Florence, SC – 51st Carolinas Junior Girls’ Championship hosted by the Country Club of South Carolina in Florence, SC on Thursday, July 28, 2007. Par 36-36—72, 5887 yards.
16 year old Courtney Taylor of Gastonia, NC wins the 51st Carolinas Junior Girls’ Championship by a 2 up margin over Amy Otteson of Wilson, NC. Taylor faced hot conditions and tough opponents to win. In the semi-finals she faced Haley Stephens of Greer, SC. The match was back and fourth most of the day but after Stephens had a loss of hole penalty on the back nine, Taylor seized the open door opportunity and won by a 4 & 3 margin.
Although the final match against Otteson would prove to be a long and demanding afternoon of patience and solid shot making. Otteson showed true heart and determination throughout the day as she suffered through severe pain from large blisters that had formed on her feet throughout the week. She hung tough and with the help from her brother who served as her caddie she limped on into the final match beating Elizabeth Thompson of Charleston, SC by a 3 & 2 margin. She was limping even more and walking slower in the final match against Taylor but again, she pushed through the pain, and stayed steady in the final match of the championship. Both Taylor and Otteson were steady off the tee and both girls traded leads throughout the front nine. The eleventh hole seemed to be the turning point for Otteson where she lost the hole to go one down against Taylor. Taylor earned another hole to go 2–up heading into the fifteenth hole but Otteson drained a putt for birdie on the fifteenth to keep her chances alive. The sixteenth and the seventeenth hole were halved and Otteson, who is a long driver of the golf ball, was looking to get a good drive in to take the match to extra holes. Unfortunately, her drive found the water on the eighteenth hole and Taylor would win the match 2-up. “My short game was pretty good today”, Taylor said. “I made some great up and downs when I needed to under pressure. I would have to say it definitely helped me to win against Amy. I could see she was in a lot of pain, but she just wouldn’t go away.”
Although Taylor has won many junior championships this is the first time she would be the Carolinas Junior Girls’ champion and her name will be added to the historic trophy that holds the names of many great past champions such as Marge Burns and Beth Daniel.
All players were seeded after stroke play qualifying and broken down into flights. Complete match play results are listed below.
The sub-junior division plays 9 holes and a shorter course.
This championship is conducted by the Carolinas Golf Association.
Championship Division
Round of 16
Upper Bracket:
(84) Maureen Dunnagan, Lexington, SC def. (75) Ellie O'Brien, Charleston, SC, 1 up
(81) Haley Stephens, Greer, SC def. (83) Danielle Dunnagan, Lexington, SC, 2&1
(78) Courtney Taylor, Gastonia, NC def. (84) Casey Ward, Chapel Hill, NC, 5&4
(79) Courtney Rousse, Holly Springs, NC def. (83) Torey Johnson, Moore, SC, 4&1
Lower Bracket:
(76) Taylor Weaver, Spartanburg, SC def. (84) Morgan Webber, Moore, SC, 6&5
(81) Amy Otteson, Wilson, NC def. (83) Collins Bradshaw, Columbia, SC, 3&1
(77) Elizabeth Thompson, Charleston, SC def. (84) Kathryn Rand, Hampstead, NC, 2&1
(83) Jessica Hook, Wilmington, NC def. (80) Elizabeth Freeman, Anderson, SC, 1 up
Quarterfinals
Upper Bracket:
Stephens def. Dunnagan, 6&4
Taylor def. Rousse, 9&7
Lower Bracket:
Otteson def. Weaver, 4&3
Thompson def. Hook, 1 up
Semifinals
Taylor def. Stephens, 4 & 3
Otteson def. Thompson, 3 & 2
Finals
Taylor def. Otteson, 2 up
Championship Flight – Consolation
Quarterfinals
Upper Bracket:
(75) O'Brien def. (83) Dunnagan, 1 up
(84) Ward def. (83) Johnson, 1 up
Lower Bracket:
(83) Bradshaw def. (84) Webber, 20 holes
(80) Freeman def. (84) Rand, 3&2
Semifinals
Ellie O'Brien, Charleston, SC def. Casey Ward, Chapel Hill, NC, 7 & 6
Elizabeth Freeman, Anderson, SC def. Collins Bradshaw, Columbia, SC, 3 & 2
Finals
Freeman def. O'Brien, 3 & 1
First Fight
Quarterfinals
Upper Bracket:
(88) Anne Marie Covar, Edgefield, SC def. (84) Anna Martin, Piedmont, SC, 20 holes
(86) Katelyn Bensch, Greenville, SC def. (86) Elizabeth Johnson, Asheboro, NC, 19 holes
Lower Bracket:
(85) Allison Emrey, Charlotte, NC def. (88) Brittany Zachrich, Hickory, NC, 6&4
(87) Jessica Chung, Fayetteville, NC def. (85) Anna Croom, Asheboro, NC, 4&3
Semifinals
Bensch def. Covar, 5&3
Chung def. Emrey, 4&3
Finals
Chung def. Bensch, 3 & 2
First Fight - Consolation
Semifinals
(84) Martin def. (86) Johnson, 4&2
(85) Croom def. (88) Zachrich, 8&7
Finals
Anna Martin, Piedmont, SC def. Anna Croom, Asheboro, NC, 20 Holes
Second Fight
Quarterfinals
Upper Bracket:
(89) Cayci Ruppe, Gaffney, SC def. (93) Megan Katsch, Wilmington, NC, 6&5
(91) Laura Wearn, Charlotte, NC def. (92) Mallory Warrick, Wilson, NC, 3&2
Lower Bracket:
(89) Amanda Hamlett, Raleigh, NC def. (93) Caroline Webb, Greensboro, NC, 2 up
(89) Jessica Neese, Liberty, NC def. (92) Lauren Steele, Charlotte, NC, 5&4
Semifinals
Ruppe def. Wearn, 19 holes
Hamlett def. Neese, 1 up
Finals
Ruppe def. Hamlett, 4 & 2
Third Fight
Quarterfinals
Upper Bracket:
(93) Michelle Toburen, Charleston, SC def. () BYE, Bye
(96) Tiffany Hutchinson, Anderson, SC def. (97) Shelby Winters, Mount Pleasant, SC, 4&3
Lower Bracket:
(94) Ellis Martin, Anderson, SC def. () BYE, Bye
(94) Stephanie Demetrelis, Greensboro, NC def. (102) Anne Miller, Greensboro, NC, 7&5
Semifinals
Hutchinson def. Toburen, 5&3
Demetrelis def. Martin, 2&1
Finals
Demetrelis def. Hutchinson, 3 & 1
Sub-Junior Flight
Quarterfinals
Upper Bracket:
(46) Kaitlin Matheson, Easley, SC def. () BYE, Bye
(59) Lily Winters, Mount Pleasant, SC def. (75) Emma Lea, Raleigh, NC, 5&4
Lower Bracket:
(46) Nicolette Donovan, Cary, NC def. () BYE, Bye
(47) Lily Crane, Jamestown, NC def. (80) Rachel Lea, Raleigh, NC, 5&4
Semifinals
Matheson def. Winters, 4&3
Donovan def. Crane, 2&1
Finals
Matheson def. Donovan, 2 up