U.S. Women's State Team tees off Tuesday

September 16, 2013 | by United States Golf Association

Lynne Cowan<br>Amateurgolf.com staffer

See storylines from the USGA Women's State Team

The average age of the Women’s State Team competitors is 36.5 years old. The youngest player in the championship field is Aneka Seumanutafu, 12, of Kapolei, Hawaii. The championship’s oldest competitor is Robyn Puckett, 66, of Irvine, Calif. The team with the youngest average age is Hawaii (15). The oldest team is Alaska (65.33). For the first time in championship history, all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico will field teams. In 2007 and 2011, 51 teams participated. There are three USGA champions in the field: Amber Marsh Elliott, 44, of Greensboro, N.C. (2003 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur); Mina Hardin, 53, of Fort Worth, Texas (2011 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur); and Meghan Stasi, 35, of Oakland Park, Fla. (2006, 2007, 2010, 2012 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur). Laura Coble, 49, of Augusta, Ga.,is the only player in the field to have won a USGA Women’s State Team. She was a member of Georgia’s winning teams in 2005, 2009 and 2011. Meghan Stasi represented the USA at the 2008 Curtis Cup Match held at the Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland. Mina Hardin competed in the 1986 U.S. Women’s Open held at NCR Country Club, this week’s host site. There is one mother/daughter combination in the field: Cissye and Kathleen Gallagher, of Greenwood, Miss. Additionally, Janice Calomiris and her niece, Alexa Calomiris, are representing the District of Columbia. Susan Marchese, of Omaha, Neb., is playing in her 10th USGA Women’s State Team Championship. She is the only player to compete in all 10 championships. Select Player Notes, by Team: Alabama Linda Jeffery, 40, of Millbrook, is an officer in the United States Air Force Reserves. She has competed in events conducted by the Conseil International du Sport Militaire, which organizes sporting events for the armed forces in 133 member countries. She has also competed in the U.S. Armed Forces Golf Championship and the U.S. Air Force Championship. Alaska Susan Gatewood, 64, of Anchorage, is a past president of the Alaska Women’s Golf Association. Deb Mitchell, 59, of Anchorage, was the first female president of the Alaska Golf Association. Jane Shaw, 65, of Anchorage, is a decorated tennis player and avid cyclist. While living in Colorado, she participated in six “Ride the Rockies” events, which are seven-day rides that cover 500 miles of the Rocky Mountains. Arizona Kylee Duede, 21, of Phoenix, won the 2011 and 2013 Arizona Women’s Golf Association’s Amateur Match Play Championship and finished second in the 2013 Stroke Play Championship. Stephanie Kim, 22, of Phoenix, won the 2012 Arizona Women’s Golf Association Amateur Match Play Championship. Hannah O’Sullivan, 15, of Phoenix, qualified for the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open at age 14 and advanced to the round of 32 at the 2013 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship. She tied for fourth at the 2013 Rolex Tournament of Champions, conducted by the American Junior Golf Association. O’Sullivan won the 2010 California Junior Girls’ State Amateur at age 12, becoming the event’s youngest winner. Arkansas Julie Oxendine, 44, of Russellville, is a two-time Arkansas State Golf Association player of the year. California Lynne Cowan, 50, of Rocklin, is a four-time California Women’s Amateur champion. At age 18, she was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis, a form of rheumatoid arthritis, and credits golf with keeping her limber. Robyn Puckett, 66, of Irvine, was born in Queensland, Australia, and represented her birth country at the 1970 Women’s World Amateur Team Championship. After regaining her amateur status in 2005, she won the 2010 Australian Senior Women’s Amateur Championship Colorado Melissa Martin, 23, of Grand Junction, is a three-time Colorado Stroke Play champion. Hannah Wood, 17, of Centennial, won the 2013 Kathy Whitworth Invitational in Fort Worth, Texas. Connecticut Jen Holland, 50, of Branford, won the 2008 Connecticut Women’s Amateur. Delaware Karen Sergison, 51, of Ocean View, Del., once hit a blackbird with a golf shot. District of Columbia Janice Calomiris, 54, is a member of Congressional Country Club, which has hosted six USGA championships on its Blue Course, including three U.S. Opens. Florida Tara Joy-Connelly, 40, of Palm Beach Gardens, is representing Florida for the first time, having played for Massachusetts in seven previous Women’s State Teams. She won the 2003 and 2013 Massachusetts Women’s Amateurs, and is a six-time Massachusetts Women’s Open champion. Meghan Stasi, 35, of Oakland Park, won the 2012 Ione D. Jones/Doherty Championship. She and her husband, Danny, own Shuck N’ Dive, a seafood restaurant in Fort Lauderdale. Stasi and Joy-Connelly previously teamed to win the 2009 Florida Four-Ball Match Play Championship and the 2012 Women’s International Four-Ball Championship. Georgia Laura Coble, 49, of Augusta, is a nine-time winner of the Georgia Women’s Match Play Championship. She is also a six-time Georgia Women’s Amateur champion. Coble was the runner-up at the 2009 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. Mercedes Huarte, 27, of Suwanee, moved to the United States from Argentina at age 18 to play college golf at Jacksonville State University, where she was a four-time Ohio Valley Conference champion and the 2008 player of the year. She is a financial analyst for Cisco Systems. Her husband, Corey Brindle, is an accountant with the 82nd Airborne Division of the U.S. Army who has served in Afghanistan. Brenda Pictor, 58, of Marietta, is a six-time winner of the Georgia Senior Women’s Amateur. She won the 2010 North & South Senior Women’s Championship and was the stroke-play medalist in the 2011 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur. Hawaii Aiko Leong, 15, of Honolulu, attends the famed Punahou School. Among the school’s noted alumni are President Barack Obama and LPGA Tour star and 2003 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links champion Michelle Wie. Idaho Gabrielle Barker, 17, of Caldwell, won the 2013 Idaho Women’s Amateur. Kareen Markle, 51, of Meridian, is a three-time Pacific Northwest Golf Association Women’s Mid-Amateur champion, including 2013. She has also won multiple Idaho Golf Association titles. Illinois Laura Carson, 57, of Lake Bluff, is the golf shop manager at The Onwentsia Club, where her husband, Bruce, is the head golf professional. She has competed in two U.S. Women’s Opens (1980 and 1987), and was the 2012 Illinois Senior Women’s champion. Nora Lucas, 23, of Chicago, worked on Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign. She is a law clerk for a Chicago law firm. Indiana Tobi Herron, 35, of Columbus, won the 2009, 2010 and 2013 Indiana Women’s Mid-Amateur Championships. She was the stroke-play medalist at the 2004 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. Michelle Smith, 38, of Fort Wayne, won the 2012 Indiana Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. Nina Whalen, 57, of Indianapolis, won the 2012 and 2013 Indiana Senior Women’s Championship. Iowa Carroll Dethrow, 63, of Nevada, is a member of the board of directors of the Iowa Golf Association. As president of the Iowa Women’s Golf Association, she worked to merge the two associations. Dethrow is the 2013 Iowa Women’s Super Senior champion. Jenny Graeser, 31, of Cedar Falls, won the 2003 and 2009 Iowa Women’s Amateurs. Since March 2011, Graeser has lost 140 pounds. Kansas Rachel Halloran, 24, of Leawood, won the 2013 Kansas City Women’s Amateur. She is earned her master’s degree in medieval history from the University of Missouri–Kansas City, focusing on women and gender. Martha Linscott, 43, of Mission, serves on the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship Committee. Kentucky Lucy Nunn, 26, of Lexington, is an assistant golf coach at the University of Kentucky. She played in the 2010 U.S. Women’s Open. Louisiana Kay Daniel, 42, of Covington, won the 2005 Louisiana Women’s Amateur and has won seven Louisiana Women’s Mid-Amateurs, include the last five. Sarah Davison, 33, of Choudrant, won the 2013 Louisiana Women’s Amateur, having previously taken the title in 2009. The former University of Alabama standout, who reached the semifinals of the 1997 U.S. Girls’ Junior under her maiden name of Johnston, recently resumed her competitive playing career, having taken a hiatus following the birth of her twins in 2011. Julia Johnson, 14, of Baton Rouge, won the 2013 Louisiana Junior Girls Championship. Maine Emily Bouchard, 24, of Saco, is the director of junior and senior golf for the Maine State Golf Association. She is the 2011-13 Maine Women’s Amateur champion, and won the 2010-12 Maine Mixed Championship with her father, John. She has a bachelor’s degree in air traffic control, and was a USGA P.J. Boatwright intern at the Maine State Golf Association in 2008-10. Maryland Andrea Kraus, 52, of Baltimore, won the 2012 Maryland Women’s Amateur, Women’s Mid-Amateur and Senior Women’s Amateur, as well as the 2013 Women’s Mid-Amateur and Senior Women’s Amateur. Also in 2012, she won the Ione D. Jones/Doherty Senior Championship. Lisa Schlesinger, 55, of Laytonsville, won the 2008 and 2009 Maryland Women’s Mid-Amateur Championships. She was the stroke-play medalist at the 2011 and 2012 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur Championships. Massachusetts Pam Kuong, 52, of Wellesley, won the 2008 and 2010 Massachusetts Women’s Amateur Championships. The 2010 championship was conducted at her home course, Charles River Country Club, which served as the companion course for the 2013 U.S. Amateur Championship. She was the 2011 New England Women’s Amateur champion. Michigan Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll, 42, of Haslett, has been the head women’s golf coach at Michigan State University for the past 17 years. She is a seven-time winner of the Michigan Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. Shannon Warner, 22, of Livonia, won the 2013 Golf Association of Michigan Women’s Championship. Minnesota Sarah Burnham, 17, of Maple Grove, was the 2012 Minnesota State Golf Association women’s and junior player of the year. Olivia Herrick, 25, of Dellwood, has won multiple Minnesota State Golf Association and Minnesota Women’s Public Golf Association championships, including the 2009 Women’s Amateur. Herrick is the marketing and communications manager at Mounds Park Academy, where she attended high school, and also serves as coach of the varsity and junior varsity girls golf teams. Celia Kuenster, 17, of Mendota Heights, won the 2011 and 2013 Minnesota Women’s Amateurs. Mississippi Cissye Gallagher, 46, of Greenwood, is married to 1993 USA Ryder Cup Team member Jim Gallagher Jr. She is a former LPGA professional, and an 11-time Mississippi Women’s Amateur champion. Kathleen Gallagher, 17, of Greenwood, won the 2013 Mississippi Women’s Amateur Championship. Mother and daughter almost met in the championship final, as Cissye Gallagher fell in the semifinals to Ally McDonald. Missouri Catherine Dolan, 23, of Ballwin, won the 2011 and 2013 Missouri Women’s Amateur Championships and was the runner-up in 2012. Stephany Powell, 51, of Springfield, Was Close Friends From Childhood With The Late Two-Time U.S. Open Champion Payne Stewart. She Survived A Near-Fatal Car Crash At Age 20. Powell has been associated with the Missouri Women’s Golf Association for 35 years. Montana Amber Lundskog, 25, of Bozeman, won the 2013 Montana Women’s Amateur Championship. Sue Peterson, 51, of Glendive, won the 2012 and 2013 Montana Senior Women’s Amateur Championships. Nebraska Stephanie Kolbas, of Lincoln, has won two Nebraska Women’s Amateurs. She competed in the 1999 U.S. Women’s Open. Susan Marchese, of Omaha, is an 11-time Nebraska Women’s Amateur champion. She has also won eight Match Play Championships, three Senior Championships, two Eastern Stroke Play Championships and one Four-Ball Championship. Nevada Diane Booth, 28, of Las Vegas, was a professional ballet dancer. Lisa Stanley, 57, of Reno, is the 2008, 2009 and 2011 Nevada Women’s Amateur champion. New Hampshire Tara Watt, 30, of Goffstown, won the 2011 New Hampshire Women’s Amateur Championship. New Jersey Tara Fleming, 46, of Jersey City, has competed in four U.S. Women’s Opens, making the cut in 1994 at Indianwood Golf and Country Club in Lake Orion, Mich. In 1994, she won the Metropolitan Golf Writers Association’s Mary Bea Porter Award, which is presented annually to individuals involved in golf who helped others through humanitarian efforts. Fleming performed CPR on a spectator at the Jamie Farr Classic who had suffered a heart attack. New Mexico Shania Berger, 17, of Socorro, won the Sun Country Amateur Golf Association’s 2013 Spring Stroke Play Championship. Dominique Galloway, 15, of Rio Rancho, won the 2013 New Mexico-West Texas Women’s Amateur Championship. Darian Zachek, 17, of Deming, won the 2012 New Mexico Women’s Amateur Championship. New York Ellen Oswald, 23, of New City, won the 2013 Women’s Metropolitan Golf Association Match Play and Stroke Play Championships. In 2012, Oswald won the New York Women’s Amateur Championship. North Carolina Debbie Adams, 46, of Asheville, has represented the United States at the International Maccabiah Games, held every four years in Israel. She is a member of Biltmore Forest Country Club, which will host next month’s U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. Adams is exempt into that championship by virtue of reaching the quarterfinals of the 2012 Women’s Mid-Amateur. Angela Stewart, 59, of Greenville, is the 2013 North Carolina Senior Women’s Amateur champion. Stewart is active in raising awareness and money for multiple sclerosis. North Dakota Becky Serri, 49, of Bismarck, had the opportunity to play a round with Yani Tseng during the 2011 State Farm Classic Pro-Am. Ohio Allison Schultz, 21, of Cincinnati, won the 2012 Ohio Women’s Amateur Championship. She graduated from the University of Toledo in May 2013, and is currently pursuing a master’s degree while also serving as a volunteer assistant with the women’s golf team. Schultz competed internationally in Irish dancing for 10 years. Suzi Spotleson, 46, of Canton, played collegiate softball for Northwestern University and competed in the Women’s College World Series. Oklahoma Kelly Fuchik, 24, of Tulsa, is involved with several women’s ministries and health organizations, including Prayerful Presence Tulsa and GoLife Mobile Medical, both of which provide care for women dealing with unplanned pregnancies. Amber Hensley, 24, of Tulsa, is a two-time winner of the Oklahoma Women’s Amateur and also captured the 2013 Oklahoma Women’s Stroke Play Championship. Jade Staggs, 21, of Oklahoma City, won the 2013 Oklahoma Women’s Amateur and advanced to the Round of 32 at the 2013 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship. Staggs Grew Up In Moore, Which Was Devastated By Multiple Tornadoes Earlier In 2013. Her Family, Whose Home Suffered Significant Damage, Has Been Living In A Hotel Since The Storms. Oregon Kate Hildahl, 25, of Tualatin, won the 2008 Oregon Women’s Amateur Championship, as well as the 2008, 2010 and 2011 Pacific Northwest Golf Association’s Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship. Brie Stone, 32, of Veneta, has won 14 Oregon Golf Association championships, including the 2012 Stroke Play, Mid-Amateur, Tournament of Champions and Players Championships. That quartet of victories earned her 2012 OGA Player of the Year honors. Pennsylvania Kelli Pry, 24, of Coatesville, won the 2011 Pennsylvania Women’s Amateur Championship. Brynn Walker, 15, of St. Davids, won the 2013 Pennsylvania Junior Girls’ Championship. Puerto Rico Kristina Ortiz, 16, of Guaynabo, won the Girls 14-15 division of the 2011 Caribbean Amateur Junior Golf Championships. Yudika Ann Rodriguez Borras, 16, of Salinas, has two Caribbean Amateur Junior Golf Association Championship titles. Rhode Island Jacqueline Booth, 58, of Middletown, is the president of the Ocean State Women’s Golf Association. Booth teamed with Kay Bullock to win the 2013 Rhode Island Women’s Four-Ball Championship. Marisa White, 49, of Providence, is dedicating her play in the 2013 Women’s State Team Championship to the memory of her dear friend Roslyn Grenier, who passed away in early September following a life-long battle with muscular dystrophy. White won the 2012 Rhode Island Father/Daughter Championship with her 87-year-old father, Vincent. South Carolina Dawn Woodard, 38, of Greer, was the 2012 Carolinas Women’s Player of the Year. She won the 2011 and 2012 Carolinas Women’s Match Play Championships, as well as the 2010-12 Women’s South Carolina Golf Association Match Play Championships and the 2012 WSCGA Stroke Play Championship. She is a three-time stroke-play medalist in the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship, including 2012. South Dakota Karla Cotton, 25, of Sioux Falls, won the 2010 Minnesota Women’s State Open. She was the runner-up in the 2013 South Dakota Women’s Amateur, having won the championship in 2010. Morgan Fitts, 23, of Brookings, won the 2013 South Dakota Women’s Amateur and Women’s Match Play Championships. Tennessee Courtney Chandler, 31, of Franklin, was a member of the Vanderbilt University women’s golf team that won the 2004 Southeastern Conference title. Under her maiden name of Wood, she qualified for the 2005 U.S. Women’s Open, becoming the first Commodore to compete in the championship. A reinstated amateur, Chandler currently works in group insurance sales for Lincoln Financial Group. Corinna Rees, 24, of Nashville, has undergone two surgeries to repair poorly developed wrists. She has two plates and 14 screws in her arms. Texas Mina Hardin, 53, of Fort Worth, was the first Mexican woman to play on the LPGA Tour. She has been a reinstated amateur since 1991, has twice won the Texas Women’s Amateur and was inducted into the Texas Golf Hall of Fame in 2012. Utah Marie Bambo, 54, of Salt Lake City, is a former competitive downhill skier. She was the Canadian national alpine champion in 1979 and represented Canada on the World Cup circuit in 1978-80. Kelsey Chugg, 22, of Salt Lake City, won the 2012-13 Utah Women’s Amateurs. Annette Gaiotti, 60, of Holladay, has won five Utah Senior Women’s Amateurs. Vermont Nancy Gorham-Lasante, 60, of East Burke, is a former race-car driver. Shelly Yusko, 52, of Quechee, owns the Strong House Spa and is a licensed massage therapist. Virginia Lauren Greenlief, 22, of Oakton, won the 2009-11 Virginia Women’s Stroke Play championships. Washington Shawn Farmer, 31, of Bellevue, is a golf performance and fitness trainer. She works with her husband, a private-practice sports doctor whose clients include several PGA Tour professionals. Leslie Folsom, 45, of Seattle, won the 2012 and 2013 Washington Women’s Mid-Amateur Championships. She is a six-time winner of the Washington Women’s Golf Association’s State championship. West Virginia Caroline Ramsey, 66, of Bridgeport, is an 11-time West Virginia Senior Women’s Amateur champion. Sydney Snodgrass, 17, of Harrisville, won the 2013 West Virginia Women’s Amateur and Junior Amateur Championships. Wisconsin Jessie Gerry, 23, of Merrimac, won the 2013 Wisconsin Women’s Match Play Championship. After a chance encounter while in high school, she has become close friends with PGA Tour winner and noted instructor Stan Utley. Utley has given her golf instruction over the years, and has even caddied for her on several occasions. Maggie Leef, 53, of Brookfield, won the 2013 Wisconsin Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. Wyoming Sarah Bowman, 54, of Parkman, won the 2013 Wyoming Women’s Amateur Championship. She has also won multiple state Women’s Mid-Amateur and Senior Women’s Amateur titles.

Results: USGA Women's State Team

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
T1	Bryana Nguyen	Columbia, MD	500	71-72-70--213
T1	Alice Chen	Princeton, NJ	500	72-67-74--213
3	Hannah O'Sullivan	Paradise Valley, AZ	300	71-73-74--218
4	Abby Portyrata	N. Chesterfield, VA	300	72-75-72--219
5	Meghan Stasi	Oakland Park, FL	300	73-75-74--222

View full results for USGA Women's State Team

About the USGA Women's State Team

The USGA State Team Championships grew out of the Association's Centennial Celebration in 1995, and have been held on an every-other- year basis since. 52 men’s teams (including teams from Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia) compete for the tro...