Top amateur golf moments of 2019, Nos. 6-10
20 Dec 2019
by AmateurGolf.com Staff
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- Chris Keane/USGA photo
As 2019 draws to a close, AmateurGolf.com takes a look back at the 25 most interesting stories of what was another banner year for amateur golf.
Last week, we took a look at
stories No. 11-15, which included a last chance at the Masters, a pair of fourpeats, going junior-amateur-pro, a controversial amateur status ruling, and an international first at the U.S. Mid-Am.
The series continues with the top amateur golf moments of 2019, Nos. 6-10:
No. 10: Ruffels takes down Valenzuela in grueling U.S. Women's Am final
What would you do if you lost your caddie down the stretch of a USGA championship match?Gabriela Ruffels faced that dilemma head on and stepped up her game to become the first Aussie to win the biggest tournament in women's amateur golf, running her summer match play record to 11-0.
No. 9: Victory abroad: Americans win Walker Cup with Sunday surge
The U.S. hadn't won a Walker Cup match overseas since 2007, but a first-time captain who had been largely off the map since his playing days found a winning formula that mixed a hands-off approach, increased attention on alternate shot, and a selection of pants that look like what soldiers would wear if fighting a war in an aquarium.
No. 8: Seeing Double: Tennant defends her U.S. Senior Women's title
Lara Tennant had the same opponent, the same outfit, the same final margin, and the same trophy to lift as she repeated as U.S. Senior Women's champ at Cedar Rapids Country Club. She added a new trophy a few weeks later when she traveled to Wales and
won the British Women's Senior.
No. 7: The Summer of Wu
For Brandon Wu, the summer of 2019 was the gift that kept on giving. After helping his Stanford Cardinal golf team
win the NCAA Championship, Wu became the first player in 52 years to successfully open qualify for both the U.S. Open and British Open championships. He then helped the U.S.
win gold at the Pan American Games and then
win the Walker Cup.
No. 6: Ogletree holds off Augenstein to win U.S. Amateur
The soft-spoken Andy Ogletree was flying under the radar as he arrived in Pinehurst for the U.S. Amateur, even though he had won the Monroe Invitational earlier in the summer. After a grueling week, the player his college coach first saw as a "little old red head" with "horn-rimmed glasses" had a life-changing win that brought with it a Walker Cup berth and a tee time with Tiger Woods.
The Top Amateur Moments series continues with another five stories each week until the end of the year. Stay tuned!