Women’s Golf Finishes Second at Ivy League Championships

SPRINGFIELD, N.J. – A strong effort from the Harvard women's golf team at the 2026 Ivy League Championship came up just short as the team finished in second place in the conference tournament. The Crimson finished with an impressive team score of 907 (+43) but could not hold off a surging Columbia Lions team on the final day of the tournament, finishing seven strokes off the lead. Sophomore

Lucy Yuan and Senior captain

Iris Wang both finished in the top five for Harvard to lead the team and secure spots on the All-Championship team.

How it Happened

The 2026 Ivy League Championship took the Harvard Crimson women's golf team South to New Jersey, where it competed at the historic Baltusrol golf club for the conference title. Harvard was looking to ride its momentum from a strong Spring season into the tournament, where it looked to capture its eighth conference title.

A strong opening round put the Crimson at the top of the leaderboard early in the tournament. The team combined for a score of 298 (+10) to finish in second place after the first 18 holes. Senior captain

Iris Wang was the leader for the Crimson on the first day of action, posting an impressive score of 73 (+1) to move into a tie for second place after the first round. After a rocky start to her round, Wang posted three birdies and just one bogey over the final 15 holes to post the team's lowest score of the day.

Lucy Yuan also moved into the top 10 after day one with a round of 74 (+2) that featured 13 pars. The 2025 Ivy League Champion,

Vanessa Zhang, began her title defense with a solid round of 75 (+3) to move into a tie for seventh place on the leaderboard.

Nikki Iniakov started strong with a round of 76 (+4) to round out the team scoring for Harvard.

The most exciting moment of the day came courtesy of

Bonnie Zhai on the 16

th hole at Baltusrol. The junior aced the 160-yard par three to become the third Harvard golfer this month to record a hole in one. The impressive feat was one of two holes in one at the tournament.

The Crimson battled through wet and windy course conditions on Saturday to take the team lead in the tournament. Scores were inflated during the round, with course conditions playing a major factor in scoring ability, but Harvard managed to battle through and post the second-lowest round in the field with a 310 (+22) to take a two-shot lead after day two. Zhang led the charge, posting a team low score of 76 (+4) on Saturday. Yuan impressively carded three birdies and posted a score of 77 (+5) to remain atop the individual leaderboard. Wang was just behind her teammates with a second-round score of 78 (+6) to aid the Crimson effort. Iniakov's 79 (+7) rounded out the team scoring on Saturday.

Individually, the Crimson had three of its golfers – Zhang, Yuan and Wang – in a tie for third place and just four shots back of the medalist position with scorelines of +7 through 36 holes.

The Crimson looked to climb back to the top spot late in the day but a strong finish from the Lions put Harvard out of contention.

Dixon Hill and Zhang were the first scores to count on the final day of competition as the duo completed the week with rounds of 77 (+5). Zhang finished out the tournament with a score of 224 (+12), which was good for T9 in the field. A strong comeback from Columbia on the final day of competition knocked Harvard back down into second place in the middle of the round. Yuan and Wang continued to fight for the Medalist title late into the day. Wang finished her tournament off with a round of 74 (+2) which put her into a tie for fourth place at the end of the competition.

Yuan continued to fight for the top spot in the tournament, rallying in the middle of the round to put herself in contention for Medalist honors. After opening with bogeys on one and two, Yuan rallied to post five birdies over the next 13 holes to take back the lead. Yuan's chase for the title ended on the final three hole when Princeton's Thanana Kotchasanmanee held off Yuan to take the championship. Yuan finished in sole possession of second place, capping off an incredible sophomore campaign.

The Crimson finished in second place at the Ivy League Tournament for the third time in the past four seasons, seven shots behind the Champion Columbia Lions.

Harvard Highlights

• Lucy Yuan and Iris Wang earned spots on the All-Championship team by finishing in the top five individually.

• Bonnie Zhai carded a hole-in-one on the 16th hole during the first round.

• Harvard carded 38 birdies in the tournament, the most by any team in the tournament.

• The Crimson also had the second fewest bogeys.

• The team's 3.25 average on par three holes was the best in the field.

• Yuan's 10 birdies were tied for the most individually.

• Iris Wang (9) and Nikki Iniakov (8) both finished in the top 10 on the individual birdie rankings.

• Vanessa Zhang's 34 pars were seventh most individually.

Team Results

1. Columbia (+36)

2. Harvard (+43)

3. Princeton (+49)

4. Penn (+56)

5. Dartmouth (+70)

6. Yale (+92)

Individual Results

2 |

Lucy Yuan | 74-75-71 | +6

T4 |

Iris Wang | 73-78-74 | +9

T9 |

Vanessa Zhang | 75-76-77 | +12

T18 |

Nikki Iniakov | 76-79-80 | +19

T23 |

Bonnie Zhai | 76-79-83 | +22

26 |

Dixon Hill | 78-84-77 | +23