Hodgkins, a junior from Australia, shot an even-par 72 on Tuesday and rallied to place fourth in the SMU Trinity Forest Invitational in Dallas.

Hodgkins (pictured in a CU photo) checked in at 2-over-par 218, ending up four strokes behind individual champion Ellie Slama of Oregon State. She now owns a win, a second, three fourths and a fifth-place finish in her college career.

Despite missing junior Robyn Choi, who’s competing at the LPGA Q-Series, CU placed a season-best fourth as a team on Tuesday. The Buffs ended up with a 32-over-par 896 total, which left them 24 strokes behind champion Illinois.

Freshman Kelsey Webster from Boulder made her collegiate debut while competing as an individual in Dallas. She tied for 49th place with a 234 total for three rounds.

SMU Trinity Forest Invitational
Oct. 29-30, 2018 (final) in Dallas
4. (out of 12 teams) Colorado 299-294-303–896
4. Kirsty Hodgkins 74-72-72–218
21. Haley Nist 76-73-76–225
29. Malak Bouraeda 74-74-79–227
24. Gillian Vance 75-75-76–226
64. Elle Otten 81-80-83–244
Competing Only as Individual
49. Kelsey Webster 79-75-80–234

For complete results, CLICK HERE.
   

The Colorado representatives at the Girls Junior Americas Cup weren’t always happy with their golf games this week, but no one can say they didn’t go out on a high note Friday afternoon at Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen.

With Colorado hosting the GJAC for the first time in 18 years, Hailey Schalk of Erie capped the week for the local team by chipping in from 40 feet for birdie on No. 18, drawing cheers from the bystanders.

It didn’t make any difference in the team standings, but finishing like that definitely tends to leave a better taste in one’s mouth.

As it turned out, the team representing the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado posted its best finish at the GJAC in five years by placing fifth out of 18 squads from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico.

“It was a blast,” Lauren Lehigh of Loveland said of the week as a whole, including playing a team event in your home state. “I had a great time spending time with the team and the coaches and getting to meet girls from all over the place and getting to do it this close to home. Having home fans come out and cheering you on is really neat. It was a great experience.”

The Coloradans ended up at 46-over-par 676 total after posting a 17-over 227 on Friday at a formidable Hiwan layout. The last time Team Colorado placed higher than fifth was a third-place showing in 2013.

“I think fifth is good,” said Kelsey Webster of Boulder, who was playing in her final junior event before joining the University of Colorado golf team. “We’re excited to finish fifth. In golf you’re always looking to do better. This course has a way of making you feel like your game is not in a good spot. I think all four of us are walking away not super happy with how we played this week overall. But we have to take a step back and know we finished fifth out of 18 teams, which is pretty good.”

Webster (left) and Lehigh led the way individually for Colorado by tying for 14th place in the 72-player field. They both closed with 75s for 16-over-par 226 totals.

“A year ago I was to a point I was about to quit the game” because of issues with her game, Webster said. “I really turned it around and started feeling really good about my swing a couple of months ago. Of course, there’s some issues here and there. But I’m proud of myself for persevering through that. Finishing 14th out of 72, I’m proud of that and excited to see where I can take it.”

Schalk, a three-time GJAC participant, shared 21st place at 227 after the 18th-hole chip-in gave her a 77 on Friday. And Emma Bryant of Aurora, competing in her first GJAC, placed 48th at 240 after a final-round 85.

“We’re very proud of our team,” said Jennifer Cassell, who co-captained the Colorado squad with three-time CGA Women’s Stroke Play champion Melissa Martin (pictured below with Schalk). “The girls played very hard and with their hearts. This is a hard course and there were a lot of good competitors out there.”

Speaking of which …

Mexico won the GJAC team title for the eighth time in the last 22 years — this week by 11 strokes over two-time defending champion Southern California. And Team Mexico (pictured celebrating at top), which was 12 over par as a whole for the week, claimed the individual championship as well, as future University of Arkansas golfer Cory Lopez, 16, earned top honors.

Lopez, ranked No. 41 in the world among girls by Junior Golf Scoreboard, shot rounds of 70-70-72 at Hiwan for a 2-over-par 212 total. The resident of Monterrey, Mexico prevailed by one stroke over Serena Sepersky of Southern California, who closed with a 71.

“It feels very good” to sweep the titles, Lopez said. “I played good, the team played very good. Representing your country means so much. After coming close the last couple of years, this year we were going to win it.”

Lopez (below), who was 3 under par through the first five holes on Friday, won despite playing her final dozen holes in 5 over par.

This week marked the first GJAC held in Colorado since 2000 and the first Hiwan has ever hosted, though the boys Junior America’s Cup was played at the club in 2011.

The facility and the event drew rave reviews, even if threatening weather forced Friday’s closing ceremonies inside.

“The star of the show this week was Hiwan,” CGA executive director Ed Mate said. “It reminds me of how great this place is. We can’t thank the club, owners David and Nancy Fowler, and the members enough. It really is all things Colorado.”

Added Cassell: “The event was an absolute success. The volunteers, the members, the staff, everything was wonderful. And the tournament was so well organized. It was very impressive, a great event all around.”

Among those on hand for at least part of this week’s GJAC were University of Denver women’s head coach Lindsay Kuhle, who played on the Colorado team the last time the state hosted the GJAC in 2000, and Georgene McGonagle, who captained the Colorado team for four straight years in the 1980s. McGonagle remains effusive about the event to this day.

“I think this is probably one of the most wonderful things for young girls for their development,” she said. “It’s something they’re going to remember the rest of their lives. They have to work with lots of other people. They learn the pressure of competition, which will suit them for any realm the rest of their life. (The GJAC) has to go on forever because it’s so meaningful and important for the development of those kids.”

Also in attendance at Hiwan on Friday was Davis Bryant of Aurora, who teamed with Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins, Cal McCoy of Highlands Ranch and Walker Franklin of Broomfield as Colorado won its first title ever in the boys Junior America’s Cup. Bryant came to Hiwan to support his sister, Emma, who was on the GJAC team, after he returned from the boys competition in Montana. (Davis is pictured at left with his boys JAC medal.)

The 2018 Girls Junior Americas Cup was conducted by the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado.

5. (out of 18 teams) Colorado 219-230-227–676

14. Kelsey Webster, Boulder 70-81-75–226
14. Lauren Lehigh, Loveland 74-77-75–226
21. Hailey Schalk, Erie 75-75-77–227
48. Emma Bryant, Aurora 77-78-85–240

For all the scores from the Girls Junior Americas Cup, CLICK HERE.
 

It was one of those days for the Coloradans at the Girls Junior Americas Cup — one of those which are all too common at the formidable test that is Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen.

After a strong first day at the event, the four Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado representatives at the GJAC didn’t make a single birdie on the first 11 holes of Thursday’s round and no one on the team broke 75 on day 2.

That did cost them two spots in the team standings, but they’re still in fifth place out of 18 teams in the prestigious event which features top junior golfers from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico.

To put that into perspective, if the Coloradans finish where they are after Friday’s final round, they’ll have the state’s best showing in the event since 2013, when the locals placed third.

On Thursday, Colorado shot 11 strokes higher than on day 1, posting a 20-over-par 230 for the round, which dropped them from third to fifth place, with a 449 total.

“I saw everyone” during the round, Hailey Schalk (above) of Erie said of her teammates. “They’re looking at me like, ‘It’s so bad.’ 

“This course is hard. You have to make birdies because you’re going to make a ton of bogeys. It’s just going to happen. It’s really hard to just make solid pars. And if you can get three birdies (in a round), that’s really good.”

Thursday’s performance leaves the Coloradans 19 strokes behind team-leading Mexico — a seven-time winner of the GJAC — but just six out of a third-place tie (Southern California and Southern Nevada).

“A good goal is to probably shoot 75-76 or below tomorrow — for all of us,” said Emma Bryant of Aurora, the reigning 5A state high school champion. “If we do that, I think we’d have a decent shot at top five or top three” in the final team standings. (Bryant is pictured at left with Colorado co-captain Jennifer Cassell.)

Individually on Thursday, Colorado counted a 5-over-par 75 by Schalk, a 77 by Lauren Lehigh of Loveland and a 78 by Bryant. Rounding out the local scores was an 81 by Kelsey Webster of Boulder, who struggled a day after firing a 70 and sharing second place.

“That was one of the weirdest and sloppiest rounds I think I’ve ever played,” said Webster, who is competing in her final junior event before starting on the University of Colorado golf team in the fall. “My swing was there (after round 1), but warming up on the range today something funky was happening. Something weird was happening at impact — which was so weird because I was hitting it so great yesterday. It took me about 14 holes to figure out what I was doing. I found out my stance was extremely narrow. I was swaying back and forth and it was causing the ball to go everywhere. I was in a lot of trees today and had a lot of chip-outs.”

“But I wouldn’t be surprised if I came out tomorrow and shot a really good number now that I’ve got it figured out. It was just one of those bizarre days.”

Still, three of the four Coloradans are tied for 11th place individually or better through two rounds. Schalk, the JGAC 2017 Girls Player of the Year who is competing in her third Junior Americas Cup, shares ninth place at 10-over-par 150. She made her lone birdie Thursday on the 18th hole, draining a 20-footer. And Lehigh and Webster share 11th place out of 72 golfers, at 151. Bryant, meanwhile, is 28th at 155.

Lehigh (left), for one, doesn’t see any reason why Colorado can’t make headway on Friday.

“There’s no pressure on us to go out here and win,” the 2017 4A state high school champion said. “With girls (in the field) who are top ranked in the world junior rankings, there’s no pressure on us at all. We just have to go out and play our game. We know we’re good enough. We’ll get to where we get to.”

Added Webster: “I wouldn’t be surprised if we came out and shot really good scores tomorrow.”

Cory Lopez of Mexico holds the individual lead by one through 36 holes after consecutive rounds of 70 left her at even-par 140.

Friday’s final-round tee times will run from 7 to 8:50 a.m. off both the first and 10th tees. The Coloradans will go off from 7:40 to 8:10 from No. 1. The closing ceremonies for the event will be held short after the conclusion of the round.

The 2018 Girls Junior Americas Cup is being conducted by the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado.

5. (out of 18 teams) Colorado 219-230–449

9. Hailey Schalk, Erie 75-75–150
11. Kelsey Webster, Boulder 70-81–151
11. Lauren Lehigh, Loveland 74-77–151
28. Emma Bryant, Aurora 77-78–155

For all the scores from the Girls Junior Americas Cup, CLICK HERE.
 

In 1993, Colorado celebrated its only team victory ever in the Girls Junior Americas Cup. And now, exactly a quarter-century later, the squad reprenting the Centennial State would like nothing better than to make sure the ’93 team has some company on the list of champions.

And the Coloradans took a step in the right direction on Wednesday on their home turf as they finished day 1 just a stroke out of the lead in the three-day event at Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen.

In the first GJAC held in Colorado since 2000, the local team shot a 9-over-par 219 on the difficult Hiwan course, which leaves it in third place out of 18 teams.

In a competition which features some of the top junior players from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico, Mexico shares the lead with Southern Nevada. Mexico, which first won the team title in 1997 when a girl named Lorena Ochoa earned the first of three individual GJAC championships, has captured this title seven times, including in 2013, ’14 and ’15. Southern Nevada has never won the GJAC team title before.

“It’s a good situation (to be in contention), but there’s a ton of golf left to be played,” said Kelsey Webster (left) of Boulder, who led the team with an even-par 70 on Wednesday. “I do know the team can put up some good numbers. We have some really good players.

“I think our hometown advantage is huge at this tournament, just with the (difficult-to-read) greens and having played four practice rounds here. I think these greens are just baffling to some girls, and the two girls I played with really struggled on the greens. I think playing for a lag putt on your first putt and taking two putts is the way to go.

“But we also know there are some very good players out here — especially the California teams, which usually put up some really good numbers. I wouldn’t be surprised if their numbers got better and better throughout the week as they started to figure out the greens. We’ve got to do the same thing. It’s exciting to be in contention, and we’ll see what happens.”

The top five teams are very tightly bunched after day 1, with fifth-place Southern California — winner of the last two titles — just three out of the lead. 

“I’m really excited to come back out and try to keep Colorado in those top couple of spots here at home,” said Lauren Lehigh (left) of Loveland, who rallied to post a 74. “We all know we can improve on our scores each day, so I think we’ll have a really good chance (to contend for the title).”

Individually, Colorado put three players in the top dozen and ties after Wednesday. Webster, a University of Colorado-bound golfer who’s participating in her first GJAC and her last junior tournament, shares second place with her 70, while Lehigh (74) is seventh and Hailey Schalk of Erie (75) 12th. Rounding out Colorado’s scores was a 77 by 5A state high school champion Emma Bryant of Aurora.

McKenzi Hall of Southern Nevada shot the only sub-par score on Wednesday at the former home of the Colorado Open — a 2-under-par 68. She made three birdies and one bogey on the day to grab a two-stroke lead.

Webster is tied for second with Cory Lopez of Mexico. After the Boulder resident made bogeys following tee shots that went right on her eighth and ninth holes, she parred each of her final nine holes. Earlier in her round, she chipped in for birdie from 30 feet on her second hole, the formidable 11th (“It was the best birdie I’m every going to have,” she said) and added another birdie on her sixth hole (No. 15).

“I was hitting it extremely well today,” Webster said. “Overall, I played really well. Of course, I’m always craving to be under par. But I have to look at these greens and know par is a really good score here. 

“It is one of my better rounds, especially hitting the ball. I’ve never felt so confident hitting the ball, which is really fun, especially when I have an iron in my hand. That’s why I play the game of golf — for rounds like these when you can just walk up to the ball and know it’s going to be a good shot.”

Lehigh, the 2017 4A state high school champion, birdied two of her last three holes — from less than a foot and from 2 feet — for her 74.

Schalk (left), at age 16, is playing in her third GJAC. And though she wasn’t happy with a round in which she played her final 14 holes in 6 over par, she’s trying to keep it in perspective.

“Honestly, this is a hard golf course,” said the 2017 Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado Girls Player of the Year. “The greens are hard and you really have to hit it in the right spots, so I think our team did really well.

“With us playing Eisenhower (Golf Club for a JGAC major each year), that’s an advantage for us here because most of these girls don’t have a course like Eisenhower where the greens are all slopey and really fast (like Hiwan’s are also). We probably did a little better in that area today. And we’re used to this kind of hilly, mountain course where some of them might not be, so I do think we have an advantage.”

The 2018 Girls Junior Americas Cup is being conducted by the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado.

3. (out of 18 teams) Colorado 219

2. Kelsey Webster, Boulder 70
7. Lauren Lehigh, Loveland 74
12. Hailey Schalk, Erie 75
27. Emma Bryant, Aurora 77

For all the scores from the Girls Junior Americas Cup, CLICK HERE.

The Boulder resident, who graduated from Fairview High School a couple of months ago, had long wanted to represent Colorado in the Girls Junior Americas Cup competition. And this year, she’s getting her chance.

The 2018 event will be held in Colorado for the first time in 18 years — at Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen, starting Wednesday and continuing through Friday.

Not only that, but it will be Webster’s final tournament as a junior golfer, which makes it doubly special.

“Ever since I started junior golf, I looked at the Junior Americas Cup team as a goal of mine,” Webster (left) said this week. “It’s cool to be able to finally play on the team. It being my last junior event kind of signifies that I’ve been getting better and better each year. I started golf so late, so it’s a good way to (transition to) my college career. And it’s cool to have it in our home state. We have an awesome team that definitely can put up some good numbers. I think we’ll be able to represent Colorado well this year.”

Webster will be one of four players competing for the Colorado squad this week as 18 teams from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico vie for the GJAC title. The best three scores each day from each state/city/regional squad count toward the team total. Joining Webster on Team Colorado are Lauren Lehigh of Loveland (a high school senior-to-be), Hailey Schalk of Erie (junior) and Emma Bryant of Aurora (sophomore).

Though Webster is older than her teammates and they have plenty more junior golf ahead of them, she probably has less experience at high-level junior golf than any of them. After all, it was just 2 1/2 years ago that competitive golf became a top priority for Webster, who also played basketball in high school.

That will definitely make Webster a relative newcomer to elite junior golf compared to most of the other 71 competitors in the field for this week’s GJAC at Hiwan.

“I think it’s always different for me,” Webster said. “Every round that I go out and play, I’m still learning things about myself — not just about my golf game, but emotionally on the course and making decisions where to hit the ball. I’m still definitely learning that, where the other girls have gotten experience with that when they were 13 years old. Ever since I’ve gotten more experience, every tournament I feel like I gain something and I get better.

“That’s something cool about being such a newbie to the game is that I still have a lot of places to go with my game.”

And Webster has already made big strides, to the point that she’ll be playing NCAA Division I college golf for a team that finished 19th at the NCAA Championship finals last spring — her hometown University of Colorado. Just in the last few months, Webster has finished third in the CGA Women’s Stroke Play, third at the 5A girls state high school meet and tied for fourth in U.S. Women’s Amateur qualifying, falling short of advancing to the national championship only in a playoff. And she was the highest Colorado finisher in the girls 15-18 age group at the prestigious IMG Academy Junior World Championships.

Webster’s dramatic improvement over the last 2 1/2 years can be tracked to a trip she took as a sophomore.

“The winter of that year, I decided to go to Arizona for a week-long golf camp,” she said. “One of the coaches was John Means, who was coaching the men’s Idaho team at the time. He just convinced me that I had a ton of potential and he just lit a fire under me. I’m not exactly sure why, but I came back and got a swing coach and it just absolutely took off from there. It’s been really fun ever since. As soon as I started playing better and better, I wanted to practice more and more. It’s kind of like an addiction.”
 

*********

GIRLS JUNIOR AMERICAS CUP: THE ESSENTIALS

What: The 41st Girls Junior Americas Cup competition.

Where: Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen.”¨”¨

When: Championship rounds Wednesday through Friday (July 25-27). Tee-time range each day: 7-8:50 a.m. For tee times, CLICK HERE.

“¨”¨Fan Attendance: The public can attend the event free of charge.”¨”¨

Opening Ceremonies: Tuesday, 5 p.m.

Closing Ceremonies and Awards Presentation: Friday, approximately 1:30 p.m.

Format: 54-hole stroke play. Team and individual competition. The low three scores for each team each day count toward the team total.

“¨”¨Participating Teams: Colorado, Arizona, Alberta (Canada), British Columbia (Canada), Hawaii, Idaho, Mexico, Montana, Northern California, Northern Nevada, Oregon, San Diego, Southern California, Southern Nevada, Sun Country (New Mexico), Utah, Washington and Wyoming. For all the individual competitors, CLICK HERE.

Colorado Team Members: Hailey Schalk of Erie, Lauren Lehigh of Loveland, Kelsey Webster of Boulder, Emma Bryant of Aurora.

Defending Team Champion: Southern California, which also won in 2016. (Colorado tied for sixth in 2017.)”¨”¨

Previous Years Colorado Hosted GJAC: 1982 and 2000, both at Eisenhower Golf Club at Air Force Academy.”¨”¨

Best Finish by Colorado Team: Won in 1993 with a team of Jennifer Kern, Heather Stock, Ann Grooms and Jennifer McCormick. Kern claimed the individual title that year.

Other Notable Coloradans Who Have Played in GJAC: Jennifer Kupcho, Jill McGill, Paige Spiranac, Ashley Tait, Becca Huffer, Kelly Jacques, Hannah Wood, Somin Lee, Lindsay Kuhle.

“¨”¨Service Project: This year’s GJAC will include a service project, with the Special Olympics of Colorado Golf Clinic set for Wednesday afternoon. Competitors there will assist Special Olympians as they putt, chip and take full swings at the clinic.”¨”¨

Host Course: Hiwan was home of the Colorado Open from 1964 through 1991. Junior tournament-wise, the club has hosted the 1965 U.S. Girls’ Junior, the 1976 U.S. Junior Amateur, the 2006 AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions, the 2007 AJGA Rolex Girls Junior and the 2011 boys Junior America’s Cup. Among those who have competed in tournaments at Hiwan in the last dozen years are Patrick Reed and Rickie Fowler (in 2006); Lexi Thompson, Jessica Korda, Cheyenne Woods and Kimberly Kim (in 2007); and Bryson DeChambeau (in 2011).

Additional Information About GJAC: CLICK HERE.
 

Hailey Schalk of Erie, Lauren Lehigh of Loveland, Kelsey Webster of Boulder and Emma Bryant of Aurora will have a distinction only eight other players in Colorado golf history can claim.

They’ll represent the Centennial State in a Girls Junior Americas Cup held in Colorado.

It happened previously only in 1982 and 2000, both at Eisenhower Golf Club at the Air Force Academy. Among the Colorado competitors in 2000, for example, was current University of Denver women’s golf head coach Lindsay Kuhle, then known as Lindsay Hulwick.

There’s something special any year about representing your state in such a major event, but to do so in your home state makes the occasion particularly memorable.

The 41st Girls Junior Americas Cup will be hosted by the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado and Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen, the site of the event next week. Opening ceremonies and a formal practice round are set for July 24, with championship rounds scheduled for July 25-27. The GJAC is open to the general public, free of charge.

Many of the best girls players from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico will compete in the event. Eighteen four-person teams will be in the field, with team and individual competition on tap. Each team represents a state, region or country.

Colorado’s squad will feature a diverse group, age-wise, as there’s one player who’s graduated from high school and is headed to the University of Colorado (Webster), one that’s going to be a high school senior (Lehigh), one a junior (Schalk) and one a sophomore (Bryant).

Among them, they’ve won five Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado majors (four by Schalk and one by Bryant) and four girls state high school titles (two by Schalk, one by Lehigh and one by Bryant).

Schalk and Lehigh also played on Colorado’s 2017 GJAC team — along with Jaclyn Murray and Charlotte Hillary — that finished sixth, and Schalk also participated in 2016.

Here’s a brief rundown on the Colorado representatives this year:

— Hailey Schalk of Erie: At 16, will be playing in her third GJAC. … Was the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado’s Girls Player of the Year for 2017. … Has won four Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado majors — one in 2016, two in 2017 and one in 2018. … Won the 3A girls state high school title in 2017 and ’18 as a freshman and a sophomore at Holy Family. … Won the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior girls title in 2017.

— Kelsey Webster of Boulder: Will be competing in her first Girls Junior Americas Cup. … Will play golf at CU beginning in the fall. … Finished third in the CGA Women’s Stroke Play last month. … Placed third as a Fairview senior at the 5A girls state high school tournament. … Tied for fourth in U.S. Women’s Amateur qualifying last month at Walnut Creek. … This month, finished 64th out of a field of more than 150 players in the girls 15-18 division of the IMG Academy Junior World Championships. … Qualified for the 2018 Optimist International Junior Golf Championship.

— Lauren Lehigh of Loveland: Will be playing in her second Girls Junior Americas Cup. … Has verbally committed to play her college golf at the University of New Mexico beginning in 2019. … Won the 4A girls state high school title in 2017 and finished second this year while representing Loveland HS. … Placed third last month in the girls division of the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior. … Recently competed in the national Girls Junior PGA Championship, finishing 111th. … Won the Big I Junior Classic state title in 2017. … Finished third in the Colorado Junior PGA Championship last month. … Qualified for the 2018 Optimist International Junior Golf Championship.

— Emma Bryant of Aurora: Will be playing in her first Girls Junior Americas Cup. … Won the 5A girls state high school title by seven strokes as a freshman at Eaglecrest. … Won the girls championship in the Colorado Junior Match Play last year. … Finished fourth among girls at both Colorado Junior PGA and Colorado Junior Amateur this year. … Qualified for the 2018 Optimist International Junior Golf Championship.

For a story on the boys who will represent Colorado at the Junior America’s Cup in Montana, CLICK HERE.

********************************

GIRLS JUNIOR AMERICAS CUP: THE ESSENTIALS

What: The 41st Girls Junior Americas Cup competition.

Where: Hiwan Golf Club (left) in Evergreen.

When: Championship rounds July 25-27. Tee-time range each day: 7-8:30 a.m. Practice rounds July 23-24.

Fan Information: The public can attend the event free of charge.

Opening Ceremonies: July 24, 5 p.m.

Closing Ceremonies and Awards Presentation: July 27, approximately 1:30 p.m.

Format: 54 holes stroke play. Team and individual competition. The low three scores for each team each day count toward the team total.

Participating Teams: Colorado, Arizona, Alberta (Canada), British Columbia (Canada), Hawaii, Idaho, Mexico, Montana, Northern California, Northern Nevada, Oregon, San Diego, Southern California, Southern Nevada, Sun Country (New Mexico), Utah, Washington and Wyoming. For all the individual competitors, CLICK HERE.

Defending Team Champion: Southern California, which also won in 2016. (Colorado tied for sixth in 2017.)

Previous Years Colorado Hosted GJAC: 1982 and 2000, both at Eisenhower Golf Club at Air Force Academy.

Best Finish by Colorado Team: Won in 1993 with a team of Jennifer Kern, Heather Stock, Ann Grooms and Jennifer McCormick. Kern claimed the individual title that year.

Other Notable Coloradans Who Have Played in GJAC: Jennifer Kupcho, Jill McGill, Paige Spiranac, Ashley Tait, Becca Huffer, Kelly Jacques, Hannah Wood and Somin Lee.

Service Project: This year’s GJAC will include a service project, with the Special Olympics of Colorado Golf Clinic set for July 25. Competitors there will assist Special Olympians as they putt, chip and take full swings at the clinic.

Host Course: Hiwan was home of the Colorado Open from 1964 through 1991. Junior tournament-wise, the club has hosted the 1965 U.S. Girls’ Junior, the 1976 U.S. Junior Amateur, the 2006 AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions, the 2007 AJGA Rolex Girls Junior and the 2011 boys Junior America’s Cup. Among those who have competed in tournaments at Hiwan in the last dozen years are Patrick Reed and Rickie Fowler (in 2006); Lexi Thompson, Jessica Korda, Cheyenne Woods and Kimberly Kim (in 2007); and Bryson DeChambeau (in 2011).

Additional Information About GJAC: CLICK HERE.

There was plenty at stake and every stroke made a difference on a tightly packed leaderboard at U.S. Women’s Amateur qualifying Wednesday at Walnut Creek Golf Preserve in Westminster.

When everything sorted itself out, two former Colorado 5A state high school champions and two international players landed spots in the national Women’s Am, which will be held Aug. 6-12 in Kingston Springs, Tenn.

With the top four finishers out of a field of 50 at Walnut Creek advancing, University of Colorado golfer Gillian Vance from Lakewood and University of Denver player Mary Weinstein from Highlands Ranch made the grade along with Sara Camarena of Mexico and Annabelle Ackroyd of Canada.

It was the second USGA championship in two days for which Ackroyd qualified in Colorado. She advanced to the U.S. Girls’ Junior Tuesday at Colorado National Golf Club in Erie.

This will be the second straight U.S. Women’s Amateur for Weinstein and the first for Vance.

“We had a great season as a team for CU this past year (finishing 19th in the NCAA Finals),” Vance said. “That was fun, but this is like a whole new level for me. I feel like I’ve really done something for myself. I’m just on Cloud Nine right now.”

Added Weinstein: “It means so much” to go back to a second straight Women’s Amateur. “Last year didn’t go as well as I had hoped and planned (she failed to make match play). This year I went in with a different mindset and I really wanted to qualify so I could do my best and make up for last year. It really did mean a lot for me to make it this year.”

Camarena earned medalist honors Wednesday at Walnut Creek with a bogey-free 2-under-par 70. Vance and Ackroyd tied for second place at 71. (The top qualifiers are pictured, from left: Vance, Camarena and Ackroyd.)

Vance made two birdies and one bogey on the day, avoiding a playoff by sinking a 20-foot birdie putt on No. 17. 

“I was kind of missing a lot of putts all day,” she said. “I had a lot of birdie chances and kept leaving them just short or burning edges. I finally made one on 17. That gave me the boost I needed because 72 was a playoff. 

“This was very much one of my better (recent rounds). I’ve only gone under par once in a collegiate event in three years.”

Meanwhile, Ackroyd rallied on Wednesday after being 4 over par through four holes by playing the next five holes in 5 under, including making an eagle on No. 6. And, after a bogey on No. 16, she birdied the 18th.

Three players finished tied for fourth place at even-par 72, forcing a three-person-for-one spot playoff. Kelsey Webster of Boulder, who will be a CU teammate of Vance starting in the fall, was eliminated on the first extra hole as she missed the green in regulation and made bogey.

On No. 11, the second playoff hole, Weinstein (left) drained a 40-foot birdie that was matched by Jessica Sloot of Fruit Heights, Utah, a Colorado State University golfer who holed a 20-footer to extend the playoff. Then on the third hole of the playoff, on No. 12, Sloot hit her tee shot into a bunker on the par-4 and missed a 7-foot par putt, making bogey. Weinstein two-putted for 20 feet for par to advance.

“To qualify for the U.S. Women’s Am two years in a row is amazing for me,” said Weinstein, a former Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado Girls Player of the Year who will be a junior at DU in the fall. “It’s one of the top tournaments on my entire schedule this year.”

Weinstein played her final seven holes of regulation in 2 under par, including making a 15-foot putt for birdie on 17.

Sloot will be the first alternate from the Walnut Creek site and Webster the second.

The upcoming U.S. Women’s Amateur will be the fourth USGA championship for Vance and the third for Weinstein. Both qualifiers from Colorado are 20 years old.

“This is one of my biggest accomplishments (in golf),” said Vance, a senior-to-be at CU. “I’m am just so excited. I’m not really sure what’s going to happen the next couple of years with golf and I’m trying to figure it out right now. This was a really good boost that I needed. I’m going to have so much fun out there, and I know that. My family, I don’t think we’ve gotten to do something like this since junior golf, so it will be a really good time.

“We got to nationals (as a team for CU), which was so much fun. It’s just been an incredible year, especially getting to go to the U.S. (Women’s) Amateur. Now it’s just icing on the cake.”

U.S. Women’s Amateur Qualifying
At Par-72 Walnut Creek Golf Preserve in Westminster

ADVANCE TO NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Sara Camarena, Mexico City 70
Gillian Vance, Lakewood 71
Annabelle Ackroyd, Canada 71
Mary Weinstein, Highlands Ranch 72
ALTERNATES (In Order)
Jessica Sloot, Fruit Heights, Utah 72
Kelsey Webster, Boulder 72

For all the scores from Wednesday’s qualifyng tournament, CLICK HERE.
 

One thing she hasn’t yet done is qualify for the U.S. Girls’ Junior. But next week will present a great opportunity to rectify that situation.

When the qualifying tournament is held on Tuesday (June 26), it will take place at Schalk’s home course, Colorado National Golf Club in Erie, where her dad Matt is the PGA general manager.

The 2017 JGAC Girls Player of the Year will be one of 33 competitors in the field competing for three spots in the national championship, set for Poppy Hills in Pebble Beach, Calif., July 16-21.

Two JGAC members who played in the 2017 U.S. Girls’ Junior will also be vying for spots — Charlotte Hillary of Cherry Hills Village and Nebraskan Shelby Poynter.

Among the other players seeking national spots are University of Colorado-bound Kelsey Webster of Boulder, who just finished third in the CGA Women’s Stroke Play; past girls state high school champs Emma Bryant of Aurora, Lauren Lehigh of Loveland and Amy Chitkoksoong of Aurora; and Kaylee Chen of Denver, winner of the Big I Junior Classic state title.

For Tuesday’s tee times at Colorado National, CLICK HERE.
 

Suffice it to say it was quite a change of pace at the CGA Women’s Stroke Play Championship.

After successive years in which Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster won the titles by 21, 19 and 13 shots, Friday’s tournament went to a sudden-death playoff — one that lasted three holes to determine a champion.

Erin Sargent of Twin Peaks Golf Course in Longmont rallied from four strokes behind entering the final day to force extra holes at Black Bear Golf Club in Parker. But Kristin Glesne, a resident of San Antonio who plays golf at the University of Iowa and is working this summer at Vail Golf Club, claimed the title in the 71st annual event.

Glesne (left and below) ended up going wire-to-wire in the tournament, but went 57 holes to emerge with the trophy. The 21-year-old two-putted from 25 feet, sinking a 3-footer for par, to beat Sargent on the third extra hole. Sargent three-putted there from 40 feet, missing a 5-footer for par, to fall in the playoff.

Glesne became the first out-of-state resident to win the CGA Women’s Stroke Play since Australian Emma Bennett earned the title in 2007.

“I haven’t won a tournament in a long time,” Glesne said. “I’ve never won a college tournament. The last tournament I’ve won is probably the city junior (in San Antonio) before I went to college, so this is really exciting.”

Glesne, who has grandparents that live in Genesee and a dad who grew up in Denver, just happened upon the CGA Women’s Stroke Play given the fact that she’s living in Colorado this summer.

“I just googled Colorado golf tournaments and I found the CGA,” she said. “I thought this would be a good tournament to play in.

“Everybody has been so welcoming (in Colorado). The CGA has been awesome. It’s cool to come out and win my first event in Colorado.”

Sargent, a University of Wyoming golfer who qualified for the 2015 U.S. Women’s Amateur, finished runner-up in the Women’s Stroke Play for the second straight year.

“I’m just ready for next year,” the Longmont resident said with a smile. “I can’t wait for the next Stroke Play, that’s for sure. Of course I wanted to win it (this year). I felt like I put up some good scores. I hung in there and really tried to chase it this last day.”

This was only the second Women’s Stroke Play since prior to 2010 to be settled by fewer than five shots. Hannah Wood of Centennial scored a one-stroke victory in 2014.
     
Glesne shot rounds of 72-70-76 for a 2-over-par 218 total and could have won the title in regulation, but missed a 3-foot birdie putt on No. 18.

“I was hitting the ball super well the first two days,” she said. “Today I’m sure it had something to do with nerves, but I definitely was not hitting it as well so it was a little bit more of a battle. Erin was playing so well and dropping a lot of putts, so that was definitely putting the pressure on me. “

Sargent (above) went 73-73-72 to tie the University of Iowa golfer. She made four birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey in regulation on Friday.

“All I can say is I fought all day long,” said Sargent, a junior-to-be at Wyoming. “I put up three solid scores. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, but I’m proud of the way I played. I was committed to every shot I hit and played the best I could.”

Kelsey Webster (below) of Boulder Country Club, who will begin her college golf career at the University of Colorado beginning in the fall, finished third at 221 after closing with a 76.

University of Denver golfer Mary Weinstein placed fourth for the second straight year, this time with a 222 total after her second consecutive 72. 

CGA Women’s Stroke Play
At Par-72 Black Bear Golf Club in Parker
TOP FINISHERS

Championship Flight
Kristin Glesne 72-70-76–218 (won playoff)
Erin Sargent 73-73-72–218
Kelsey Webster 75-70-76–221
Mary Weinstein 78-72-72–222

First Flight
Kylee Sullivan 79-82-76–238
Katherine Hollern 79-80-80–239
Staci Creech 82-78-79–239
Kathy West 83-78-79–240

Second Flight
Susan Hartwell 78-78-80–236
Louise Lyle 81-81-80–242
Allie Besant 91-78-81–250
Nina Dulacki 84-88-79–251

Third Flight
Mariko Coplin 86-91-83–260
Amanda Westrick 93-87-82–262
Ria Woodruff 85-93-92–270
Patricia Smogor 97-94-82–273
Trish Swanson 92-95-86–273

For all the scores from the Women’s Stroke Play, CLICK HERE.

Kristin Glesne, a 21-year-old from San Antonio, retained the lead in the 71st Women’s Stroke Play on Thursday by shooting a 2-under-par 70 at Black Bear Golf Club in Parker.

Glesne, a senior-to-be at Iowa (pictured in photo from hawkeyesports.com), will take a three-stroke lead into Friday’s final round. She made four birdies and two bogeys on Thursday to give herself some additional cushion with a 2-under 142 total.

But several Coloradans are in a position to make a run at the title on Friday. That includes Kelsey Webster of Boulder Country Club, who will begin her college golf career at the University of Colorado beginning in the fall. Webster carded five birdies on Thursday and matched Glesne’s tournament-best 70 and stands in second place at 145.

Erin Sargent, a University of Wyoming golfer from Twin Peaks Golf Course, holds third place at 146 after her second consecutive 73. Sargent finished second in this event last year.

Anna Kennedy of Brigham Young University and Colorado Golf Club, who placed fifth in 2018, sits in fourth place at 147 after a second-round 74.

Glesne, Webster and Sargent will tee off for Friday’s final round at 10:20 a.m.

For results from all the flights at the CGA Women’s Stroke Play, CLICK HERE.