Finishing flourish lifts Lexington native to Women’s Eastern Am crown

Already staring at a three-shot deficit with nine holes to play at the Women’s Eastern Amateur Championship, Lauren Stephenson’s view didn’t get any better after flying the 10th green with her approach shot Thursday.

“It was so far over,” the former Clemson golfer said, “I was underneath a tree and couldn’t see the pin (behind a mound).”

Grabbing an 8-iron, Stephenson ran her ball onto the putting surface and watched it trickle within 3 feet of the flagstick for a par save that kick-started her day at Pinecrest Golf Club. Three ensuing birdies got her into a playoff with August Kim, emerging victorious when her opponent got into her own tree trouble.

“That’s kind of where I managed to get it together,” said Stephenson, a Lexington native who now sports Alabama crimson after filing transfer papers earlier this month. “I played really well on the back nine, and that kind of turned it around.”

Stephenson, who twice won the state Class 4A individual crown at Lexington High, joins a champions list that includes Hall of Famer Glenna Collett Vare and LPGA standouts Joanne Carner, Patti Rizzo, Kathy Baker and Laura Philo Diaz.

Another Clemson golfer, Ashlyn Ramsey, won the tournament three years ago and now is playing as an LPGA rookie. So is last year’s winner, Megan Khang, who bypassed college altogether.

“This should give me some good confidence going into the next few weeks,” said Stephenson, who has qualified for next month’s U.S. Women’s Open at CordeValle in California.

A back-nine 34 allowed Stephenson to finish off a 1-under-par 71 on Thursday. That left her at 7-under 209 for three rounds, drawing even as Kim (74) struggled with her distance control amid gusty afternoon conditions.

“I don’t know what it was,” the Purdue senior said, “but I was hitting my irons really far. I started flying it 10 yards father than I’m used to.”

Kim, the reigning Big Ten champion, actually went from three ahead of Stephenson to two behind as they headed to the 17th tee. But she managed to birdie the long par-3 while Stephenson bogeyed, pulling them even again. After pars on the final hole, they headed back to the 18th tee.

Kim hung her drive out to the right, finding herself in a cluster of trees with only a narrow gap to escape through. Her second shot went into a bunker behind the green, while Stephenson’s approach came to rest 6 feet from the flagstick. When Kim couldn’t convert a long par save, Stephenson casually two-putted for the victory.

This story was originally published June 16, 2016 at 7:07 PM with the headline "Finishing flourish lifts Lexington native to Women’s Eastern Am crown."