CHANDLER, ARIZONA | At the LPGA’s Ford Championship over the weekend, five former Arizona State golfers teed it up at Whirlwind Golf Club. Less than 20 miles away at Papago Golf Club in Phoenix, the ASU women’s team hosted the Ping/ASU Invitational. While the former Sun Devils and current Sun Devils couldn’t watch each other in person, they were certainly rooting each other on.
“We were all wishing each other the best this weekend even though we couldn’t watch each other,” said Missy Farr-Kaye, the head coach of the ASU women’s team.
Farr-Kaye has been the head coach of ASU since 2015 but started coaching at her alma mater in 2002. She coached all five Arizona State players in the Ford Championship field: Anna Nordqvist, Linnea Ström, Linn Grant, Azahara Muñoz and Carlota Ciganda. All are international players (three Swedish and two Spanish), with 22 Solheim Cup appearances and 14 LPGA wins between them. Nordqvist was recently named the 2026 European Solheim Cup captain.
Even though they are no longer at ASU, Farr-Kaye says they are her family.
“Our team is very international now and it always will be. I love the fact that internationals feel very at home here. We’re very much a melting pot.”
Missy Farr-Kaye
“I’ve always had my girls,” Farr-Kaye said. “I get my boys at home and the girls at work.”
Farr-Kaye says ASU has always had a strong international presence. When she played on the team from 1985-90, she had teammates from Scotland, Sweden and Canada. Today, four of the five players on the ASU women’s golf roster are international players. In addition, four of the seven players on the men’s roster are international.
“Our team is very international now and it always will be,” Farr-Kaye said. “I love the fact that internationals feel very at home here. We’re very much a melting pot.”
There has been an especially strong Swedish presence at ASU, showcased by Nordqvist, Ström and Grant in the Ford Championship field. Farr-Kaye says much of the credit goes to Pia Nilsson, the prominent Swedish coach who was an ASU golfer from 1978-81 and European Solheim Cup captain in 1998.
“Arizona State has always had a really good reputation among Swedes,” Nordqvist said.
Nordqvist also thinks the state is a great place to be.
“I don’t know if you can find any better with the combination of the weather and the (ASU) practice facilities for golf,” Nordqvist said.
While Nordqvist wasn’t at the top of her game at this year’s Ford Championship as she missed the cut, she said she was excited to play in the state that means so much to her.
“This is where I live and this is where my whole journey into professional golf started, getting an opportunity to come play for Arizona State,” Nordqvist said. “It’s always a special feeling.”
Muñoz, one of Nordqvist’s former ASU teammates, shared similar sentiments.
“I just love coming here,” Muñoz said. “It is not where I live but it’s like my second home.”
Like Nordqvist, Ciganda lives in Arizona, and says she’s happy to do whatever she can to support her former university.
“It is like a family,” Ciganda said. “I still go to ASU and practice and talk to the girls sometimes. I’m always happy to help the team in any way I can because I’m very grateful for the time that I was here.”
Farr-Kaye says she does her best to keep that family intact by keeping the former players and current ones connected. She always encourages new recruits to talk to former players who’ve had LPGA success. One story involving a shy recruit and Ciganda stands out to her.
“I’m shooting Carlota texts,” Farr-Kaye said. “I’m like, ‘OK, so-and-so is committed to ASU. She’s at Solheim and she’s too afraid to go talk to you. Could you please go introduce yourself?’ ”
Out of those in the Ford Championship field, Nordqvist has had the most LPGA success, with nine victories including three majors. Also a nine-time Solheim Cup participant and part of four winning teams (and another that retained the cup with a tie), Nordqvist will bring that experience to the task of leading the Europeans in next year’s Solheim Cup at Bernardus Golf in the Netherlands.
“I feel like the biggest honor you can get as a European golfer is to be named captain for the Solheim Cup,” Nordqvist said. “I don’t think I’ve been shy about how much this tournament means to me and my family.”
Nordqvist’s ASU family couldn’t be prouder of her upcoming captaincy. Muñoz, a four-time Solheim Cup teammate of Nordqvist’s, says she has congratulated Nordqvist over text and briefly in person while the two were in China for Blue Bay LPGA.
“Obviously it’s such an honor for her, but it’s going to be pretty stressful, so I just hope she really enjoys it,” Muñoz said. “She’s so organized and so on top of things that I’m sure she’s going to do amazing things.”
Ciganda, a seven-time Solheim Cup teammate of Nordqvist’s, hopes the pair can eat lunch together soon.
“I’m very happy for her and I think it’s going to be a great experience,” Ciganda said. “She’s played in a lot of Solheim Cups and is a major winner. She knows how to win.”
Farr-Kaye is also very proud of her former player and looks back fondly at the time she coached Nordqvist. She says right from the start, she knew the Swede was different.
“I’ve never seen someone keep notebooks on their practice like Anna did,” Farr-Kaye said. “She was so intentional and I remember thinking we needed to teach her how to turn off.”
Among the ASU alums, only Ciganda and Muñoz made the cut at the Ford Championship, but that in no way diminishes school pride. Farr-Kaye says the long careers of both Spaniards and Nordqvist showcase ASU as a great spot for talented players.
“I think if someone said you’ll have a 10-year career on tour and play in several Solheim Cups, anybody would be happy,” Farr-Kaye said. “They’ve all gone past that.”
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Top: Missy Farr-Kaye is proud of the legacy of international players she has coached at Arizona State.
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