Colorado has hosted the U.S. Women’s Open — arguably the most prestigious event in women’s golf — three times over the years, with The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs doing the honors twice and Cherry Hills once. The championships held at The Broadmoor produced a winner that would go on to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame (Annika Sorenstam) and another (So Yeon Ryu) who’s now the top-ranked player in women’s golf.
But while the Centennial State has seen some of the best the U.S. Women’s Open has had to offer in recent decades — and people who moved to Colorado as adults such as Babe Zaharias, Barbara McIntire, Tish Preuss and Judy Bell certainly have enjoyed notable success in the event — players who have grown up in the state haven’t yet made a major mark at the championship. In other words, there’s no female counterpart to what Hale Irwin did in the U.S. Open.
The most successful, by far, in that category was Denver native and Cherry Creek High School graduate Jill McGill, winner of the 1993 U.S. Women’s Amateur and the 1994 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links. From ’94 to 2010, she competed in 14 U.S. Women’s Opens, making the cut six times. The best showing by the Colorado Golf Hall of Famer was 12th place in 2002. The last cut she made in the championship was in 2004, when she placed 37th.
But many obvservers believe the potential is there for another Colorado native, Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster, to be successful at the top level of women’s golf, including the U.S. Women’s Open.
Kupcho has taken the first steps in that regard by earning medalist honors in the last two Colorado-based U.S. Women’s Open qualifiers. As a 19-year-old last year, she missed the cut by seven strokes in her U.S. Women’s Open debut, posting scores of 77-78 and finishing 130th at CordeValle in San Martin, Calif. Another Coloradan, Hannah Wood of Centennial, also played in the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open, going 73-78 and likewise missing the cut.
Since qualifying for the championship was introduced in 1976, the number of players who grew up in Colorado and have competed more than once in the U.S. Women’s Open isn’t long. That list includes McGill, Kupcho and Kim Eaton, who made the cut in one of her two U.S. Women’s Open appearances.
Kupcho, now 20, will go to her second U.S. Women’s Open — July 13-16 at Trump National in Bedminster, N.J. — with her sights set on making the cut to the low 60 players and ties out of the original field of 156.
“Going a second time, I kind of know what it’s all about now,” Kupcho said. “You kind of know how they treat you there, you’ve seen everyone. It gets a little more relaxing. I won’t be awestruck when I get there. So hopefully I’ll be able to settle down and make the cut.
“Just to be able to play with all the best players, it’s an honor. But it would be nice to be able to play on the weekend.”
Of course, a lot of water has gone under the bridge since Kupcho last competed in the Women’s Open. Most notably, as a sophomore at Wake Forest, she won three tournaments individually and placed second in the Women’s NCAA Championship Finals after leading by two strokes with two holes remaining in her final round. Kupcho was one of three finalists for the Annika Award, given to the top female player in college golf.
In fact, her performances have been so impressive that she’s now up to No. 11 in the women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings, which has landed her an exemption into the U.S. Women’s Amateur, set for Aug. 7-13 at San Diego Country Club. Coincidentally, that course is where Colorado Golf Hall of Famer McGill won her U.S. Women’s Amateur in 1993. Kupcho advanced to the round of 16 at the U.S. Women’s Am two years ago, but didn’t qualify for the event in 2015.
Kupcho has been a very good ball-striker — with plenty of length — over the years, but has been making strides with her short game, which could pay dividends at both the U.S. Women’s Open and Women’s Am.
“At college with our new assistant (Ryan Potter) coming in, it definitely helped my short game and wedges a lot, and that’s where I needed to improve,” the three-time CWGA Player of the Year said. “My game has definitely gotten better (since last summer).”
Kupcho calls last year’s U.S. Women’s Open set-up at CordeValle “definitely” the toughest she’s encountered.
“It was very difficult,” she said. “I was not expecting it. I think going back I’ll be able to zone in on it.”
And she learned a valuable lesson or two from her first Women’s Open experience.
“Probably the way that they set up pins to not short-side yourself — kind of just aim for the middle of the green,” she noted.
Helping out during the week at Trump National will be Kupcho’s dad, Mike, who will be caddying for Jennifer, just as he did recently at the CWGA Stroke Play, where she won her fourth consecutive CWGA major. Jennifer’s older brother Steven, the CGA’s Player of the Year in 2012, looped for her at the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open. (Mike and Jennifer are pictured at left during the final round of the CWGA Stroke Play.)
Given all that Kupcho has accomplished, some observers wonder if she’ll turn pro before using up her final two years of eligibility at Wake Forest. But she says matter of factly that she plans to stay through her senior year.
“My game has improved so much,” she said. “I might as well stay and get it to the best it can be. Get the degree and be able to fall back on that if golf doesn’t work out.”
