Emma Bunch didn’t see much of the real estate at Caledonia Golf and Fish Club in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. The New Mexico State junior missed only two fairways in 54 holes at the Golfweek Fall Challenge on her way to a winning score of 7 under.
This is typical for the player from Denmark. Given the accuracy, the next stat is unsurprising: Bunch has now won six of the last seven starts she has made with the Aggies. That track record helped land her on the preseason ANNIKA Award Watch List, where she was one of 10 players on the final watch list in the spring.
“I think I’ve always been a good ballstriker, but my short game has gotten a lot of better over the last year or so,” Bunch said. “Now, even if I miss a green, I think I could get up and down. That’s why I’m barely making bogeys right now.”
Scores: Golfweek Fall Challenge
Part of Bunch’s success at Caledonia on Sept. 10 can be attributed to a course that suits her. She finished T-8 there as a freshman and runner-up as a sophomore. But a much bigger part of the college winning streak she’s riding has to do with short game and confidence.
“She was just able to really expand on her short game and her putting last season, and I think that’s the tip of the iceberg when she got that first win this past spring, she really just took off with it and her confidence was through the roof plus some,” New Mexico State coach Danny Bowen said.
Bunch agrees with Bowen’s assessment that short game has been a difference maker, and the Aggie golf facilities have had a lot to do with that. Bunch found it easier to practice more once she got to college, particularly because team practices often focused on short game.
She also gained exposure to many more different types of grass than she had seen back home in Denmark.
Short game aside, Bunch struggles to put her finger on what has unlocked the door to so many tournament titles. Before winning the GCU Invitational last February, Bunch had not won a college tournament. Her next four spring tournament titles included the Ping/ASU Invitational and the Conference-USA Championship. She qualified for the NCAA Cle Elum Regional as an individual and finished T-24, but did not advance to the NCAA Championship.
“I don’t feel like anything has really changed, but I can look at my scores and they’re way better than they were before, so I guess something did unlock,” she said. “I think definitely a little bit more confident and a little more belief in my skills and that kind of stuff.”
Bunch says it’s “definitely fun every time” she tees it up. She finds that when she gets too focused on score, that’s when a round starts to slip.
In her preseason meeting with Bowen, the two spoke of keeping processes in place – like continuing Bunch’s goal of hitting at least 14 greens a round and being grateful for the opportunities she has – and continuing to do things to improve.
Bunch has been a leader by example for her Aggie team, largely in the way she works in practice and before the team goes to tournaments. She has found her voice in team meetings and as a cheerleader for her teammates.
“She has been in those positions this past spring and then this past week, right down to the last hole and in contention for a win,” Bowen said, “but also still realizing that she has those teammates in front of her and just cheering them on as much as she can as well.”
Bunch was selected to the International Arnold Palmer Cup team over the summer. She played the European Ladies Team Championship and was T-9 at the European Ladies Amateur. She is ranked inside the top 100 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking.
As a top player from Denmark, Bunch will represent her country at the Spirit International Amateur in November.