Fort Myers, Fla. – Sheila Haynes, Joan Higgins and Brenda Pictor shot 1-over-par 73 to tie for the lead after the first round of stroke-play qualifying in the USGA Senior Women’s Amateur at the 5,862-yard, par-72 Long Mean Course at Fiddlesticks Country Club.
Haynes, 55, of Madison, Miss., Higgins, 54, of Glendora, Calif., and Pictor, 55, of Marietta, Ga., had a one-stroke lead over defending champion Sherry Herman of Farmingdale, N.J.; Kim Eaton of Greeley, Colo.; Mina Hardin of Fort Worth, Texas; Mary Ann Hayward of Canada; and Claudia Pilot of Austin, Minn.
The Long Mean Course lived up to its name, taking a toll among some of the most seasoned competitors. Four of the top eight players were USGA champions, but none matched par.
Higgins, the 2008 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion, said, I didn’t swing great, but I put myself in the right spot and I made the putts.
Pictor made three birdies on sliding, downhill putts ranging from 12-to-25 feet. A ball in the water hazard on the eighth hole cost her a double-bogey, but the 2010 North & South Senior champion said her work on the greens saved her round.
No three-putts was the key to my round, Pictor said. The speed of my putts was fabulous.
Haynes is playing in only her second Senior Women’s Amateur and did a little jig when informed her 73 was tied for the lead. Unlike many players who first pick up a club as toddlers, she didn’t begin to play golf until she was 27.
I am thrilled, Haynes said. I didn’t keep score in my practice rounds but I probably shot 82-83. I knew I could play this golf course. If I missed greens, I got it up and down.
Among the top finishers, other USGA champions included Hayward, the 2005 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion, and Pilot, a member of the winning Minnesota team in the 2001 USGA Women’s State Team Championship.
Diane Lang of Jamaica, a three-time Senior Women’s Amateur champion, shot a 75. Four-time champion Carol Semple Thompson of Sewickley, Pa., a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, shot a 78.
Despite her score of 74, Herman, the defender, stumbled in with a double bogey on the 462-yard, par-5 finishing hole. The hole has an island green, but Herman made the 7 without ever getting her ball wet, missing the green and going from bunker to bunker before two-putting for the double bogey.
Stroke-play qualifying in the Senior Women’s Amateur continues on Sunday with the low 64 scorers advancing to match play. The championship concludes with an 18-hole final on Thursday.
The Senior Women’s Amateur is one of 13 national championships conducted by the United States Golf Association. Ten are strictly for amateurs.
Results
Fort Myers, Fla. – Results of the first round of stroke-play qualifying at the 2010 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur at the 5,862-yard, par-72 Long Mean Course at Fiddlesticks Country Club.
Joan Higgins, Glendora, Calif. - 36-37--73
Sheila Haynes, Madison, Miss. - 36-37--73
Brenda Pictor, Marietta, Ga. - 36-37--73
Sherry Herman, Farmingdale, N.J. - 37-37--74
Mary Ann Hayward, Canada - 37-37--74
Claudia Pilot, Austin, Minn. - 34-40--74
Mina Hardin, Ft. Worth, Texas - 37-37--74
Kim Eaton, Greeley, Colo. - 37-37--74
Diane Lang, Jamaica - 38-37--75
Lisa Schlesinger, Laytonsville, Md. - 38-37--75
Denise Desilet, Wichita, Kan. - 38-37--75
Deborah Jamgochian, Greenwich, Conn. - 40-35--75
Ann Lahey, Kentfield, Calif. - 40-36--76
Patty Moore, Charlotte, N.C. - 39-37--76
Leigh Klasse, St Anthony, Minn. - 38-38--76
Mimi Hoffman, Alexandria, Va. - 40-37--77
Carol Sarkissian, Covina, Calif. - 38-39--77
Mary Gale, Worcester, Mass. - 35-42--77
Lisa McGill, Philadelphia, Pa. - 39-38--77
Connie Shorb, York, Pa. - 40-37--77
Deborah Anderson, Rancho Mirage, Calif. - 36-42--78
Nadine Elliott, Bermuda Dunes, Calif. - 37-41--78
Tanna Richard, Fort Smith, Ark. - 37-41--78
Genevieve Robinson, La Quinta, Calif. - 40-38--78
Marlene Summers, Montgomery, Texas - 39-39--78
Carol Semple Thompson, Sewickley, Pa. - 40-38--78
Cindy Gilkeson, Sugarland, Texas - 36-42--78
Anne Carr, Seattle, Wash. - 40-38--78
Sandy Woodruff, Santa Cruz, Calif. - 41-38--79
Diane Bohl, Kissimmee, Fla. - 40-39--79
Susan Rheney, Greensboro, Ga. - 39-40--79
Maureen Whitehead, Charlevoix, Mich. - 40-39--79
Taffy Brower, Boynton Beach, Fla. - 37-42--79
Anna Schultz, Rockwall, Texas - 40-39--79
Lea Anne Brown, Mt Pleasant, S.C. - 41-38--79
Patricia Cornett, Mill Valley, Calif. - 39-40--79
Robyn Puckett, Irvine, Calif. - 37-42--79
Carolyn Creekmore, Dallas, Texas - 41-38--79
Teresa Cleland, Syracuse, N.Y. - 40-39--79
Cheryl Grigg, Sea Island, Ga. - 42-38--80
Peg Brady, Charlotte, N.C. - 43-37--80
Lou Hart, Meridian, Miss. - 40-40--80
Mitsue Lewis, San Diego, Calif. - 41-39--80
Mary Jane Hiestand, Naples, Fla. - 42-38--80
Kerry Rutan, Ambler, Pa. - 39-41--80
Brenda Williams, Minnetrista, Minn. - 41-40--81
Judy Miller, Tucson, Ariz. - 41-40--81
Marsha Butler, San Diego, Calif. - 40-41--81
Georgia Peirce, Boston, Mass. - 41-40--81
Laura Carson, Lake Bluff, Ill. - 41-40--81
Cindy Bryniarski, Sun City West, Ariz. - 42-39--81
Ginny Burkey, Fircrest, Wash. - 40-41--81
Andrea Kraus, Baltimore, Md. - 43-38--81
Joanne Kitusky, Glen Allen, Va. - 41-41--82
Janie Carpenter, Garland, Texas - 42-40--82
Therese Quinn, Jacksonville, Fla. - 42-40--82
Alexandra Frazier, Haverford, Pa. - 42-40--82
Diana Chancellor, St Louis, Mo. - 42-40--82
Cheryll Damphouse, Canada - 43-39--82
Marcia Fisher, Canby, Ore. - 43-39--82
Joanne Catlin, Ashburnham, Mass. - 41-41--82
Ginny Marshall, Canada - 41-42--83
Barbara Byrnes, Mesa, Ariz. - 41-42--83
Laurie Steenrod, Aurora, Colo. - 40-43--83
Annette Gaiotti, Salt Lake City, Utah - 40-43--83
Marianne Towersey, Pebble Beach, Calif. - 41-42--83
Denise Kieffer, University Place, Wash. - 43-40--83
Jeannie Lallensack, Tucson, Ariz. - 38-45--83
Noreen Mohler, Bethlehem, Pa. - 43-41--84
Leilani Norman, Eugene, Ore. - 43-41--84
Nancy Fitzgerald, Carmel, Ind. - 42-42--84
Char McLear, Mchenry, Ill. - 41-43--84
Dana Harrity, N Hampton, N.H. - 41-43--84
Marylou Henderson, Canada - 41-43--84
Karen Ferree, Hilton Head Island, S.C. - 42-42--84
Linda Dillon, Winter Garden, Fla. - 44-40--84
Arline Hoffman, Alexandria, Va. - 42-42--84
Patricia Robinson, Poplar Bluff, Mo. - 46-39--85
Ann Swanson, Seattle, Wash. - 43-42--85
Ivy Steinberg, Canada - 46-39--85
Lindsay Wortham, Richmond, Va. - 43-42--85
Amy Dickison, Rowley, Mass. - 41-44--85
Barbara Berkmeyer, St Louis, Mo. - 44-41--85
Mary Helen McElreath, Augusta, Ga. - 46-39--85
Deborah Hughes, Denver, Colo. - 40-45--85
Nannette Wheelis, Waco, Texas - 41-44--85
Mary Flynn, Eden Prairie, Minn. - 44-41--85
Sisi Hedges, Mulberry, Fla. - 43-43--86
Nancy Kromar, Austin, Texas - 44-42--86
Vicki Thomas, Wales - 46-40--86
Catherine Richey, Winter Park, Fla. - 42-44--86
Marianne Springer, Wellington, Fla. - 46-40--86
Kim Clarke, Newton, N.C. - 43-43--86
Carina Watkins, Baldwinsville, N.Y. - 41-45--86
Claudia Cenko, Beverly Hills, Mich. - 42-44--86
Denise Martorana, Sag Harbor, N.Y. - 44-42--86
Lili McMillan, Orono, Minn. - 42-44--86
Martha Lang, Birmingham, Ala. - 44-42--86
Danna King, Coto De Caza, Calif. - 44-43--87
Mary S Smith, Sheridan, Wyo. - 42-45--87
Sheila Dagucon, Sonoita, Ariz. - 46-41--87
Christie Austin, Cherry Hills Village, Colo. - 45-42--87
Patty Kimball, Scottsdale, Ariz. - 44-43--87
Rita Albertson, Scottsdale, Ariz. - 45-42--87
Linda McMillan, Ormond Beach, Fla. - 42-45--87
Maureen Sheehan, Grayslake, Ill. - 43-45--88
Rebecca Montgelas, Darien, Conn. - 42-46--88
Keiki-Dawn Izumi, Kaneohe, Hawaii - 44-44--88
Patsy Ehret, Stuart, Fla. - 45-44--89
Leslie Wilk, Agoura Hills, Calif. - 47-42--89
Leslie Henry, Dallas, Texas - 44-45--89
Rae Higdon, Boonville, Ind. - 42-47--89
Marie Miyashiro, Tucson, Ariz. - 42-47--89
Bonnie Grizzard, North Palm Bch, Fla. - 38-51--89
Barbara Pagana, Selinsgrove, Pa. - 47-43--90
Dianne Yelovich, Pinehurst, N.C. - 48-42--90
Melanie McCaffery, Huntington Beach, Calif. - 50-41--91
Jo-Ann Lindsay, Edina, Minn. - 46-45--91
Margaret Brady, Washington, D.C. - 47-45--92
Louise Matthews, St Louis, Mo. - 47-45--92
Lindsey Noble, Fort Myers, Fla. - 50-44--94
Sharon Hoffman, Lawrence, N.Y. - 46-48--94
Keiko Kushida, Dundee, Ill. - 48-46--94
Lynn Keefe, Coppell, Texas - 48-46--94
Kathy Malpass, Evergreen, Colo. - 54-40--94
Diane Barber, Burbank, Calif. - 52-43--95
Kibbe Reilly, Providence, R.I. - 50-45--95
Patty Lang, Saegertown, Pa. - 53-44--97
Kathie Stevens, Milton, Mass. - 54-44--98
Judy Collins, Canada - 52-46--98