When Liz Breed of Waynesboro, Pa., outdueled Colorado amateur Jennifer Kupcho for the CoBank Colorado Women’s Open title on Friday, it was a game changer that left the former University of Kentucky golfer almost without adjectives when describing what it meant to her.
Fifty thousand dollars in prize money will do that, especially when the next-biggest amount you’ve won as a professional is $2,000.
“I don’t think it’s set in yet,” the 25-year-old said on Friday at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club in northeast Denver. “Call me in about two hours and I’ll probably be passed out in the street somewhere.
“This is probably the most proud I’ve ever been. I mean, 50 grand, that changes my life. That doesn’t just change my year, that changes my career. It’s just hard to put into words just how much it means to have your eye on the prize and you accomplish it. And you have your two lowest rounds of the year (67-67 on Wednesday and Thursday), and this is my lowest total ever (for 54 holes) as a professional. Just stuff like that, when you start piecing it all together, it makes this week really, really, really special.”
On a windy, challenging day, Breed (left) shot a 1-over-par 73 on Friday to win by two with a 9-under 207 total.
Kupcho — the Westminster resident who’s ranked No. 3 in the world among female amateurs after winning the Canadian Women’s Amateur and finishing 21st in the U.S. Women’s Open — was nipping at Breed’s heels all day long on Friday, but could never catch her. The Wake Forest junior finished runner-up for the second straight time in this event, having also hit that mark in 2014, her last time playing here.
“Obviously I came out here to win,” the 20-year-old said. “Low am is one thing, but I came out to win the big thing. That’s a little disappointing.”
Kupcho (left) was within a stroke of the lead on several occasions on Friday, including after Breed made a bogey on the 15th hole. But the golfer from Pennsylvania birdied No. 16 from 12 feet, punctuating the putt with a fist pump. Both players bogeyed No. 17, leaving Kupcho two back going into the par-5 18th. The Coloradan certainly has the length to reach the green in two, but she pushed her tee shot into the environmentally sensitive area on the right, took a stroke penalty and ended up with a closing bogey. And even though Breed also bogeyed the final two holes, she won by two.
“I didn’t play my best,” Kupcho said after playing her last five holes in 3 over par to shoot a 73. “I left a lot of putts out there, and you’re not going to win a professional tournament if you’re not making putts. That’s pretty much what let me down today.
“I think I always had a good chance (coming down the stretch). When we got to the back nine I was one down. … I knew the three hardest holes on the golf course were coming up and anything can happen. Obviously I’ve been in that spot at (NCAA) nationals” where Kupcho led through 16 holes of the final round but finished second. “It was fun to be trailing. I was trying to grind out and see what I can do.”
While Kupcho came up short in trying to become just the second amateur to win the CWO, she enjoyed competing in front of family, friends and fans in her home state — and in going head-to-head with professionals.
“It’s exciting to play up with the pros,” she said. “I know I can do it. I know I can play well because of the U.S. Open and things like that. And it’s cool to do it in my home state.”
Andrea Wong of San Francisco, who held at least a share of the lead after the first two days, tied for third at 210 with Alexandra Kaui of Las Vegas. Wong closed with a 76 after going 5 over par in a three-hole stretch in the middle of her round. Kaui posted a 71.
Gabrielle Shipley of Hastings, Mich., who won the 2016 NCAA Division II women’s individual title at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora, placed fifth at 211. Lauren Coughlin of Charlottesville, Va., the 2016 champion, was among those tied for sixth at 212.
Breed, a Symetra Tour regular who is exempt into stage II of the three-stage LPGA Tour qualifying process, won in her first time competing at the Colorado Women’s Open.
“This was my first time playing here, and I’m glad I came,” she said with a big smile.
The CWO marks Breed’s second victory as a professional, as she captured the title in the Kentucky Women’s Open in 2015. But with the $50,000 check that she received Friday, this one goes in another class.
“The more I think about it, the more elated I get,” she said.
Breed would have gotten the $50,000 even if Kupcho had won — given that the Coloradan is an amateur. But Breed did her best to keep that kind of thinking at bay.
“I wanted to win (and not just get the $50,000 for being low pro),” she said. “That was the mindset I had today. Obviously I knew I was playing for a ton of money. Instead of focusing on the money — if you think you’re playing for $50,000, you’re going to shoot 100 — I was just thinking of winning the event. It could have been worth $0 or $1 million, I just wanted to win the tournament. That was my only goal, and luckily I got it done.”
Kent Moore Receives Prestigious Honor: Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Kent Moore was presented with the Robert M. Kirchner Award by 2016 recipient Rich Langston after Friday’s final round of the CWO. The Kirchner Award is given to a person who has contributed greatly to amateur, professional and/or tournament golf in Colorado. Moore was the chairman of the Colorado Open Golf Foundation from its founding in 2003 through 2005, and Langston introduced him as “a gentleman.”
“Golf, at the end of the day, is really about community,” Moore said. “It has been for me. My life has so much of golf woven in, and it’s all been really, really good.”
As a competitor, Moore has won eight different CGA individual championships over the last 44 years: the 1973 Junior Match Play, the 1986 Amateur, the 1989 Match Play, the 1995 Mid-Amateur, the 2006 Senior Match Play, the 2014 Senior Stroke Play, the 2016 Super-Senior Stroke Play and the 2017 Super-Senior Match Play.
(Moore, right, and Langston are pictured at left.)
Notable: Kupcho ended up claiming low amateur honors on Friday by 11 strokes. University of Denver golfer Jessica Dreesbeimdieke, the 2016 low-am, and Colorado State University golfer Ellen Secor tied for second among amateurs at 4-over-par 220. … Karlin Beck of Montgomery, Ala., and Molly Greenblatt of Denver teamed up to win the pro-am competition by four strokes with a 27-under-par 189 total, which established a scoring record for the event.
For scores and payouts from the Colorado Women’s Open, CLICK HERE.
