NORMAN, Okla. – Mexico’s Diana Cantú of Tennessee and England’s Phil Rowe of Cal Poly will coach the International side while Kory Henkes of Ole Miss and Illinois Wesleyan’s Jim Ott will lead Team USA at the 2022 Arnold Palmer Cup at Golf Club de Genève. The matches, which feature men and women collegiate golfers from the United States versus their international counterparts in a team competition, will be held July 1-3. USA leads the all-time series, 13-11-1.
After seven seasons as the head women’s golf coach at Maryland, Cantú returned to Tennessee to take the reins at her alma mater. The 2021 Big Ten Coach of the Year, Cantú led Maryland to unprecedented success during her tenure. In 2021, the program turned in its best-ever finish at the Big Ten Championship (second), advanced to the NCAA Championships as a team for the first time in program history and earned its best-ever national ranking at No. 14. Maryland also recorded its highest team GPA in program history under Cantu’s watch. Last season, Virunpat Olankitkunchai became the first Maryland golfer named to the Palmer Cup. She was a student-athlete at Tennessee from 2006-10. Originally from the city of Monterrey in Nuevo León, Mexico, Cantú was a member of three teams that advanced to the NCAA Championships. She is an LPGA Class B member and is TPI-certified. Cantú currently serves as the secretary for the Women’s Golf Coaches Association Board of Directors.
Rowe is in his second season at Cal Poly. He guided the Mustangs to three top-10 finishes in his first season and posted two additional top-10s this fall. The 2022 event marks Rowe’s seventh time participating in the matches. The native of Cornwall, England, will become the first individual to represent Great Britain & Ireland, Europe, and International teams in the Palmer Cup. He was a four-time Palmer Cup team member, highlighted in 2000 when he sunk the deciding putt to give GB&I its first victory in the series. Additionally, Rowe was a two-time assistant coach in the matches, including a European victory at Walton Heath in 2014. He was a two-time Academic All-American at Stanford, captained the team as a senior and posted team-low scoring averages in 2001 and 2002. Rowe was a member of the winning Great Britain & Ireland Walker Cup team in 1999, winning all three of his matches.
The 2021 NCAA Champion and WGCA National Coach of the Year, Henkes is in her seventh season at the helm of the Ole Miss program. The 2021 title marked the first ever Ole Miss women’s team in school history and also marked the university’s first national championship in any sport since 1962. Additionally, Henkes led Ole Miss to the 2019 SEC Championship and 10 total tournament wins. She has coached three All-America selections and six All-SEC honorees. Rebel senior Julia Johnson has represented the United States in the past two Palmer Cups. Prior to her time at Ole Miss, Henkes coached GRU Augusta to NCAA regionals three times in four seasons and spent two years at Charleston Southern, leading the Buccaneers to a Big South Championship. She was a four-year letterwinner at South Carolina where she was a member of the Gamecocks 2002 SEC Championship team.
Ott guided Illinois Wesleyan to consecutive NCAA Division III Championships in 2019 and 2021. His teams have won 17 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin championships since 2000, including nine straight. Additionally, Ott's teams have made 14-straight NCAA Division III tournament appearances and posted seven top-10 finishes. In the shortened 2019-20 season, Ott guided IWU to a No. 1 national ranking. His coaching accolades include being named the Dave Williams National Coach of the Year presented by Golf Pride Grips in each of the last three seasons and the CCIW Coach of the Year eight times. Under his guidance, Titans have earned PING Golf All-American status 33 times, named Cleveland Golf All-American Scholars on 18 occasions, and garnered GCAA All-Academic Team honors for seven straight seasons. Ott has served on the NCAA Men's Golf Committee and GCAA All-America Committee. He was a four-year member of the Titan golf team and was the squad's team captain in 1991 and Most Valuable Player in both 1989 and 1991.
About Arnold Palmer Cup
The Arnold Palmer Cup was co-founded by Arnold Palmer and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) and began at the Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Orlando, Fla., in 1997. The event is a Ryder Cup-style tournament featuring the top men’s and women’s university/college golfers matching the United States against a team of International players. The Palmer Cup has been played at some of the world’s greatest courses including The Old Course, The Royal County Down, Royal Portrush, Baltusrol, The Honors Course, and Cherry Hills. The 2018 matches at Evian Resort Golf Club became the only major tournament which features men and women playing side-by-side as partners.
Since its inception, over 125 former Arnold Palmer Cup alumni have gone on to earn cards on the PGA, European, or LPGA Tours; 32 have represented Europe or the USA in the Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup, or Solheim Cup and more than 60 have claimed over 280 victories on the PGA, European, or LPGA Tours, including three major champions in both 2020 and 2021. The United States leads the Palmer Cup series 13-11-1.
The Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation supports the Palmer Cup, which provides a platform for perpetuating Arnold Palmer’s commitment to youth character development and the growth of amateur/collegiate golf. For more information, please visit ArnoldPalmerCup.com.
About Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation
The Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation champions its namesakes' legacy through grantmaking and initiatives that support children’s health, youth character development, and nature-focused wellness. Learn more at PalmerFoundation.org.
Rolex and the Arnold Palmer Cup
Through an unwavering commitment to the game of golf for more than 50 years, Rolex has developed one of the broadest and longest-standing relationships between brand and sport. These strong ties date back to 1967 when Rolex partnered with legendary golfer Arnold Palmer, making him the first official Rolex Golf Testimonee. The charismatic American holds a special place in golf history thanks as much to his natural talent and successful playing career as to his pioneering role in the sport. Since that pivotal bond began, Rolex has gone on to establish partnerships at every level of the sport, including with the governing bodies responsible for advancing the sport and with the finest players, from The Big Three to the New Guard who lead today’s rankings. The decision to partner with the Arnold Palmer Cup was thus a natural progression for the Swiss watchmaker, and a tribute to Arnold Palmer’s inspiring legacy.
About Rolex
An unrivalled reputation for quality and expertise
Rolex is an integrated and independent Swiss watch manufacture. Headquartered in Geneva, the brand is recognized the world over for its expertise and the quality of its products – symbols of excellence, elegance, and prestige. The movements of its Oyster Perpetual and Cellini watches are certified by COSC, then tested in-house for their precision, performance and reliability. The Superlative Chronometer certification, symbolized by the green seal, confirms that each watch has successfully undergone tests conducted by Rolex in its own laboratories according to its own criteria. These are periodically validated by an independent external organization.
The word “Perpetual” is inscribed on every Rolex Oyster watch. But more than just a word on a dial, it is a philosophy that embodies the company’s vision and values. Hans Wilsdorf, the founder of the company, instilled a notion of perpetual excellence that would drive the company forward. This led Rolex to pioneer the development of the wristwatch and numerous major watchmaking innovations, such as the Oyster, the first waterproof wristwatch, launched in 1926, and the Perpetual rotor self-winding mechanism, invented in 1931. In the course of its history, Rolex has registered over 500 patents. At its four sites in Switzerland, the brand designs, develops and produces the majority of its watch components, from the casting of the gold alloys to the machining, crafting, assembly and finishing of the movement, case, dial and bracelet. Furthermore, the brand is actively involved in supporting the arts and culture, sport, and exploration, as well as those who are devising solutions to preserve the planet.
About Nike
The exclusive footwear, apparel, headwear, and glove supplier of the Arnold Palmer Cup, our mission is what drives us to do everything possible to expand human potential. We do that by creating groundbreaking sport innovations, by making our products more sustainably, by building a creative and diverse global team and by making a positive impact in communities where we live and work.