When you think of sports in the nation of Norway, golf isn’t likely to be the first thing to pop into your mind. Given that the country is located far closer to the North Pole than the equator, winter sports are much more likely to be associated with Norway. In other words, think Sonja Henie, Bjorn Daehlie, the Winter Olympics and the like.
But that’s not to say that golfers from Norway haven’t made their mark. For instance, Norwegian Suzann Pettersen is among the top 10 players in the Rolex women’s world golf rankings.
And, locally speaking, the top college golfer for a Colorado-based team this season hails from Norway.
University of Denver junior Tonje (pronounced Tonya) Daffinrud is ranked one of the top 50 women’s college golfers in the country by both Golfstat (43rd) and Golfweek (38th).
Though Daffinrud hasn’t won an individual title this season — she did claim a victory as a freshman — she’s been a model of top-level consistency. In the six college tournaments she’s played this season, the 21-year-old has posted a remarkable five top-10 finishes.
“We’ve had many great players at DU in recent years, but Tonje is something,” said coach Lindsay Hulwick, the new head coach at DU, where she served as an assistant coach from 2005 to 2012. “I don’t know if any player has had (a run of top-10s like that). She’s quite impressive, but I’m not at all surprised by what she’s doing.”
Just last week, Daffinrud (pictured in a DU photo) made her way into the Pioneer record book alongside two of the best players the program has produced. In firing a 7-under-par 65 at the Anuenue Spring Break Classic in Kapalua, Hawaii, the junior tied the lowest round in DU women’s golf history. Current LPGA Tour player Stephanie Sherlock and former LPGA Tour competitor Katie Kempter previously shot 65 at tournaments for DU, both during the 2007-08 season.
“It’s fun to have records and have that in my resume,” Daffinrud said this week. “But for me it’s not about that. It’s a nice bonus.”
If nothing else, it confirms that Daffinrud may also have what it takes to make it to the LPGA Tour, like Sherlock and Kempter have done.
“It kind of confirms how far I’ve come,” Daffinrud said. “For a long time, I’ve had the goal of going professional. Shooting rounds like that inspire and motivate me to work toward that.”
After tying the course record with the 65, Daffinrud finished second in the tournament, behind only Pepperdine’s Grace Na, one of the top 10 women’s college players in the country.
In addition to that runner-up showing, Daffinrud has one third place, a fifth, a seventh and a 10th this season. Only once has she finished outside the top 10: a 33rd-place showing at the Bruin Wave Invitational a month ago.
Daffinrud, who owns a 73.2 stroke average this season, was named the Western Athletic Conference’s Women’s Golfer of the Month for October, and the Women’s Golfer of the Week for last week.
Daffinrud actually missed the season opener for DU, but she had a good reason: She was playing for her homeland of Norway in the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship in Turkey in late September. Individually, Daffinrud had a solid showing at that worldwide amateur event, finishing 32nd out of 157 competitors.
Daffinrud has been playing on national teams for Norway since age 13. In 2008 as a junior golfer, she won every tournament in which she competed. But given Norway’s climate, she’s been a big fish in a small golf pond, relatively speaking.
“The season (in Norway) is pretty short; it starts in May and ends in September,” she said. “And golf is not as big a sport (as it is in some other countries). The weather and courses are not as good everywhere. But the Norwegian Golf Federation has put a lot of resources into building junior golf.”
The NGF’s support has helped Daffinrud develop as a player over the years. In fact, one of the keys she cites as a reason for her good play this season is due in part to the federation’s help. Since last summer, Daffinrud has been working on the mental side of the game with Dr. Joseph Parent, author of the popular “Zen Golf”. In fact, Daffinrud had some in-person sessions with Parent before going to Hawaii for last week’s tournament.
Daffinrud came onto DU’s radar four years ago in Illinois at the Junior Solheim Cup. Among Daffinrud’s matches that week was one against Lexi Thompson, who would go on in 2011 to become then the youngest winner ever of an LPGA Tour event, at age 16. Thompson barely defeated Daffinrud, 1 up, in singles.
Hulwick, then a DU assistant under Sammie Chergo, was at the Junior Solheim Cup recruiting.
“(Daffinrud) really caught my eye,” Hulwick recalled. “She’s very athletic, tall, and has a great swing. Her game and maturity were already at a high level. I knew we had to get her.”
And the timing was right. Though Daffinrud was also being recruited by some of the top college programs in the country, DU was coming off its best finish ever at the NCAA Championship Finals, a fifth place.
And why did Daffinrud choose Denver?
“At the end it came down to the coaches,” she said. “I’m pretty independent in how I practice and play golf. Of course, we have a team structure, but the coaches let me do it my way. I want to follow my own path, and at DU I found that (opportunity). And being from Norway, the cold doesn’t really affect me. The eduction is very impressive as well.”
Daffinrud is double majoring in international business and economics, and she said there’s no question she’ll return to DU for her senior season.
But the most important part of this college season remains ahead, and that’s what Daffinrud is concentrating on now. The Pioneers have a maximum of four tournaments remaining, starting with this weekend’s SMU Invitational in Dallas. Then there’s the team’s one and only Western Athletic Conference Championship, where the Pioneers will try to win their 10th straight conference title, the last nine coming in the Sun Belt. Then DU hopes to earn a spot in the NCAA regionals, and the NCAA Championship Finals.
“We’re in a new conference, and our goal for sure is to win and keep our streak going,” Daffinrud said. “Regionals are our most important tournament; we want to make it to nationals.
“Individually, my goal is to win the last four tournaments. I play to win. I’ve come close (this season), but I’m not satisfied. Hopefully, I’ll make it to nationals regardless of how the team does. And a top 10 at nationals would be something I would be happy about. I want to get after it.”
Hulwick said big goals are within reach for Daffinrud.
“She’s very disciplined and committed,” the coach said. “She sets goals and she achieves them. She’s very independent, and she wants to be the best. She puts in the extra time before and after practice. You don’t see her kind of drive very often.”
