By Tim Hartin
After a slew of individual summer successes – a made cut in the U.S. Women’s Open, a semifinal run in the U.S. Girls’ Junior, and a pair of match victories in the U.S. Women’s Amateur – 17-year-old Rayee Feng of New Jersey continued her stellar play this fall in team settings, helping the U.S. to victory in the Junior Ryder Cup and the MGA to a win in the Carey Cup.
At Nassau Country Club in Glen Cove, N.Y., the home team entered the final day of competition with a two-point lead, but Europe gathered early advantages in nine of the 12 singles matches. The outlook may’ve been bleak early, but one by one matches began to flip in favor of the United States.
Feng, one of Suzy Whaley’s two captain’s picks for the event, stood 1-down to Spain’s Louise Uma Landgraf through five, but quickly gathered momentum with a win on No. 7, and back-to-back birdies and wins on Nos. 9 and 10. She pushed her advantage to 3-up through 14 and notched the clinching point for the U.S. by winning the par-5 15th with par.
Feng ended the three-day event with a 2-2 mark as the U.S. edged Europe, 17.5 - 12.5.
Less than a month later, Feng found herself playing on her first MGA International Team, taking on Golf Ireland in the Carey Cup at Portmarnock Golf Links. Feng went 3-0 across the pond, with her record contributing to a dominating performance from the MGA’s women competitors (8-1) that led to a 12.5 – 9.5 victory for the MGA.
“She set the tone for the rest of the group with her positive energy, super-consistent ball striking and a putter that came alive at the right moments,” said MGA president and captain Ned Zachar, who had Feng as part of the lead match in all three sessions.
With a game that has exceled whether playing for herself or others – and in foreign countries – it’s easy to say we’ll see a lot more from Feng in the future.