Smith into semis at North And South
IN: News | US Womens Amateur | North and South Women's Amateur (2008) | Quarter-Finals | by Liz White | 19 Jul 2008
It was another solid day at the office for West Australia’s Kristie Smith, who has made it through to the semi finals of the North and South Championships being played at Pinehurst No 2.
Smith defeated Florida’s Marika Lendl 3 & 2 after again shooting a sub-par round to advance.
“Today I actually felt a little out of sorts early, things just didn’t feel right but I managed to turn it around,” she said.
It was an unusual start for Smith who all week has claimed the first hole to go one up but today it was Lendl who applied the pressure early.
“When she won the first I just thought ‘It’s okay I am only one down,’ and then I managed to get it back on the second so that was a steadier.”
However, consecutive bogeys on 4 and 5 gave Lendl, daughter of tennis star, Ivan, a one up advantage until an amazing turn of events on the 6th.
The par three was playing longer than usual with the girls placed way back. Lendl found the bunker and Smith’s 4 iron landed on the apron of the green, about 60 feet short.
After a brief conversation with her caddie, Stacey Keating, Smith decided to putt the ball.
“Stacey said just putt it up there, Marika’s got a tough up and down out of the bunker, so I putted it, it was uphill all the way and if it had not hit the hole it would have gone 20 feet past,” she laughed.
“It has hit the hole, jumped about three feet in the air and dropped in, it was a real momentum swing right there.”
The match remained square until the ninth when Smith pulled another miraculous shot out of the bag on the 151 yard par three.
“My shot literally plugged in the green one inch from the hole, I couldn’t believe it. That then gave me a lead of one at the turn.”
A par on the 10th and Smith looked like she was starting to run away with the match until Lendl grabbed a win on the 13th. With the match delicately poised, one up to Smith with 5 to play, the 20-year-old stopped Lendl in her tracks with another match play special.
On the par four 14th Smith holed a 30 footer to go two up. She then sealed it on the short par five 16th.
“I just hung in there today, I didn’t get too down on myself when I was behind and not playing so well early, it is match play and anything can happen,” she said.
“I didn’t hit many fairways early so I think that had a bit to do with my poor start, but I turned it around so I am happy that I was able to do that.”
In the other quarter finals at Pinehurst No 2, the playoff queen, Georgetown’s Chelsea Curtis defeated North Carolina’s Sydney Crane on the 19th.
It was Curtis’ fourth playoff match of the week and she had to come from way behind to force the match into extra holes.
Curtis was three down at the turn but rallied with birdies on 10 and 11 to claw back to one down. Crane then missed a seven footer for par on the 17th to give Curtis momentum heading down the 18th.
Pars on the 18th forced the match into extra time and it was Crane who cracked first, missing her par putt to hand Curtis the win.
No 7 seed, Cindy La Crosse, Stephanie Na’s victor in round two, made it through to the semis after a 2 & 1 win over Florida’s Catherine O’Donnell. La Crosse was up by three at the turn and despite a late charge from O’Donnell, the Louisville University student held her out on the 17th for the win.
Local Blair Lamb birdied the 18th to win her match 2 up against Garrett Phillips and will now meet Smith in the semis.
It will be a grudge match as Lamb defeated Smith’s fellow travelling partner, Stacey Keating, on the 20th hole in Thursday’s round three match. After holding a two up advantage with two to go, Keating could only watch on helplessly as Lamb birdied 17 and 18 to get the match back to square.
It only got worse for the Victorian who was devastated to lose on the second play-off hole after Lamb sank a 20 foot bomb for the victory.
“That would be nice if I could win that one,” Kristie said.
“Obviously she is a good player but I know that after the first few holes there are massive birdie opportunities out there for me so I am just going to hang in there.”
