Cap City Recap
Last weekend I competed in the Capitol City Amateur Championship at Salem Golf Club, my home course. Growing up in Salem, it was THE tournament to win. My family would go watch and my brother played in it a couple of times. While it wasn’t a men’s only tournament, the field was always all men. A few years ago, I was invited to play in the tournament. While it was an incredible experience, I did not play my best golf and it was a little disappointing for me.
This year, I had a free weekend, and with Q-school coming up, I decided to play to get back in the competition mindset. The tournament is 36 holes over two days. Our weather in Oregon during the summers is usually really comfortable, around 80 degrees, but this weekend, it was predicted to be in the high 90’s on Saturday and 100 on Sunday. Fortunately, my tee time was early on Saturday. I was paired with the 2021 Champion and two other great players, including Montana Frame, who played junior golf with my brother many years ago. I played very well and shot a 66 with an eagle on the 18th hole. After the rest of the field finished, I was leading the event by two shots. On Sunday, I was in the last group, paired with two men who shot 68 the day before and again with Montana, who was three strokes back of me. We teed off about noon and it was very warm, although I don’t think it ever got to 100 degrees. It’s going to be a lot warmer than that in Palm Springs, so I guess it was good conditioning. Round 2 didn’t go as well as Round 1 for me. I hit the ball well, but my putting didn’t compare to the previous day and Montana putted very well. His eagle on 14 gave him the lead.
On the final hole (a par 5), Al Cross, my swing coach, walked up the fairway with me. Al is 90 years old and a legend in this area. I’ve never had another swing coach and he is so good I can call him on the phone, tell him what is happening and he can tell me how to fix it. Al loves the game of golf and he loves helping others. I can’t count the number of times we have been on the range and I’ll look up to see him giving a beginner a few tips.
I chipped my third shot to about a foot and Al asked me if I wanted him to read the putt! With my birdie on 18, I finished with a 72. Montana shot 67 and won the overall event. I was very proud of how I played and competed with the men in the tournament. Playing from the same tees and hitting it between 30-50 yards shorter than the men I played with made it tough. It made me hone in on my short game and get more comfortable under pressure on my birdie opportunities. This tournament helped me to prepare for Stage I of Q-School and provided me with a fun opportunity to play Salem Golf Club in front of my friends and family. I am honored to be the only woman to play in this event, but I hope that there will be many more to follow.
