Florida State's Mirabel Ting wins 2025 Annika Award, given to college golf's Player of the Year
When Mirabel Ting first came to the United States, she felt alone.
She didn't have any friends. Her family was on the other side of the world in Malaysia. She started her college golf career at Augusta before transferring to Florida State, where she has spent the past two seasons.
Her lone goal coming to the U.S. to play college golf? "So I just tell myself, if I could just practice hard and be successful, one day, I'll be able to help out my family, my friends, and you know just what I'm trying to do is be successful and make everyone at home proud."
She has accomplished every bit of that this season.
On Tuesday, Ting was named the winner of the 2025 Annika Award presented by Stifel, given to the best female golfer in college golf. Ting is the first Annika Award winner from Florida State and also the first Annika Award winner from Malaysia.
Ting put together an incredible season playing on the same team as the No. 1 amateur in the world, Lottie Woad. Ting won five times this season in nine stroke-play starts, her worst finish being T-6. All season, she lost to only 10 players.
"Everyone on that trophy, they're all pretty successful and on the LPGA Tour," Ting said. "I'm just hoping to be like that as well one day. It's kind of cool to have my name on it."
With her Annika Award win, she also receives an exemption into the Amundi Evian Championship in France this summer.
Ting slowly rose up the World Amateur Golf Ranking this season, eventually giving Florida State coach Amy Bond the top two players in not only college golf but the world. While Woad remains No. 1 in WAGR, Ting has been the best player in college this year, and her peers took notice.
The winner of the Annika Award is selected by college golfers, coaches and members of the college golf media and has been handed out annually since the 2014 season.
Bond recognized her talent long before, though.
"She's probably the best ball striker we've ever had from start to finish, where it's like, see flag, hit flag," Bond said. "That's what she does. But the difference, especially from last year to this year, is definitely she's making a lot more putts. She's going to knock it inside of 15 feet 80% of the time.
"Her running joke with me is because I'm like, 'You got to practice your short game.' And she's like, 'Coach, why do I need to practice my short game when I hit 17 or 18 greens a round,' but the difference this year is that she's actually making those putts."
Around Christmas, Ting flew to Thailand to begin working with Kris Assawapimonporn, Jeeno Thitikul’s longtime instructor. They worked mostly on putting – everything from set-up, to speed to green reading.
And those changes helped culminate the best player in college golf.
"She's goofy. She's got a good sense of humor. She likes to laugh," Bond said. "The biggest thing with her is she likes to have fun."
Past Annika Award winners
2024: Ingrid Lindblad, LSU
2023: Rose Zhang, Stanford
2022: Rose Zhang, Stanford
2021: Rachel Heck, Stanford
2020: Natalie Srinivasan, Furman
2019: Maria Fassi, Arkansas
2018: Maria Fassi, Arkansas
2017: Leona Maguire, Duke
2016: Bronte Law, UCLA
2015: Leona Maguire, Duke
2014: Alison Lee, UCLA