian Championship.

This isn't Deng just choosing a college—she chose the program that has become the sport's gold standard. And for the rest of women's college golf, that's a scary thought.