Matilda Castren
Matilda Maria Castren (born 18 January 1995) is a Finnish professional golfer playing on the LPGA Tour. In 2021 she won the LPGA Mediheal Championship to become the first player from Finland to win on the LPGA Tour.[1]
| Matilda Castren | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Matilda Maria Castren |
| Born | 18 January 1995 New York, New York, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) |
| Sporting nationality | Finland |
| Residence | San Diego, California |
| Career | |
| College | Florida State University |
| Turned professional | 2017 |
| Current tour(s) | LPGA Tour (joined 2020) LET (joined 2021) |
| Former tour(s) | Symetra Tour |
| Professional wins | 3 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| LPGA Tour | 1 |
| Ladies European Tour | 1 |
| Epson Tour | 1 |
| Best results in LPGA major championships | |
| Chevron Championship | T25: 2022 |
| Women's PGA C'ship | T23: 2020 |
| U.S. Women's Open | T30: 2021 |
| Women's British Open | T20: 2021 |
| Evian Championship | T19: 2021 |
Career edit
Castren won the 2011 Doral Publix Junior Classic in the U.S. and the 2013 Skandia Junior Open in Sweden, and was runner-up at the 2013 Portuguese Ladies Amateur. She represented Finland at the 2011, 2012 and 2013 European Girls' Team Championship, the 2014, 2015 and 2016 European Ladies' Team Championship,[2] and at the 2014[3] and 2016[4] Espirito Santo Trophy. She was also on the winning Vagliano Trophy team in 2017.[5]
Castren played college golf at Florida State University beginning in 2014 and graduated in May 2017 with a degree in International Affairs, after winning seven individual titles in collegiate competition during her time with the Florida State Seminoles women's golf team, a school record. She was named second-Team All-American by the Women's Golf Coaches Association and Golfweek in 2014 and was a three-time All-ACC selection (2014, 2016 and 2017) as one of only three players in school history. She set school record for lowest career stroke average (72.52) over her four-year varsity career.[6]
Castren played two seasons on the Symetra Tour in 2018 and 2019, before she finished T26 at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament to earn her card for the 2020 LPGA Tour.[7] In only six starts she earned enough to qualify via the money list for her first major, the 2020 Women's PGA Championship, where she was T9 after a first round of 69 and finished the tournament T23.[8]
In her rookie season on the LPGA Tour, she won the 2021 LPGA Mediheal Championship in just her 15th career LPGA Tour start.[9]
In July, Castren claimed her first Ladies European Tour (LET) title after she shot a final round of 68 to win the 2021 Gant Ladies Open in her native Finland. She needed to secure a victory on the LET to become a member of the tour and be eligible for the 2021 European Solheim Cup Team.[10]
Amateur wins edit
- 2011 (1) Doral Publix Junior Classic 16-18
- 2013 (1) Skandia Junior Open Girls
- 2014 (2) Florida State Match-Up, Web.com/Marsh Landing Intercollegiate
- 2015 (1) Jacksonville Classic
- 2016 (3) Florida Challenge, NCAA Shoal Creek Regional Championships, Jim West Challenge
- 2017 (1) Clemson Invitational
Professional wins (3) edit
LPGA Tour wins (1) edit
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 Jun 2021 | LPGA Mediheal Championship | 71-69-69-65=274 | −14 | 2 strokes | Min Lee |
Ladies European Tour wins (1) edit
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 Jul 2021 | Gant Ladies Open | 71-69-68=208 | −5 | 3 strokes | Tvesa Malik Ursula Wikström |
Symetra Tour wins (1) edit
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 Oct 2020 | Mission Inn Resort and Club Championship | 68-68-71=207 | −12 | 5 strokes | Linnea Johansson |
Results in LPGA majors edit
Results not in chronological order.
| Tournament | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevron Championship | T25 | T28 | CUT | ||
| U.S. Women's Open | T30 | T44 | |||
| Women's PGA Championship | T23 | CUT | T40 | T77 | |
| The Evian Championship | NT | T19 | T40 | CUT | |
| Women's British Open | T20 | WD | CUT |
CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
NT = no tournament
T = tied
Team appearances edit
Amateur
- European Girls' Team Championship (representing Finland): 2011, 2012, 2013
- European Ladies' Team Championship (representing Finland): 2014, 2015, 2016
- Espirito Santo Trophy (representing Finland): 2014, 2016
- Vagliano Trophy (representing the Continent of Europe): 2017 (winners)
Source:[2]
Professional
- Solheim Cup (representing Europe): 2021 (winners)
Solheim Cup record edit
| Year | Total matches | Total W–L–H | Singles W–L–H | Foursomes W–L–H | Fourballs W–L–H | Points won | Points % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | 4 | 3–1–0 | 1–0–0 | 1–1–0 | 1–0–0 | 3 | 75.0 |
| 2021 | 4 | 3–1–0 | 1–0–0 def. L. Salas 1 up | 1–1–0 won w/ A. Nordqvist 1 up lost w/ A. Nordqvist 3&1 | 1–0–0 won w/ A. Nordqvist 4&3 | 3 | 75.0 |
References edit
- ^ "Matilda Castren becomes first player from Finland to win on LPGA, and does it in her 15th start". Golfweek. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ a b c "Matilda Castren". World Amateur Golf Ranking. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "2014 Espirito Santo Scoring". International Golf Federation. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
- ^ "2016 Espirito Santo Scoring". International Golf Federation. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
- ^ "Vagliano Trophy 2017" (PDF). European Golf Association. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
- ^ a b "Matilda Castren Player profile". FSU Seminoles. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Matilda Castren Bio". LPGA Tour. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "2020 KPMG Women's PGA Championship". LPGA Tour. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ "Matilda Castren first Finnish winner in LPGA Tour history". LPGA Tour. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ "Castren Captures Gant Ladies Open Title". Ladies European Tour. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
External links edit
- Matilda Castren at the LPGA Tour official site
- Matilda Castren at the Golfdata official site (in Swedish)
- Matilda Castren at the Women's World Golf Rankings official site