Rachel Heck (born November 22, 2001 is an American amateur golfer.
Early life and amateur career
Heck, a native of Memphis, Tennessee started playing golf with her two sisters almost as soon as she could walk, competing in friendly competitions for ice cream. Her older sister, Abby, played collegiate golf at University of Notre Dame and younger sister, Anna, who is committed to play golf at the University of Notre Dame, competed in the 2021 U.S. Women's Amateur Four-Ball.[1]
A golf prodigy, Heck was a five-time AJGA All-American. She was the youngest competitor in the 2017 U.S. Women's Open, tied for 33rd. She also made the cut at the 2018 Evian Championship, tied for 44th. She was a member of the 2018 U.S. Junior Ryder Cup team, sinking the putt that clinched the title for the U.S. She was named USA Today's High School Golfer of the Year in 2017 and 2018.[1]
Heck was a member of the 2019 U.S. Junior Solheim Cup team, going 2–1 over three rounds of match play. She also competed in the U.S. Women's Amateur and finished T8 in the Girl's Junior PGA Championship. She also earned one of four amateur spots at the 2019 ANA Inspiration. Along with later fellow Stanford Cardinal Sadie Englemann, she advanced to the semifinals of the 2019 U.S. Women's Amateur Four-Ball.
In 2020, Heck was the stroke-play medalist in the U.S. Women's Amateur, shooting 4-under-par across two rounds. She advanced to the round of 16 before falling, 1 up, to eventual champion Rose Zhang. She was also a quarterfinalist in the 2020 North and South Women's Amateur.[2]
Heck enrolled at Stanford University in 2021 to play golf with the Stanford Cardinal women's golf team. In her freshman year, she recorded six individual collegiate wins.[3] She became the third player in college history to sweep conference (Pac-12), regional (Stanford Regional) and national titles (NCAAs), joining USC's Annie Park and Arizona's Marisa Baena. Heck became the first Stanford woman to win an NCAA title, and the ninth freshman to achieve the feat. Her 69.72 scoring average over 25 rounds was, at the time, the lowest in NCAA women's golf history.[2]
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