SAGSTROM SAVORS 1ST WIN AT CHICO'S PATTY BERG MEMORIAL

Madeline Sagstrom
2016 Patty Berg Memorial Champion

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Madelene Sagstrom is obviously something special. She managed to overcome the “Niles curse” to gain her first win on the Symetra Tour at Chico’s Patty Berg Memorial at Cypress Lake Country Club. Essentially, if I pick you to win, you may as well zip up your bag and put it in the trunk. Just ask Jordan Spieth about that curse. In my preview of the event, I suggested that if Samantha Richdale, Volvik Race to the Tour Leader, didn’t win, I would “hedge my bets” with Sagstrom. Well, Richdale didn’t even play the event, so by elimination…

The Niles curse wasn’t all Madelene had to contend with as

Spectators around 18th green

she tried to secure her maiden victory. The track at Cypress Lake is a good test of golf skill under any circumstances, and if the elements choose to make an appearance, it is far from a gentle walk in the park. The afternoon-start for the leaders didn’t bode well as the wind arose from its siesta around noon-ish, and howled and bared its gusting teeth for the remainder of the afternoon.

The wind didn’t play favorites in the afternoon, and the

Michelle McGann during Saturday's round

Legends had their struggles as well. Only two players managed to shoot under par on the blustery links of Cypress Lake. Michelle McGann carded the best round of the day for the Legends with a three-under 69. She jumped from a tie for 17th into a tie for 4th with that finish. I don’t suppose her 9:20am start time hurt her much, but 10 groups started before hers and no one else in the Legends field shot -3. In fact, that was the low round of the tournament for the Legends.

Legends Champion Lorie Kane was the other Legend to

Lori Kane & caddy sizing up birdie putt on 16

break par and she started just as the wind began to howl. She broke out of the pack of seven leaders to post a one-under 71. Speaking of Lorie Kane, I didn’t give her her due yesterday when I mentioned that Rosie Jones was the only Legends golfer I saw walking. I may not have seen her, but she did walk yesterday and did so again today. Can’t say I’m sorry to see someone who walked and talked with the young LPGA Tour aspirants claim the win.

Interesting side note: it is probably safe to say that our

And she stroked it in for the bird

Legends Champion doesn’t like Holes 9 and 17. Lorie was a combined six over par on those holes, and yet she still strolled, or better yet, stalked her way to victory by three shots over Jane Crafter and Barb Mucha. In fact, the only other hole that she played over par for the weekend was No.18, on which she was plus-one. Both Crafter and Mucha were among the seven who led coming into the final round, but the best they could craft and muster was two over to take second.

Back to the LPGA hopefuls. Although I could empathize with

Sherman Santhiwiwatthanaphong

Madelene Sagstrom and Sherman Santhiwiwatthanaphong (Sherman from here on out), that rough start heightened the drama that would unfold on the finishing holes, giving me something to write about. Had Sagstrom and Sherman not had some difficulty, where would the fun be in telling the story?

Sagstrom started the final round at -12 after shooting three-under on Saturday, and Sherman sat at -10 after posting the best round of the day

Surveying results of
bunker shot on 17

(-5) on Saturday. By the time she had finished the front nine, Madelene had given back all she had gained on Saturday and then some. She made the turn at -8. Sherman wasn’t quite as generous on the front, but she too gave up most of what she had gained the previous day, donating three shots to par to greet the back nine at -7.

Although I’m sure Sherman wasn’t happy, shooting plus-three on

Sophia lining up birdie putt on 17

the front and actually gaining on the leader couldn’t have felt too

horrible for her. Germany’s Sophia Popov began the final round at -9, well within reach of the lead, and as things unfolded, her reach was long enough…for a while. Early on, it seemed that she would share the fate of the others atop the leaderboard.

Popov walked off Hole No.1 with a double bogey, and carded

Early round leaderboard

two more bogeys on the front (Holes 5 & 9). Fortunately, she also notched birdies on No.4 and No.7 to minimize the front-nine bleeding. Like Sherman, although she had dropped some shots on the front, she had gained ground on Sagstrom. Indeed, after her birdie on No.11, she was tied for the lead! Sherman had given back two more to completely negate the previous day’s gains.

My Saturday recap suggested that there would be “fireworks

in store on the back nine on Sunday.” Even a blind squirrel

Popov's reaction to barely missed birdie

finds a nut from time to time I’ve heard. Madelene and Sophia stayed knotted through Hole 13, before Sophia touched the gas pedal and edged out to a one-shot lead after a birdie on the par-five 14th left her at -9.

Then, the reason why I wrote about Madelene’s “resilience

Madeline teeing off on 18

and steely nerve” yesterday surfaced. The other players finishing in the top ten on the leaderboard (actually 10 players with ties) played Holes 15 and 16 in nine shots over par, with not one of them birdieing either hole. Madelene, my new golf heroine, birdied both, BOTH, to snatch the lead back by two strokes at -10.

Sophia, up ahead, had bogeyed the 15th to drop to -8. Some

Jane Crafter and Sophia chuckle
about Sophia's tee shot on 18

might be thinking, “game over,” right? Two-shot lead, three holes to play after going birdie-birdie? Only someone who doesn’t know golf. Only two of the players finishing in the top ten on the leaderboard failed to shoot par or better on No.17, and Sagstrom was one of the two. Go figure.

You might think that when you bogey the 17th in the final round of a tournament that has your name written all over it, and you know that there isn’t much separation between you and the opposition,

Sagstrom's 2nd shot on 18

you might show some sign of nerves, right? Uh-uh. Madelene stepped up to the tee on No.18 stroked one down the middle and was picking up the tee, practically, before it hit the grass. She wisely left her second shot below the hole on the 18th fringe and with two more smooth strokes of the putter she was a champion for the first time.

Sophia had almost popped the top off the bottle of victory that Madelene had been chilling overnight, courtesy of

Walking up 18th fairway; I think she knows

a three-shot lead. But in the end, Madelene may have sagged, but she finished strong enough to claim her first professional victory at a tournament named for one of the most prolific winners in the history of golf. Congratulations to Madelene for a job well done, and I suspect we’ll be saying that repeatedly in days to come.

Yes, the Third Annual Chico's Patty Berg Memorial at Cypress

Caroline Martens 

Lakes Country Club will be memorable to quite a few and for quite a few reasons. We can imagine why it will be memorable to the winners and those who came close. I'll remember it for Caroline Martens' generous smile and gracious manner on Saturday as she thanked her volunteer scorer after shooting her worst round of the event. 

I will also remember Lorie Kane walking off 18 with her

Lorie Kane being a champion

championship sewn up, and patiently waiting while her scorer chatted with someone else. When he finally turned around, she gave him a smile, the "game ball," and a firm handshake. I don't know her, but I suspect Lorie Kane is a champion on and off the golf course!

Before I close, I must give proper kudos to the tournament

Bret Lasky with Howard sisters

staff, especially Bret Lasky, Senior Coordinator, Symetra Tour Media at LPGA, and Tournament Director Matt Hoover for their cooperation. And just in case anyone forgets, no event of this magnitude would be successful without the volunteers and the staff of the host venue. All should take a bow and savor the job well done! Until next...T. A.

Serious volunteer