Carolinas Women's Match Play Preview
Above: 2018 Carolinas Women's Amateur Champion Anna Redding looks to add another CGA title to her summer resume
21st Carolinas Women's Match Play Preview
SOUTHERN PINES, N.C. (July 18, 2018) -- The Carolinas Golf Association will conduct the 21st Carolinas Women's Match Play at North Ridge Country Club (Lakes) in Raleigh, N.C. from July 24-26, 2018.
Related: Championship Web Site | Full Field of Players | Starting Times | Scoring | History
Players to watch:
- Courtney McKim of Raleigh, N.C., who is currently ranked first among female amateur golfers in the Carolinas, will return to the field this year in hopes of improving on last year's performance. At last year's event, McKim was eliminated in the Round of 16. The former CGA champion and 2017 Carolinas Women's Player of the Year has had an electric start to her 2018 season with three top-10 finishes. She finished runner-up at the 2018 Eastern Championship and was a quarterfinalist at the 2018 Doherty Women's Amateur.
- Anna Redding of Concord, N.C., who is ranked second among female amateur golfers in the Carolinas, captured her first CGA title this year, and she is looking to add another trophy to her shelf. The rising senior at the University of Virginia won the 2018 Carolinas Women's Amateur Championship earlier in the summer, carding a five-under-par 211. In the last year, Redding was a quarterfinalist at the 2018 Women's North and South Championship and runner-up at the 2018 South Atlantic Amateur Championship.
- Jessica Spicer of Bahama, N.C. is currently ranked No. 7 among female amateur golfers in the Carolinas. At last year's event, she reached the semifinal match before falling to the eventual champion. The rising junior at Virginia Tech is a former CGA champion, winning the 2014 Carolinas Junior Girls' Championship. In 2017, Spicer won the North Carolina Women's Amateur. She carried her momentum into the 2018 season, finishing sixth at the 2018 North Carolina Women’s Amateur Championship.
- Three-time CGA champion Lea Venable of Simpsonville, N.C. will return to this year's field looking to improve her performance after falling in the Round of 32 at last year's competition. She is currently ranked No. 8 among female amateur golfers in the Carolinas. In 2017, Venable claimed a match play title at the WSCGA Match Play Championship and finished runner-up at the Carolinas Women's Four-Ball Championship.
- Two-time CGA champion Jodee Tindal of Rock Hill, S.C. is currently ranked No. 11 among female amateur golfers in the Carolinas. The rising sophomore at College of Charleston looks to carry her success from 2017 into 2018 after she finished T2 at the Carolinas Young Amateur Championship and T4 at the Carolinas Women's Four-Ball Championship last year.
- Sarah Spicer of Bahama, N.C. will return to this year's field after being eliminated in the Round of 16 at last year's event. Spicer is currently ranked No. 12 among female amateur golfers in the Carolinas. The rising redshirt-sophomore looks to capture her first CGA title since she won the Carolinas 15 & Under Championship in 2011. So far in 2018, Spicer has finished fifth at the NCWGA Amateur Championship.
Juniors to Watch
- Gracyn Burgess of Lexington, S.C. is currently the top-ranked junior girls golfer in South Carolina. The four-time CGA champion and rising freshman at Clemson won three titles in 2017 and was named the 2017 Carolinas Junior Girls' Player of the Year.
- Four-time CGA champion Emily Hawkins of Lexington, N.C., who is currently ranked No. 4 among junior girls golfers in North Carolina, looks to claim her second match play title of the summer. In June, the rising freshman at Campbell University captured the North Carolina Junior Girls' Championship.
- Maria Atwood of Holly Springs, N.C. is currently ranked No. 21 among junior girls golfers in North Carolina. The rising high school freshman had a stellar performance to win her first CGA title at the Carolinas Junior Girls' Championship earlier this summer.
North Ridge Country Club features two unique golf courses, the Lakes Course and the Oaks course. The courses were designed by Gene Hamm and George Cobb and built in 1967. The Lakes course, which features 6,048 yards of luscious grass and exquisite views, was later redesigned and improved by John Lafoy to provide a spectacular and private golfing experience..
The championship format is 18 holes of stroke play qualifying to determine seeding and flights for match play in the Championship Division and seeding for match play in the Carolinas Division. Players have the option to compete in either the Championship Division (approximately 6,000 yards) or Carolinas Division (approximately 5,200 yards.)
Entry is open to any female amateur golfer who has reached her 13th birthday by July 26, 2018, maintains a residence in North Carolina or South Carolina, is a member in good standing of a club which is a member of the Carolinas Golf Association (CGA) and has an active GHIN USGA Handicap Index at a CGA member club.
Scoring will be provided by the CGA throughout the championship, offering 9 and 18-hole updates. Live updates will also be available on the CGA’s official Twitter account, @cgagolf1909. Continue to visit the CGA website throughout this championship and all year long for complete championship coverage including scores, interviews, photos, and recaps.
Schedule of rounds:
Tuesday, July 24, 2018
First Round--18 holes of stroke play qualifying
Lunch provided for all players
Championship Flight, Round of 32 Matches (PM shotgun)
Wednesday, July 25, 2018
Championship Flight: Round of 16 and Quarterfinal matches
All other flights: First round matches and Semifinal matches
Thursday, July 26, 2018
Championship flight: Semifinal and Final matches
All other flights: Final matches
About the Carolinas Golf Association (CGA)
The CGA is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit educational organization that was founded in 1909 to promote and to protect the game of golf in the Carolinas by providing competitions, education, support and benefits to golf clubs and golfers. The CGA is the second largest golf association in the country with over 700 member clubs represented by nearly 150,000 individuals.
The CGA annually conducts 48 championships and five team match competitions for men, women, juniors, and seniors. It also runs over 150 One-Day (net and gross) events as well as qualifying for USGA national championships. The CGA serves golf in the Carolinas with numerous programs such as: the USGA Handicap System; tournament management software and support; course measuring and course/slope ratings; agronomy consultation; answers about the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, and Handicapping; Carolinas Golf Magazine; Interclub series; Tarheel Youth Golf Association; Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame; expense assistance for USGA Junior and Girls' Junior qualifiers from the Carolinas; and the Carolinas Golf Foundation (CGF). The CGF has distributed nearly $2,000,000 since 1977 to benefit Carolinas' golf initiatives including junior and women's programs.
For more information about the CGA, visit our website.
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