Christie Martens - Women's Golf Coach - Iowa State University Athletics

Christie Martens

Title:
Head Coach
Email:
martensc@iastate.edu
Phone:
515-294-5833

Martens Highlights
-2011 Big 12 Coach of the Year
-2011 NGCA Central Region Coach of the Year
-14 NCAA Regional Berths (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
-2014 NCAA Championship Appearance
-2017 and 2024 Big 12 Championship Runner-Up
-Three Big 12 Champions (2018 - Celia Barquin Arozamena, 2024 - Liyana Durisic and Karisa Chul-Ak-Sorn)
-2022 WGCA & GolfWeek All-American (Taglao Jeeravivitaporn)
-2023 WGCA & GolfWeek All-American (Karisa Chul-Ak-Sorn)
-2023 Big 12 Freshman of the Year (Karisa Chul-Ak-Sorn)
-2023 WGCA National Freshman of the Year (Karisa Chul-Ak-Sorn)
-16 Players Earning All-Big 12 Honors 29 Times
-9 Tournament Titles

Through relentless hard work, determination and tireless recruiting, Christie Martens has firmly established the Iowa State women’s golf program as one of the nation’s best.

Postseason appearances, including a school-record 14-straight NCAA Regional berths since 2010, and top-25 teams have become the norm in the Martens era.

In 2014, Martens led her ISU team to the pinnacle of collegiate golf when the squad advanced to its first-ever NCAA Championship. It marked the first time a team from the state of Iowa made the NCAA finals since the regional format was introduced in 1993.

The Cyclones placed 23rd at the NCAA Championship and were ranked in Golfweek’s national top-25 at season’s end.

Martens, who is in her 21st season as the head coach with the Cyclones, saw the first signs of her rebuilding project come to fruition in 2009-10. The Cyclones finished fourth at the Big 12 Championships and qualified for the NCAA West Regional, the school’s first postseason appearance since 1996.

Martens and her Cyclones trumped the 2009-10 campaign with a record-shattering 2010-11 season, as Iowa State achieved its highest ranking in school history (No. 15), won three tournament titles and recorded 11 of the top-12 18-hole team scores in the program’s history at the time.

Iowa State was the No. 1 seed at the 2011 Big 12 Championships, qualified for its second consecutive NCAA Regional berth and finished the season ranked in the nation’s top-20 to cap off its record-setting season. Martens was rewarded for her efforts, earning 2011 Big 12 Coach of the Year honors and NGCA Central Region Coach of the Year accolades.

Iowa State qualified for its third-straight NCAA Regional in 2012, as the Cyclones tied for fourth at the Big 12 Championships.

In 2013, Iowa State made its fourth-straight NCAA Regional appearance and finished third in the Big 12 Championship, the second-best placing by a Cyclone team in Big 12 Championship history. ISU finished the season ranked in the nation’s top-30.

One of Martens’ star players, Punpaka Phuntumabamrung, capped off her outstanding career by earning Big 12 All-Tournament honors for the third time by finishing runner-up medalist at the 2013 Big 12 Championship, the second-best individual placing by a Cyclone in Big 12 history.

The 2014 Cyclone team made it to the NCAA finals by tying for sixth at the NCAA West Regional. Two Cyclones - Sasikarn On-iam and Chonlada Chayanun - earned all-tournament honors at the Big 12 meet and were named First-Team All-Big 12 by the league’s coaches.

Chayanun tied for seventh at the NCAA Championship to record the best finish by a Cyclone in NCAA postseason play. Chayanun was a key player in ISU’s success in 2015, earning First-Team All-Big 12 honors for the second time along with freshman Celia Barquin Arozamena, as the Cyclones advanced to NCAA postseason play for the sixth year in a row.

The Cyclones ended the 2016 season ranked No. 25 nationally by Golfweek, earning their seventh-straight NCAA Regional berth. ISU shattered the school record by scoring an 849 at the Hurricane Invitational. Martens' deep roster featured five different Cyclones who placed in the top-10 a total of 12 times.

Barquin Arozamena was named First-Team All-Big 12 for the second season in a row along with freshman Chayanit Wangmahaporn, who posted the second-best rookie scoring mark in school history (73.66). Both were ranked in the nation’s top-115 at season’s end.

In 2017, Martens’ Cyclones finished runner-up at the Big 12 Championship, their highest ever finish at the Big 12 meet, and advanced to their eighth-straight NCAA Regional.

Wangmahaporn and Barquin Arozamena both earned all-tournament honors at the conference meet and Wangmahaporn was voted First-Team All-Big 12 for the second-straight season, breaking the school’s single-season stroke average mark (72.90) along the way.

Martens’ 2018 squad made it NCAA postseason play for the ninth-straight season behind the play of Barquin Arozamena and Wangmahaporn, who became the only two Cyclones in school history to earn First-Team All-Big 12 accolades three times.

The Cyclones finished the season ranked in the nation’s top-30 and produced just their second conference medalist in school history when Barquin Arozamena claimed the 2018 Big 12 Championship title in a three-shot victory.

Barquin Arozamena ended her brilliant career with a school-record stroke average of 73.44 and 16 top-10 performances, tying for second in the ISU record book. Wangmahaporn capped off her career in 2019 as a three-time All-Big 12 performer with the second-best career stroke average (73.59) in school history.

The 2018-19 season was highlighted by a 14-shot victory at the MountainView Collegiate where the Cyclones shattered their 18-hole (268) and 54-hole (836) school marks. All five Cyclones were under par in their record-setting final round, a first in school history, including a school-record 64 by Joy Chou.

The 2019-20 season was cut short, but the Cyclones achieved plenty of success. Iowa State won the East & West Match Play for the second time in three seasons and rookie Liyana Durisic posted one of the best debut seasons in the history of the program. Durisic broke the school's freshman scoring mark at 72.95, an average that ranks second all-time.

It was another trip to the NCAA Regionals in 2021-22 for the Cyclones under Martens. Following up a fourth place finish at the Big 12 Championship, the Cyclones finished ninth at the NCAA Stanford Regional. Taglao Jeeravivitaporn and Ruby Chou made history for the Cyclones at the NCAA Regional, becoming the first two players in school history to earn individual bids to the NCAA National Championships. Jeeravivitaporn finished in a tie for 17th, becoming the second player in school history to finish the event in the top 20 with a 293 over four rounds.

Iowa State returned to the NCAA Regionals for the 13th-straight time in 2022-23. After a fourth-place finish at the Big 12 Championship, the Cyclonitas placed sixth at the NCAA Westfield Regional. Freshman sensation Karisa Chul-Ak-Sorn turned in a record-breaking season for Iowa State. She earned All-American honors from GolfWeek and the WGCA, while also being named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year and the WGCA National Freshman of the Year.

For the second time under Martens, the Cyclones finished as the Big 12 Runner-Up in 2024 behind record-setting performances by Liyana Durisic and Chul-Ak-Sorn. The duo earned co-medalist honors, the first time in Big 12 history a pair of teammates shared the top spot on the leaderboard. They each shot a 207 for the championship, the lowest score by a Cyclone in conference championship history and the fourth-lowest in Big 12 history. Iowa State's 863 over 54 holes was the lowest at a conference championship in school history. Iowa State finished seventh at the NCAA Bryan Regional, led by Liyana Durisic's 12th place finish with a 217.

A key ingredient to Martens’ success at Iowa State has been her ability to surround herself with outstanding players. A total of 16 Cyclones have earned All-Big 12 recognition 29 times in her Iowa State tenure: (Louise Kenney-2005; Jessica Shin-2006; Pennapa Pulsawath-2010; Laurence Herman-2010, 2011; Phuntumabamrung-2010, 2012, 2013; Prima Thammaraks-2011; Victoria Stefansen-2011, On-iam-2011, 2014; Cajsa Persson-2013, 2015, 2016, Chayanun-2014, 2015; Nattapan Siritrai- 2015; Barquin Arozamena-2015, 2016, 2017, 2018; Wangmahaporn-2016, 2017, 2018; Jeeravivitaporn-2022, Chul-Ak-Sorn-2023, 2024 and Durisic-2024).

The Cyclones have broken virtually every team scoring record under Martens’ watch. Her teams have won nine tournament titles, produced eight individual medalists and finished in the upper-half of the Big 12 Championship 12 times while annually playing one of the nation’s toughest schedules.

Many of Martens’ former players have gone onto successful professional careers, including Thammaraks, who become just the second Cyclone in school history to earn LPGA playing privileges in 2016.

Thammaraks has competed in two major championships (2017 British Women’s Open, 2019 United States Women’s Open) and Barquin Arozamena played in the 2018 United States Women’s Open. Joy Chou played in the 2023 United States Women's Open. In the summer following her freshman year, Keeley Marx played in the U.S. Open in 2024.

Martens has established herself as an outstanding recruiter on a national and international scale. Martens has been instrumental in getting highly touted international players to enroll at Iowa State.

Iowa State golfers have also succeeded in the classroom under Martens, as 24 Cyclones have gone on to earn academic All-Big 12 honors 55 times.

As an assistant at Purdue from 2001-05, Martens helped lead the Boilermakers women’s team to a 22nd-place finish at the 2004 NCAA Championship. Purdue finished in 12th place in 2003 and 16th in 2002. In Martens’ first season in West Lafayette, Ind., the Purdue women’s golf team placed fourth at the 2002 NCAA Central Regional and second at the Big Ten Championship. The Boilermakers were fourth at the Central Regional and Big Ten Championships in 2003. In 2004, Purdue finished fourth in the Big Ten and sixth at the NCAA Central Regional.

Martens earned a bachelor’s degree in learning and organizational change from Northwestern University in 2001. A three-time academic all-Big Ten honoree, she captained the 2000 Wildcat team, which was the first NU women’s squad to advance to the NCAA Championships. The former Northwestern record-holder for 54-holes, Martens placed among the top-10 finishers at the 1999 Big Ten Championship. She received the Walter K. Smart scholarship at Northwestern, recognizing a student-athlete who achieves in both academics and athletics.

Martens, a native of Dixon, Ill., played in the 2000 U.S. Women’s Amateur in Asheville, N.C. The former Christie Hermes, Martens and her husband, Bobby, were married in Oct. 2005. They have a daughter (Norah) and three sons (Lucas, Peter and Henry).

Year	Big 12 Finish	NCAA Finish	Tournament Victories	NCAA Individuals
2023-24	2nd	7th (Regionals)	2	Liyana Durisic 12th, Keeley Marx T13th, Tess Blair T17th(Regionals)
2022-23	4th	6th (Regionals)		Taglao Jeeravivitaporn T13th, Pammy Chookaew 25th (Regionals)
2021-22	4th	9th (Regionals)		Ruby Chou 7th, T. Jeeravivitaporn T10th (Regionals) Taglao Jeeravivitaporn T17th(Championship) Ruby Chou MC (Championship)
2020-21	8th	14th (Regionals)
2019-20	8th		2
2018-19	4th	11th (Regionals)		Amelia Grohn T17th (Regionals)
2017-18	2nd	10th (Regionals)	1	C. Barquin Arozamena T23rd (Regionals)
2016-17	4th	10th (Regionals)		C. Barquin Arozamena T13th (Regionals)
2015-16	4th	T-13th (Regionals)		Cajsa Persson T24th (Regionals)
2014-15	T-4th	T-10th (Regionals)		Chonlada Chayanun T12th, C. Barquin Arozamena T9th (Regionals)
2013-14	3rd	T-6th (Regionals) 24th(Championship)		Chonlada Chayanun T7th, Sasikarn On-iam T94th, Prima Thammaraks T105th, Cajsa Persson T111th, Carmen Vidau T113th (Championship)
2012-13	4th	16th (Regionals)	1
2011-12	4th	14th (Regionals)	2
2010-11	4th	10th (Regionals)	1	Victoria Stefansen 25th (Regionals)
2009-10	8th	10th (Regionals)		Laurence Herman 12th (Regionals)
2008-09	9th
2007-08	12th
2006-07	8th
2005-06	12th
2004-05	11th		2
Total-			11