When it comes to amateurs wanting to compete in a USGA national championship, the odds don’t get much better than qualifying for the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur.
It’s by no means easy to earn a national berth, but in the case of Tuesday’s qualifying tournament at Pole Creek Golf Club in Tabernash, 39 competitors will vie for 10 spots in the U.S. Senior Women’s Am. That’s a 26 percent chance of advancing, all else being equal.
Tuesday’s field features three players who both qualified in Colorado for the 2016 championship, then advanced to match play at the national tournament: Janet Moore of Centennial, Kathy Malpass of Evergreen and part-time Gunnison resident Marilyn Hardy. Hardy made it to the round of 16 at last year’s U.S. Senior Women’s Am, losing to Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Kim Eaton. Moore, another Hall of Famer, and Malpass fell in the round of 64 at the 2016 national event. Moore has been medalist in Colorado-based qualifying for this tournament the last two years.
Among the other entrants on Tuesday who qualified for last year’s Senior Women’s Am are Deb Hughes of Denver, Bev Hoffenberg of Littleton, Sue Hartwell of Arvada, Sandy Young of Monument and Katherine Moore-Lilly of Minneapolis. Hughes won the CWGA Senior Stroke Play last fall.
Also in the field is Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Christie Austin, a past participant in the U.S. Senior Women’s Am.
As for Eaton, she’s exempt from qualifying this year by virtue of making it to the quarterfinals of last year’s national championship. That’s something she’s accomplished four times. Hardy is also a past quarterfinalist in the event, in 2013.
This year’s U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur is set for Sept. 9-14 at Waverley Country Club in Porland, Ore.
For Tuesday’s pairings at Pole Creek, CLICK HERE.
