Girls Golf: Payson Pistono Shoots 60, Sets Texas High School Record!
Updated: Sep 19
The Woodlands High School senior went 12 under without a bogey at the Heart of Texas Championship, posting the lowest 18-hole score in official Texas girls high school competition.
Friday, Sept. 18, 2026 | 2026 Heart of Texas Championship — Round 1
GLEN ROSE, Texas — The Woodlands High School senior Payson Pistono shot a bogey-free, 12-under-par 60 Friday, Sept. 18, at the 2026 Heart of Texas Championship, setting a Texas girls high school record for the lowest 18-hole score in official school competition.
Twelve under par. Ten birdies. One eagle. Seven pars. No bogeys.
Those numbers describe the scorecard. They do not fully explain the scale of what Pistono accomplished on the 5,435-yard Apache Links Course at Squaw Valley Golf Course.
A 60 on a par-72 course requires a player to find 12 strokes below par over 18 holes — an average of 3.33 shots per hole — while giving virtually nothing back. One penalty, one three-putt or one loose stretch can move the number out of reach. Pistono missed one green all day and never made a bogey.
The 60 also set records for The Woodlands HS and Apache Links. More important, no Texas high school girl has posted a lower score in official school competition, making Pistono's round a statewide benchmark.
“When you shoot 60, you always have to be happy,” Pistono said.
Why a 60 Is So Rare in Girls High School Golf
Low rounds can be built around one spectacular stretch. Shooting 60 requires that brilliance to continue. Pistono made five consecutive birdies, later went birdie-eagle-birdie and still needed another birdie to reach 12 under.
The setting matters. This was not a practice score or casual round. It came in an official high school tournament on a course that has hosted UIL competition. Apache Links moves from an open, links-style front nine into a more heavily wooded back nine built around Squaw Creek.
Throughout the round, Pistono’s designated scorer, Ava Frazier, entered each hole into the Texas High School Golf app, allowing the score to appear on the live tournament leaderboard as it unfolded. After the final hole, the card was reviewed and verified through the tournament’s standard scoring process.
The performance grew from years of competition, monthly father-daughter trips to Austin, a circle of coaches and mentors, strength training in Kingwood and a five-player team pushing one another.
How Payson Pistono Shot 60 at Apache Links
Pistono began the 8 a.m. shotgun start on the par-3 14th, where her approach finished right of the green. It was her only missed green all day.
She saved par, birdied No. 15 and added pars on Nos. 16 and 17. After a bad bounce on the par-5 18th, she called over The Woodlands coach Chad Handley, chose the safe recovery, punched out to about 60 yards and made birdie.
That decision moved her to 2 under and sent her to No. 1 with momentum.
“Going into this tournament, I always have expectations,” Pistono said. “Obviously, the goal is always to shoot under par. But I really wasn’t thinking I had a certain score in mind or anything. I just wanted to have fun.”
Then came five consecutive birdies on Nos. 1 through 5.
Pistono made par at No. 6, birdied No. 7, eagled the par-5 eighth and birdied No. 9. She played the course's front nine in 9-under 27, with one par across the nine holes.
“It just seemed like everything was going right,” Pistono said. “I was dropping putts. I wasn’t honestly hitting it that close. I was just making a lot of 10-footers, a lot of 15-footers, and I stayed in my bubble.”
The atmosphere remained loose as word spread. Pistono talked and sang with her group, while her playing partners joked that they had begun to expect every putt to become another birdie.
“I wasn’t really paying attention to the outside noise,” she said. “I like to stay in my zone, but I’m also a person — I like to have fun on the course.”
A Nine-Hole 27 Puts the Texas Record Within Reach
The number did not fully register with Pistono until she finished No. 9 and looked at what she had just done.
“I turned to my dad and I was like, ‘That’s 9 under through nine. That’s a 27. That’s my PR for nine holes,’” she said. “And then I realized kind of where I was at.”
The 27 carried its own startling arithmetic. Pistono averaged three shots per hole across that nine and had played 14 holes in 11 under. What had looked like a career round was now moving toward a score almost never seen in high school competition.
The last four holes felt different. Pistono said the nerves began to show in her swing and putting. She made pars on Nos. 10 and 11, then got up and down for birdie on the par-5 12th. That moved her to 12 under with only No. 13 remaining.
Coach Jones walked with her late in the round and kept the final hole from becoming larger than the next shot. Pistono described him as the team's “therapist” — someone who changes the subject and helps players stop replaying the past.
“Questions like that just really help you get your mind off golf, not worry so much about what happened in the past and just focus on the future,” Pistono said. “He helps you talk it through, and I think when you hear yourself say it, it just reassures you more that you’re going to hit a great shot.”
Pistono did not hit her best tee shot on No. 13, but she and Jones worked through what came next. Her approach found the green. Her birdie attempt slipped by, and she tapped in. The number on the completed scorecard was 60 — lower than any previous 18-hole score by a Texas girl in official high school competition.
“When you shoot 60, you always have to be happy,” Pistono said.
Pistono's previous par-72 best was 67, and she shot 66 on a par-70 course at the same tournament last year. A 60 placed Friday in a different category.
The state record also placed her name alongside a line of The Woodlands golfers that includes Stacy Lewis, Ashley Knoll and Cheyenne Knight.
“It feels really good to kind of have my name up there with some of the great golfers that have come through The Woodlands,” Pistono said.
The Family Behind Payson Pistono's Golf Career
Pistono was a Level 8 gymnast at Maximum Athletics, but golf was always waiting outside her home. Her family lived along the first hole of their home course, and she has held a club since about age 5.
“My dad never let me quit golf,” she said. “When I got into high school, I wanted to be on the team, and I’m forever grateful that I am a part of this team because I really have grown so much from freshman year.”
Father and daughter once traded wins before she began beating him around her freshman year. He witnessed her first birdie, first par and first hole-in-one.
“He’s gotten to experience all these moments with me,” Pistono said. “He’s definitely a reason why I still continue to do this sport. He pushes me — I’m not going to lie — but I think it only makes me better.”
That support now includes a monthly father-daughter day trip to Austin for a two-hour lesson with Brech Spradley, director of instruction at Barton Creek Golf Academy. Pistono began working with Spradley in January. Between visits, they communicate by text, and he sends drills she can use at home.
“He has really elevated my game,” Pistono said. “I just take a day trip up there and try to make the most of my time there.”
Her mother does not play, but walks the course and has attended every tournament and major moment.
“She’s one of my biggest supporters,” Pistono said. “She’s always been there for every big moment. Never missed a tournament.”
The Coaches Behind a Texas Record Round
Spradley is the newest member of a coaching circle Pistono was careful to credit.
She thanked Allen Riley for his earlier instruction and called longtime LPGA professional Susie Redman-Kirk an important mentor. Pistono remains a member at The Woodlands Country Club.
At school, Handley gives experienced players room to work while recognizing when they need another voice. On No. 18, Pistono waved him over to discuss the safer recovery.
“If we want somebody to talk through the shot and just have reassurance, he’s always there and helpful,” Pistono said.
Handley saw more than low scores Friday. He saw a senior handling a situation that would have affected her differently a year ago.
“She’s become a way better leader. Way better,” Handley said. “More mature.”
He said Pistono previously could become tense or anxious when a round carried that much pressure. On Friday, she remained able to talk, make decisions and continue playing her game.
Pistono also works with Kingwood trainer Matt Wright. She credits the strength program with adding distance, preventing injuries and building tournament stamina.
“I’ve gained so much yardage with my driver and all my clubs since switching to him,” Pistono said. “It helps with your yardage, but it also helps prevent injury and helps with stamina.”
Payson Pistono's Clubs and the Putter Behind the 60
Pistono describes herself as an iron player whose game is built around approach shots and wedges.
“I’m an iron player through and through,” she said. “I love my wedges. Anytime I have a wedge in my hand, I know I’m going to hit it close.”
On Friday, the putting matched the ball-striking. Pistono switched during the summer to a center-shafted TaylorMade Spider putter, and her confidence changed with it.
“I’ve always struggled with putting,” she said. “Ever since switching to it, you can definitely tell that there’s a difference.”
Her complete competition setup includes a Ping G430 driver, TaylorMade P790 irons, Titleist Vokey SM10 wedges, the center-shafted Spider putter and a Titleist Pro V1x golf ball. Her shoes are G/FORE — and she has 13 pairs.
“I match them to my outfits,” Pistono said. “It’s my favorite part.”
During rounds, she begins with a protein shake, adds grapes and a granola bar near the midpoint, has a small smoothie later and drinks Gatorade in the Texas heat.
The Woodlands Girls Golf Program's Statewide Standard
Pistono's 60 led The Woodlands to a team score of 290, 2 over, and fifth place after Round 1. Joann Bee added a 2-under 70, Jennifer (Qianhua) Chen shot 79, Rachel Sorensen shot 81 and Vivian Tran shot 83. The four lowest scores counted toward the team total.
The Woodlands girls golf program has long been one of the state's most respected, winning three consecutive UIL Class 5A team championships in 2001, 2002 and 2003. Its history includes individual state champion Ashley Knoll and future college and professional standouts Stacy Lewis and Cheyenne Knight. The Woodlands finished fourth at the 2026 Class 6A state tournament, the highest Houston-area finish.
That history gives every qualifying round additional weight. Players enter a program where competing deep into the postseason and measuring themselves against Texas' best are established expectations.
Pistono believes the strength of The Woodlands comes from having several players capable of producing the low score on a given day. They compete individually in tournaments and qualifying, but she said they hold one another accountable when they come together for the school.
“I fully believe that iron sharpens iron,” Pistono said. “We get to push each other every day, whether it’s in qualifying or practice, and we have such a great team bond. We’re not just five individuals out there. We really do play as one team.”
Payson Pistono's Junior Golf Career and Wyoming Commitment
The 60 added to an already decorated junior résumé. Pistono entered Friday as the 2026 Texas Junior Golf Tour Texas Match Play Invitational champion, a title she secured after 80 holes over three days and a 6-and-5 victory in the final match. She also won the 2026 Vortech Contracting H-Town Showdown by six strokes with rounds of 70 and 69 for a 3-under 139.
In 2025, Pistono won the Insperity Invitational Tour Championship wire-to-wire at Champions Golf Club, finishing the two-round event at 1-over 143 and earning full exemptions on the Legends Junior Tour. She has helped The Woodlands contend for regional championships and top-five state finishes and placed third individually at the Region II-6A tournament.
Friday's 60 was not the beginning of that story. It became the performance that reset the statewide standard for a single round of Texas girls high school golf.
The Student Behind the Scorecard
Pistono prepared by seeking strong fields around the country and finishing 11 summer rounds at even par or better.
The senior has verbally committed to continue her academic and golf career at the University of Wyoming. She is also a National Honor Society member with a 4.5 GPA and ranks in the top 20% of her class.
The celebration Friday night was expected to be simple — dinner with the team and, Pistono hoped, some ice cream. Then the focus would return to Saturday's second round on a different course at the facility.
“Yes, I shot 60 today, but am I going to do that tomorrow? Honestly, the odds aren’t fully in my favor to do that tomorrow,” Pistono said. “We have to do the same thing tomorrow — take it one shot at a time, try to hit fairways and greens and let the putts fall. Don’t try to force anything. I think that’s the big thing.”
The next round would begin at even par, as every round does. But Texas girls high school golf now had a new number at the edge of what is possible: Payson Pistono's 60.
By The Woodlands Student Center Staff
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