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By Chris Lang
HOT SPRINGS – The 62nd Virginia State
Golf Association Senior Women’s and 1st VSGA Super Senior Women’s Amateur
Championships concluded Friday at The Omni Homestead Resort’s Old Course, with
two multi-time VSGA champions securing victories in tight matches.
Springfield’s Mimi Hoffman collected her fifth Senior Women’s
Amateur title, defeating three-time champion Shelley Savage of Alexandria 2 and
1 in the final match, marking the third time she’s beaten Savage to win the title.
Salem’s Dot Bolling—who won the inaugural Super Senior Women’s
Stroke Play title in 2018—added another inaugural trophy to her case, defeating
Fran Hensley 2 and 1 to claim the Super Senior title.
62nd VSGA
Senior Women’s Amateur
Hoffman (Belle Haven CC) said each of her five titles in the
event holds a special place in her heart. What made this week’s championship
run stand out? Her ability to battle from behind. In her first-round match
against Natalie Easterly, she was 4 down before rallying to win in extra holes.
In the quarterfinals, she was 3 down to Cheryl Grigg after eight holes but came
back to win that match 1 up.
Even in Friday’s title match, she found herself 1 down
against Savage (Army Navy CC), a steely competitor who doesn’t often make the
sort of mistakes that allow competitors to get back into matches.
But after Savage took the lead on 12 with a birdie, Hoffman
used her distance advantage to quickly tie the match. She reached the green in
two on the par-5 13th, setting up about a 15-foot putt for eagle.
Savage ended up in a greenside bunker, and when it was clear she wasn’t going
to be able to get up and down for par, she conceded Hoffman’s eagle.
“That was a big hole,” said Hoffman, who was appearing in
her fourth straight Senior Women’s Amateur final match. “I hit the green in
two, and from pretty far back. I had a sidehill, downhill shot there, and I
really had to concentrate on it. It took all of the right bounces and got back
there.”
Savage missed a three-foot birdie putt on 14 that would have
put her back on top. Hoffman then took the lead for good with a par on the
par-5 15th.
“I was not necessarily mis-hitting them, I was misreading
them,” Savage said of her putting struggles on the back nine. “Like the one on
14. It just broke more than I thought. I hit it the way I wanted. It just didn’t
go in.”
Hoffman made a two-putt par on the par-4 17th and
won the match when Savage’s six-foot comebacker for par slid past the hole.
“It does feel great to be a five-time champion,” Hoffman
said. “I just can’t tell you how lucky I feel right now. I work hard on my
game. I take a lot of lessons. I work out a lot, and the working out … I mean,
right now, I feel like I could play another 18, I feel so fresh. It allows me
to keep going.”
1st VSGA
Super Senior Women’s Amateur
Bolling (Hidden Valley CC) joined elite company with her 10th
VSGA championship on Friday, tying Virginia Golf Hall of Famer Donna Andrews for
the most championships won by a woman in history. And she’s done it at all age
levels, winning titles in the Women’s Amateur, Senior Women’s Amateur and now
Super Senior Women’s Amateur.
Before Friday’s title match against Hensley, she sought help
from friend Debbie Young, who served as her caddie for the day. Young’s task
was simple: Read putts, share information, and let Bolling do the physical
work.
On the par-3 2nd, Young and Bolling discussed a
15-foot putt before Bolling knocked it home for an early birdie. Bolling
quickly pointed back at Young, acknowledging her help.
“She read all the putts,” Bolling said. “I never read a
putt. That’s the way my husband did it when he caddied. He reads it, I putt it.
She did all the reading, so give her credit.”
Bolling’s other birdie came on the par-5 15th,
though she didn’t need much help on the green from Young for that one. Bolling
stuffed her approach to within two feet, and Hensley eventually conceded the
putt as Bolling took a 2-up lead.
“We were talking about the yardage, and normally, that would
be my pitching wedge,” Bolling said. “But we were going uphill, and the wind was
blowing, so I hit an easy 9-iron.”
Bolling never trailed, but Hensley fought back gamely after
losing the first two holes. She got one back with a par on No. 3 and evened the
match with another par on No. 9. The match remained tied until Bolling won No.
14 with a par.
“Once you get down like Fran did—and I’ve been there—you start
pressing, and you end up beating yourself,” Bolling said. “Fran’s a great
player, she really is. We’ve gone head to head for a long time. I’m glad I won.”
Lang is the editor of
Virginia Golfer magazine and the VSGA’s manager, digital media.