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U.S. WOMEN'S MID-AMATEUR

Trio Cards 70 to Share First-Round Lead at Berkeley Hall

By Joey Geske, USGA

| Sep 25, 2021 | Bluffton, S.C.

An eagle and two birdies propelled Jennifer Peng to a 2-under-par 70 in Saturday's first round at Berkeley Hall. (Jeff Haynes/USGA)

34th U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur Home

What Happened

Megan Buck, of Easton, Mass., Sarah Gallagher, of Canton, Ga., and Jennifer Peng, of San Diego, Calif., all posted 2-under-par 70s on Saturday to share the lead after the first round of stroke play in the 34th U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship being conducted on the North Course at Berkeley Hall Club.

Buck, 33, who was a quarterfinalist in 2019, Gallagher, 48, and Peng, the youngest competitor in the field after turning 25 and becoming eligible for the event on July 10, were among only four players to break par on Saturday. Shannon Johnson, the 2018 champion, finished one stroke back with a 1-under 71.

After turning at 3 over par, Buck rattled off five consecutive birdies on holes 4 through 8. That birdie stretch included a 3 on the 370-yard par-4 fifth hole, which ranked as the toughest hole during Round 1. She said her ball-striking dramatically improved over the closing nine.

“I really started to hit my irons better, giving myself a chance at a couple short ones,” said Buck, a club fitter who played her college golf at Northern Arizona University. “It’s amazing to go on a hot run like that, especially during the first day where you’re trying to post something good to move on.”

Gallagher’s round consisted of seven birdies against five bogeys. Starting on No. 10, she got off to a blistering start with birdies on her first three holes.

“After playing the practice rounds, I knew that there were going to be a couple holes that were bogey holes, ones that play a little longer for me,” said Gallagher, a sixth-grade social studies teacher in Roswell, Ga., who played collegiately at the University of Florida. “I knew that if I made some birdies early that it would be a manageable round, and fortunately [I] started out with three straight birdies.”

Peng posted the lone eagle on Day 1 as she made a 3 on the 519-yard, par-5 15th.

“I hit a good drive and had 250 [yards] in and figured I wasn’t going to reach the green,” said Peng. “It got a great kick and trickled nine feet from the hole while the group ahead of us was still putting. I felt so bad that I actually got it up there, but making the putt was a nice feeling.”

Peng, a senior financial analyst, last played in a USGA championship at the 2014 U.S. Women’s Amateur. After graduating from Yale University in 2018 and moving to New York, she took a short hiatus from the game before a move back home to San Diego last August got her back playing regularly.

Seven-time USGA champion Ellen Port was one of three players to card an even-par 72. Port, 60, is playing in her 27th U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur after finishing runner-up to Lara Tennant nine days ago in the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur at The Lakewood Club in Point Clear, Ala.

What's Next

Round 2 of stroke play will begin at 7:30 a.m. EDT on Sunday, and the low 64 players will qualify for match play, which begins on Monday. If necessary, a playoff to determine the final match-play spots will take place on Sunday after the completion of Round 2.

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Former University of Florida standout Sarah Gallagher opened the 2021 U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur with a 2-under 70. (Jeff Haynes/USGA)

Notable

  • Defending champion Ina Kim-Schaad, of New York, N.Y., opened with a 3-over 75 playing alongside past champions Kelsey Chugg (75) and Johnson (71).

  • The North Course at Berkeley Hall played to a stroke average of 79.55 in Round 1, with the 370-yard par-4 fifth playing as the toughest hole (4.71 stroke average), and the dogleg-right par-4 11th as the easiest hole (4.15 average).

  • Clare Connolly, 28, of Chevy Chase, Md., the only mid-amateur to reach match play in last month’s U.S. Women’s Amateur, carded a 4-over 76. Connolly, an account executive for Maui Jim Sunglasses, caddies part-time at Congressional Country Club, site of the 2011 U.S. Open.

  • Ashley Sloup, of Buies Creek, N.C., opened with a 9-over 81. Her boyfriend, Christian Sease, had a much better Saturday, posting a 3-under 67 at stroke-play co-host Miacomet Golf Course in the first round of the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship being held on Nantucket Island in Massachusetts. The first round of that championship was not completed on Saturday due to various fog delays. Sloup is the assistant men’s golf coach at Campbell University under John T. Crooks, the 1967 U.S. Junior Amateur champion.

  • Dawn Woodard, of Greenville, led the three players from South Carolina in the field with a 4-over 76. Ann Marie Costello, of Longs, and Emily Rapp, of Greenville, both carded 7-over 79s.

Quotable

“I think from the moment he teed off I just kept refreshing the leader board all the time. I think he was 1-under through 13 before he gave a few back and it was just so exciting to see. He got done right as I was walking to the [first] tee so he texted me ‘good luck’ right as he finished.  – Michelle Parrish (3-over 75) on her husband, Hunter, who carded a 3-over 73 at stroke-play co-host Miacomet Golf Course on Saturday in the first round of the concurrent U.S. Mid-Amateur being played on Nantucket Island in Massachusetts

“It’s really fun to see Berkeley go all out, and they make everyone feel so welcome. We are members here because we came and played a practice round for the [USGA Women’s] State Team back in 2005, and my husband (Jim) fell in love. A month later we had a contract for a place on the island and we joined Berkeley right away.” – Maggie Leef, the club’s reigning senior women’s champion after a 79 on Saturday

“This is an event I look forward to so much. It’s my favorite event of the year. It’s so nice to be out here with the girls, and the course is fantastic. It challenged every part of your game. It’s just a treat to be out here and playing competitive golf again.” – Ina Kim-Schaad (75) on defending her 2019 title after the championship was canceled last year due to COVID-19

“Competing in [a USGA championship] makes me really appreciate all of the volunteers and the work that goes into the championship, because being on the other side you know how long it takes and the hard work involved. It definitely makes the experience playing in the championship that much cooler; playing it and volunteering to be here as opposed to waking up at 5 a.m. and putting up windscreen.” – Alisa White (81) on playing in a USGA championship compared to setting one up. White started working with the USGA as a long-term operations assistant for the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont (Pa.) Country Club and is now an operations coordinator for next year’s U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club in Southern Pines, N.C.

“I started playing more and was enjoying the game again. I feel like after college you kind of take a break and are burnt out. But now going out to the course and practicing is my release from work and the day. So I play at Torrey [Pines] a lot, and I went to watch the [U.S.] Open this year so that was a lot of fun.” – Peng, who played at Yale University, on moving back to San Diego from New York City last year and getting back into golf

Joey Geske is a coordinator of championship communications for the USGA. Email him at jgeske@usga.org.

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