UCLA women’s golf falls to Stanford in NCAA match play final

CARLSBAD — There wasn’t much of a sunset on Wednesday, with the marine layer hugging the coast and blocking the sun’s descent into the Pacific Ocean.

As far as a sunset to a career, it was glorious.

Rachel Heck lagged a birdie putt to a few inches on the 15th green to score the clinching point in top-ranked Stanford’s 3-2 victory over UCLA in the match play final at the NCAA women’s golf championships on Omni La Costa Resort & Spa’s North Course. She sprinted into the arms of jubilant teammates and soon was in a golf cart riding to the 16th green for the trophy presentation.

“A storybook ending,” she said to her teammates in the cart, shaking her head.

Not a bad way to go out.

Heck came to Stanford in 2020 as one of the country’s most decorated junior golfers, then had a freshman season for the ages: a scoring average of 69.75 over 25 rounds (the first in history under 70), the Annika Award as the top women’s collegiate golfer, the NCAA individual title.

Her sophomore season was derailed by a bout with mononucleosis, but she returned in time to help the team claim the NCAA title.

Then her shoulder started hurting, then her elbow, then her fingers numbed, then she couldn’t hold a club. She was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome, where there isn’t enough space for the blood vessels or nerves between ribs and collarbone. She underwent surgery to remove a rib two Februarys ago, wiping out her junior season and the start of her senior year.

Last winter, she was still experiencing pain and admits she nearly shut it down for good.

“It was really touch-and-go,” Stanford coach Anne Walker said. “She played the fall on and off, with some pain and without pain. Starting in January, she was really not feeling like maybe she was going to be able to play. So we rested her.”

Heck returned for the conference championships and finished seventh. She was the individual medalist a couple of weeks later at NCAA Regionals. Then Wednesday, with a national title on the line, Walker didn’t think twice: Heck would play in the final spot of the five matches.

“It was not by accident,” Walker said. “We knew the gravity of today. She’s a mature kid. She’s been through a lot, and it felt like it would take a lot to rattle her. And I think that’s what we saw today.”

Heck had a lengthy birdie putt on the first hole and confidently walked it in. She was on that kind of heater. By the turn, she was 4-up. She nearly closed out UCLA’s Kate Villegas on the 13th hole before clinching at 15.

“I’m honestly still speechless,” Heck said. “I mean, this is the moment that kept me going through the injuries, just picturing this. The fact that it happened is absolutely unreal.”

What carried her, though, was a decision she made months ago that shocked the golf world given her generational talent: She’s not turning pro.

The political science major is finishing an internship with global investment firm KKR and has a permanent job waiting for her after graduation (and her sister’s wedding three days later). She also is completing Air Force ROTC and will become a lieutenant.

This is her life now.

Heck made the announcement in March in a first-person essay on the nolayingup.com golf website, writing: “I was strongly considering attributing my decision to my injuries. It is true that even if I wanted to, I do not know if my body would hold up on tour. But frankly, after a couple of years of painful deliberation, I have come to realize that I do not want to play professional golf. I do not want a life on the road and in the public eye. I no longer dream of the U.S. Open trophies and the Hall of Fame.”

It relaxed her, unshackled her, liberated her.

“It helped because for a while I’ve known that’s what I want to do,” Heck said in Wednesday’s twilight. “It was hard once I decided that to talk to my parents about it, talk to everyone about it because everyone was asking, ‘When are you going to go pro?’ It was a whole lot of outside stress off the course, thinking about what my next step is and how to tell people.

“Once that was out there, and seeing all the love and support I got, was super overwhelming in the best way. It helped me play freely, knowing I’m so beyond happy with where my life is right now and I wouldn’t change anything for a second.”

Even after playing so well here?

“I think it’s funny,” Heck said. “A lot of people after regionals and throughout this week are, ‘Are you sure you don’t want to go pro?’ I’m like, I don’t know where y’all read that I’m not turning pro because I don’t think I can do it. That’s not what I (want). That’s not me, that’s not where I see my life going. I think this is the perfect bow on an incredible journey in this game.”

Stanford also got points from Megha Ganne and Claremont’s Kelly Xu, who beat UCLA’s Meghan Royal to go undefeated in match play for the second straight year. UCLA’s points came from Zoe Campos (West Ranch High) and Caroline Canales (Calabasas High), the latter after holing out from the fairway on 18.

“Stanford started off hot. We just got behind the 8-ball too quick,” UCLA coach Alicia Um Holmes said. “You try not to make it about results but it hurts to lose when you work so hard and put so many hours in.”

Campos, who won four times this year, closed out Sadie Englemann, 4 and 3. Canales chipped in for eagle for a 2-up win over Paula Martin Sampedro in the lead match, which ended right as Heck was delivering the clinching point.

The NCAA format is grueling – four rounds of stroke play followed by three rounds of match play, a possibility of 126 holes in six days.

Everyone else will take a few days off, then head back to the range to grind some more.

Not Heck. She might play some amateur tournaments, when or if work permits.

“It’s a little bit more enjoyable because this really is it for me,” Heck said. “This is the end of a chapter. I’m not going to go rest for a couple days and pick up the clubs again. I’m going to leave them in the locker for a little bit.”

Stanford now has three NCAA titles since women’s golf went to match play in 2015. UCLA also has three titles, all in stroke play, the most recent in 2011.