Women's Western Amateur: Ariya defeats sister Moriya
Ariya Jutanugarn
MONROE, Mich. (June 23, 2012) -- The week started with Monroe Golf & Country Club’s new course record 66 turned in by Bangkok native Ariya Jutanugarn and ended with the 16 year old winning the Championship by defeating her sister, Moriya, in the 36-hole final, 2 & 1. This was the first time the two sisters have played against each other in Match Play and the first time that the Women’s Western Amateur has had sisters paired in the finals.
Ariya took an early lead winning the on first hole. She widened her margin to as much as 6-up during the final match but her sister Moriya fought back hard and was only 2 down with two holes to go. The 35th hole was tied and the match ended.
Ariya is presently ranked #1 Golfweek’s Junior Girls’ Rankings and tied for #5 in the Golfweek’s Women’s Amateur Rankings. Her sister, Moriya, is currently ranked #1 in Golfweek’s Women’s Amateur Rankings, and with this victory today, Ariya, should move to the #2 spot.
The 36-hole final today were the eighth and ninth rounds of competitive golf played this week. Both girls qualified high, and sailed through their early matches, each having had only one match reaching the 16th hole. There were some specular shots and putts in today’s rounds, but there were not as many birdies per round as they had posted earlier in the week. Maybe it was the stress of playing each other, or being tired from all the competition, but it appeared that they were a bit tentative when the match started. It was entertaining to watch them interact with each other walking down the fairways chatting away in Thai. It looked like they were having fun, but each got a little bit more competitive as the match went on, and conceded putts became fewer and fewer.
ABOUT THE Women's Western Amateur
The The Western Golf Association (WGA) has
partnered with the Women’s Western Golf
Association to administer the
Women’s Western Amateur. Held without interruption
since 1901, this event is one of the
oldest annual championships in women’s amateur
golf. The list of past champions includes
current stars and legends of the LPGA TOUR,
including Ariya Jutanugarn (2012), Stacy Lewis
(2006), Brittany Lang (2003), Grace Park (1998),
Cristie Kerr (1995) and Nancy Lopez (1976).
The Women's Western Amateur is open to amateur
women who have an up-to-date 18-hole
handicap index
that does not exceed 5.4 under the World Handicap
System. The WWGA Committee limits the
field to a
maximum of 120 contestants.
The championship begins with 36 holes of stroke-
play qualifying, after which the field is cut to
the low 32
players for match play. In the event of a tie for the
32nd position, a sudden-elimination playoff
will determine
the final match play qualifiers. Five rounds of 18-hole
matches will decide the Women's
Western Amateur
champion.
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