Lewis serves notice she’ll be an LPGA star
Posted on Monday, June 30, 2008
The last time Stacy Lewis had a topfive finish in a major, her coach picked her up at the airport and that was it.
This time, Lewis deserves the royal treatment. Odds are she’ll get just that when she competes at the P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship at Pinnacle Country Club in Rogers later this week.
Lewis, the former Arkansas Lady Razorback recently turned pro, wrapped up a head-turning weekend at the U. S. Women’s Open on Sunday, finishing in a three-way tie for third place after losing the one-shot lead she carried into the final round. It was Lewis’ first tournament as a pro, but hardly her first pro tournament.
Hate to say I told you so, folks, but Lewis proved in her first major nearly 15 months ago that she is here to stay. It was evident here that Lewis was the best-kept secret on campus at that point, and that idea was even posed to her as part of a 20 Questions interview.
This is what she said: “I don’t know if I think about that too much. I’m not one to want all the fame and stuff, so I don’t really pay attention to that.” Sorry, Stacy, but fame just came knocking.
That wasn’t the case when Lewis finished tied for fifth at the 2007 Kraft Nabisco Championship — the LPGA season’s first major — during her junior season at Arkansas. After that showing, Lewis boarded a plane back to XNA and was greeted by no one other than then-coach Kelley Hester.
Less than eight weeks after that, Lewis won an NCAA individual national championship, starting a string of performances that’s nothing short of jaw-dropping.
For starters, Lewis followed her national championship by taking medalist honors at the Women’s Southern Amateur. She then played in a handful of other events before grabbing the first-day lead at what was supposed to be the LPGA’s inaugural NW Arkansas Championship.
All Lewis did was fire a Pinnaclerecord 65 to take the first-day lead in front of a loving-every-minute-of-it home crowd. Rains washed away the last two rounds, but Lewis ended up not just with the trophy, but an even stronger conviction that she could hold her own with the world’s best golfers.
Still with her senior season at Arkansas remaining, Lewis didn’t suffer any letdowns. Instead, she won six of the 12 tournaments she played, including her second SEC championship.
Lewis also earned first-team All-America honors for the third time, and finished tied for eighth at the NCAA Championships. From there, it was off to the Curtis Cup, where Lewis became the first player to go undefeated (5-0 ) in her matches.
She turned pro not long afterward, cruising to a four-shot victory at a U. S. Women’s Open sectional qualifier just hours after she’d called USGA administrators to make her intentions official.
Two days later, this is what she said: “I feel like my game’s ready. I’m ready to go. I’ve proven myself out there and I feel like I’m ready for it. The competition is great, and I’m ready to be pushed more and pushed to work harder.” Funny thing is, Lewis pushed as hard as anyone at the Open this week, and was in the hunt until Inbee Park pulled away on the back nine during Sunday’s final round.
Lewis appeared to remain as poised as ever despite the disappointment, however, and handled herself with the same class she’s shown ever since showing up at Arkansas just a few months after corrective back surgery that caused her to redshirt her first year here.
All weekend long, though, my mind kept drifting back to that 20 Questions interview, when Lewis displayed a humility and level-headedness equal to her talent. When asked her favorite place to eat after a round of golf, in fact, Lewis just shrugged.
“Well, right after a round, a Coke is really good, when you’ve just finished playing,” she said. “I don’t really have a favorite place to go or anything, but a Coke always tastes good.” Don’t know if Lewis allowed herself a sip of champagne this time around, but she no doubt earned it. She also earned the right to be the toast of the town this week.
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