Championship website | Scoring | Record book
Dates: Wednesday, May 8 and Thursday, May 9
Format: Two rounds of four-ball stroke play in three divisions: Open, Senior, and Net.
Host site: Spotswood Country Club
Day 2: McCullough/Willkins hold steady, win senior title
HARRISONBURG -- Mount Vernon Country Club's Shawn McCullough and Diane Willkens opened Thursday with a two-stroke lead over the field in the senior division of the 8th Virginia State Golf Association Women's Four-Ball Championship. That's exactly where they stood at the end of play on Thursday afternoon.
McCullough and Willkens returned an even-par 72 at Spotswood Country Club to win the championship by two strokes over three sides--defending champions Andrea Miller and Cindy Thompson, Joan Gardner and Spotswood member Katie Cox, and Bev Lane and Kristin Shifflett.
The winning side made two birdies and two bogeys. Miller/Thompson and Lane/Shifflett each posted rounds of 1-under 71 for the low score of the day in the division.
McCullough, last year's VSGA Super Senior Women's Golfer of the Year, and Willkens won their first title in the event.
Quotable:
- "It started fun, and we just kept calm and kept having fun. Plus, we played with great folks. When you're doing that, there's no pressure." -- Willkens
- "We just tried to hit it tee to green and make good two-putts. We didn't even look at the leaderboard. We didn't want to know. We just played our game and just did what we knew we could do. The course was in fantastic shape, so if you kept it in the fairway, you were going to be OK." -- McCullough
- "Diane putted great. She read the distance, she read the pace. She was at the hole every time." -- McCullough
- "We stopped at Starbucks, like we did yesterday. We got the same thing to eat, like we did yesterday." -- Willkens on being superstitious.
Notable:
- Lauren Greenlief and Alexandra Austin were the only side playing in the Open division. They posted a two-day aggregate total of 70-67--137 to finish 7-under par for the tournament. Austin contributed four birdies on Thursday, Greenlief made one.
- Won Hwang and Richelle Davis posted a two-day total of 3-under-par 141 to win the net division by four shots over Donna Bohlin and Kim Landis-Hammer.
- McCullough and Willkens are only the third winners of this event in the senior division. Amy Ellertson and Natalie Easterly won the first six playings of the event before Thompson and Miller won last year.
Day 1: McCullough/Willkens race to early lead
HARRISONBURG -- Mount Vernon Country Club's Shawn McCullough and Diane Willkens posted a 2-under-par 70 on Wednesday at Spotswood Country Club to take a two-stroke lead into Thursday's second and final round in the Senior division at the 8th Virginia State Golf Association Women's Four-Ball Championship.
McCullough -- last year's VSGA Super Senior Women's Golfer of the Year -- and Willkens started with a par on No. 16, their starting hole in the shotgun event. Willkens made a birdie on No. 17, and McCullough added a birdie on 18 to give the side a strong start. They played the rest of the round at even par, with a Willkens birdie on No. 2 and a bogey on No. 10.
They hold a two-stroke edge over Joan Gardner (Mount Vernon CC) and Katie Cox (Spotswood CC). Their even-par round featured two birdies and two bogeys. Three sides were tied at 1-over 73, three shots back of the lead: Andrea Miller and Cindy Thompson, Kristin Shifflett and Bev Lane, and Amy Ellertson and Meg Gilmer.
Richelle Davis and Won Hwang posted a net score of 4-under 68 to take the lead in the Net division, four shots clear of Donna Bohlin and Kim Landis-Hammer. Lauren Greenlief and Alexandra Austin comprised the only side competing in the Open division. They shot a 2-under 70.