Area golfer beaten in U.S. Junior quarterfinals
Posted on Friday, July 27, 2007
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/bcdr/Sports/51699/
BENTONVILLE — Sixteen-year-old Haley Sanders of Rogers reached the quarterfinals Thursday before being stopped at the 59 th U. S. Girls’ Junior Championship in Lakewood, Wash.
Sanders, who will be a junior this fall at Rogers, lost her afternoon match to 14-year-old Kristen Park (Buena Park, Fla. ) 1-up in 19 holes at the Tacoma Country and Golf Club.
Three of Thursday afternoon’s four quarterfinal matches went more than 18 holes before being decided.
Sanders began her day with a 3 & 1 win against Tessa The (Los Altos, Calif. ) in the round of 16.
Sanders, playing in her first-ever USGA championship, won the first two holes versus The with pars and never trailed. The match was all square at the turn before Sanders won holes 10 and 12 with pars and 15 with a birdie to take a 3-up lead.
In the afternoon, Park, currently the fifth-ranked junior in the country by the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA ), took a 2-up lead at the turn before Sanders rallied to square the match, capped by a birdie at the par-3 17 th.
Conway’s Mary Michael Maggio, who also reached the round of 16, was eliminated Thursday morning 2 & 1 by medalist and current U. S. Women’s Amateur champion Kimberly Kim (Hilo, Hawaii ).
Kim, 15, lost her quarterfinal match 1-up in 23 holes to 17-year-old Stephanie Kono (Honolulu, Hawaii ).
Only the top 64 players from the championship field of 156 qualified for match play.