(22 June 2009 – Mason, Ohio)
rn
Whitney Wade from Kentucky gave her father and caddy a memorable Fathers Day gift when she rallied from six shots back to fire a 5-under-par 66 to win the $125,000 Duramed Championship at 9-under par total 204. She beat good friend Jean Reynolds from Georgia, who finished second at 8-under par total 205 with former Australian Junior Girls Champion Misun Cho a further shot back in third.
rn
rnReynolds, Wade and amateur Victoria Kiser (70) of Florida, who finished seventh at 4-under par total 209, were playing in the second-to-last group behind leader Sweden’s Pernilla Lindberg. In the first round Lindberg tied LPGA and World Golf Hall of Famer Patty Sheehan’s 1984 course record of 8-under-par 63. The Swede extended her lead on the second day to take a three-shot advantage into the final round.
rn
rnThe final round was a different story for Lindberg, a former All-American from Oklahoma State University, playing her third tournament as a professional. She stumbled early with bogeys on her first two holes, but countered her opening bogeys with birdies on the sixth and ninth holes and even held on to her lead after she scrambled a bogey on the 10th. Ultimately, her undoing came when she carded a double-bogey on the par-4 12th hole after she flew the green into a water hazard. At that point, she had slipped into a four-way tie with Cho, Reynolds and Wade. “It was really one bad swing that cost way too much,” said Lindberg, who finished with a 4-over-par score of 75 to tie for fourth at 6-under par total 207 with Cindy Lacrosse (72) of Florida.
rn
rnWade was cruising along on the back nine and rolled in a 15-foot birdie putt on the 14th hole to take the lead. At that point, Reynolds and Lindberg were still within striking distance, one shot behind. Down the stretch, Cho birdied the 15th, but played the last three holes at even par while Wade and Reynolds had both made a brace of birdies. This left Wade one front walking up the last where Reynolds drained her 18-footer for birdie to tie it up. That left Wade staring at a five-foot, uphill birdie chance for the win which she calmly holed to give her dad the best Father’s Day present ever. Afterwards Wade said, “I had missed an eight-foot chance for birdie on the 16th hole that my momma could have made, so I knew I had to make that birdie on the 18th. When it went in, all I could think was, ‘Did this really happen?”
rn
rn“For this to happen today, it’s just icing on the cake,” said her dad, who also carried her bag on Father’s Day at the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open when she made the cut on the number.
rn
rnRachel Bailey was the only Australian in the field finishing in a tie for 81st at 12-over par total 225.