With all of the 32 match-play spots filled, the 2nd U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Streamsong Blue officially moves to the all-important second stage.
Here are five interesting storylines for the Round of 32, the first of five match-play rounds:
Juniors vs. Seniors
Texans Kaitlyn Papp, 17, of Austin, and Hailee Cooper, 16, of Montgomery, could pass as grandchildren of opponents Mary Ann Hayward and Judith Kyrinis of Canada, whose combined age is 106. It is something rarely seen in other sports: the exuberance of youth vs. vastly more impressive résumés. Hayward is a three-time Canadian Women’s Amateur champion who has represented her country eight times in the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship. Kyrinis was the 2014 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur runner-up and a semifinalist in the 2000 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur. Papp competed on the victorious USA Junior Solheim Cup Team last fall. This match goes off at 10:30 a.m.
Sunshine Showdown
Several Floridians advanced to match play, including a Round-of-32 battle showcasing Hannah Leiner and Latanna Stone against last year’s medalists and local favorites Athena Yang and Kendall Griffin. Yang, 18, of Winter Haven, and Griffin, 17, of Sebring, are commuting from home this week and have had several area papers chronicling them. They were eliminated last year at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in the quarterfinals after shooting 133 in stroke play. Stone, 14, of Riverview, and Leiner, 17, of Pompano Beach, got into the field as alternates from their qualifying site. Stone qualified for the 2012 U.S. Women’s Amateur as a 10-year-old and competed in the 2014 Drive, Chip & Putt Championship at Augusta National Golf Club. Leiner, who is competing in her second USGA championship after qualifying for the 2015 U.S. Women’s Amateur, plans to attend the University of Miami (Fla.) in 2017.
School Days
Pennsylvania natives Madelein Herr and Brynn Walker, semifinalists a year ago, take on Seminole State Junior College sophomores Janelle Johnson and Nichada Satasuk. Johnson, 19, of Royal Palm Beach, Fla., and Satasuk, 20, of Thailand, helped Seminole State to a second-place finish in last week’s National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Championship at LPGA International Country Club in Daytona Beach, Fla. Satasuk is transferring to Southern Methodist, while Johnson will play for Division II Nova Southeastern. Herr, 18, of New Hope, and Walker, 17, of St. Davids, will be freshmen this fall at Penn State and the University of North Carolina, respectively.
Youth is Served
A year ago, 12-year-old Lucy Li and her partner, Kathleen Scavo, advanced to match play. This year, an 11-year-old has found a way into the Round of 32. Alexa Pano, of Lake Worth, Fla., and partner Alyssa Lamoureux, 16, of Seminole, Fla., shot 4-under 140 to earn a spot in the draw. Pano won the Girls 10-11 Division in this year’s Drive, Chip & Putt Championship at Augusta National and was featured in the documentary “The Short Game” about golf phenoms. They will face 15-year-olds Sofia Chabon and Mikhaela Fortuna, both of the Philippines. The total combined ages in this match is 58.
Right Direction
Brooke Seay and Carolyn Zhao were in a precarious position after opening stroke play with an even-par 72. But they carded a 5-under 67, the second-lowest score in Sunday’s stroke-play round, to easily qualify for match play. Seay, 15, of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., and Zhao, 16, of San Diego, Calif., are hoping that momentum carries over to their Round-of-32 match against Julia Parker Dean, 16, of Brighton, Mich., and Megan Furtney, 15, of St. Charles, Ill. Last year at Bandon Dunes, Seay and Zhou were eliminated in the Round of 16.
David Shefter is a senior staff writer for the USGA. Email him at dshefter@usga.org.
