After months of practice and preparation, the annual Big 12 Championships has arrived, and the ISU women’s golf team is ready to play.

The Big 12 is one of the leading women’s golf coalitions. The Cyclones are prepared to face an array of talented Big 12 teams, including a total of six teams ranked in the nation’s top 30, according to Golfstat.

ISU coach, Christie Martens, said the team has proved itself in tough competition so far and is prepared to play.

“We’ve played against most of the Big 12 teams and competition and proved that we can do it,” Martens said. “The girls are excited and ready to go. We’re ready for the preparation to show itself.”

The No. 27 Cyclones are a tough team to face as well. All five players have competed in every tournament this season, each averaging a round score between 74.2 and 75.6.

Iowa State’s Chonlada Chayanun was recently named Big 12 Golfer of the Month.

“I feel pretty good about this meet,” Chayanun said. “I think I’m ready for it.”

Iowa State finds deeper talent individually, as it holds five players ranked nationally in the top-225 individuals, according to Golfweek.

“We have such consistency,” Martens said. “We have had five different people lead our team and there is only a one-shot differential between our No. 1 and No. 5 players.”

Punpaka Phuntumabamrung paces the Cyclones in stroke average (74.2) and is leading one of the finest careers in program history.

Phuntumabamrung has struggled in the past with maintaining confidence and positivity throughout tournaments, but now that Big 12 tournament is here, she said she is ready to play.

“Overall, I feel pretty good with my game,” Phuntumabamrung said. “I would say I kind of get stressed a bit but I know there’s nothing I should be too worried about. I’m ready to go out and play.”

The Cyclones are not only composed of talent and depth, but also of consistency and confidence. Iowa State has finished in the top five in more than half of its appearances this season and recently tied the second-lowest 54-hole score in school history at the Marsh Landing Invitational.

“It’s not only any one person’s responsibility to play; anyone can step up at any time and be the leader,” Martens said. “There’s no weak link.”

The 2013 Big 12 Championships will be held April 19-21, 2013, at Harvester Golf Club in Rhodes, Iowa, giving the Cyclones a familiar lead in the home-course advantage.

“We’re really excited to be hosting on a course we know so well and played so many times,” Martens said. “There’s such an excitement in the community and the players are excited to have fans.”

The Harvester will provide substantial difficulties for unfamiliar golfers from perilous thick wooded areas, varied terrain and substantial water hazards to wide fairways and fast greens. Chayanun feels that her knowledge of the course will give her an advantage.

“We have been practicing the course a lot and we know how to play it,” Chayanun said. “This is our home course so I’m going to feel more confident than other courses and play with more confidence.”

The Harvester has been ranked as Iowa’s top-rated course by Golf Digest for the past 11 years and in 2012 was ranked as the 39th-best public course in the nation.

Phuntumabamrung said that no matter how many times she plays the course, it all comes down to the way she plays it.

“When it comes down to golf game, it’s about how much you do in that particular game,” Phuntumabamrung said. “It’s about your game that day.”

Players will open tournament play at noon April 19 with 18 holes each day. Golfstat will provide live scoring online.

Fans are encouraged to attend with no admission fee.