Golf's De Bock Named to ANNIKA Award Watch List
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel Fall Watch List was released for the 2024-25 season Wednesday, Sept. 4, with Eastern Michigan University sophomore Savannah De Bock (Ecaussinnes-d'enghien, Belgium/Institut de l'Enfant-Jésus - Lycée/Georgia) among the 25 women named to the list. The ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel is the highest award given annually in women's collegiate golf and is on the same level as the Heisman Trophy is to collegiate football. De Bock is the first player in EMU history to earn placement on the watch list.
"The ANNIKA Award is our Heisman Trophy, and it is an amazing honor for Savannah, our program, and Eastern Athletics," Head Coach Josh Brewer said. "Savannah has been one of the world's best amateurs for the past few years and she truly deserves to be recognized for out sport's top honor. It will be fun seeing her compete this year in the Green and White!"
In her freshman season at Georgia, De Bock, who was a mid-year enrollee with the Bulldogs, was selected to the Southeastern Conference SEC All-Freshman team and ranked No. 83 nationally. Last fall, she finished fourth at the World Junior Girls Championships and compiled a 3-0 record to help Europe win the Junior Solheim Cup before joining the Bulldogs in January. In eight collegiate tournaments, she compiled a 73.95 stroke average with six par-or-better tallies in 22 rounds. She also notched four top 20 performances, with a best effort of fifth place at the San Diego State Classic before she finished 23rd at both the SEC Championships and the NCAA Auburn Regional.
Since joining the EMU program De Bock competed in the World Junior Championships, where she placed second by carding a two-under, 214 (72-73-69) on the Damai Indah Golf - PIK Course in Jakarta, Indonesia, June 12-14, 2024. It marked her third participation in the event as she placed fourth in 2023 and fifth in 2022. Her most recent finish added to her lengthy list of accomplished finishes that saw her climb to as high as 35th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR) and 21st on the European Amateurs list. A participant in nearly 100 WAGR events between 2018-23, De Bock captured eight wins, 29 top five finishes, and 46 top 10 showings. Of those events, 13 were professional tournaments, including the 2022 and 2023 AIG Women's Open. The 2022 European Ladies' Amateur Champion, she has helped Team Europe to PING Junior Solheim Cup titles in both 2021 and 2023.
About the ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel
Created in 2014, the ANNIKA Award presented by Stifel is annually given to the top female NCAA Division I collegiate golfer with the winner voted on by players, coaches, and members of the college golf media. Named for Annika Sorenstam, the award was created in partnership with the Haskins Foundation to acknowledge the top female golfer and to match the Haskins Award presented by Stifel, which acknowledges the top male Division I collegiate golfer. Ingrid Lindblad (LSU) became the 11th ANNIKA Award winner in 2024.
Stifel, one of the nation's leading wealth management and investment banking firms, serves as the presenting sponsor of both the ANNIKA and Haskins Awards. Stifel also serves as a presenting sponsor for the NCAA Division I Women's and Men's Golf Championships on GOLF Channel.
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