Sue Curtin (Massachusetts Golf Association Photo)
When two of the state’s best amateur golfers are paired together in the final group, you know there will be some excitement.
On Wednesday,
Sue Curtin and
Pamela Kuong dueled in an epic battle on a muggy afternoon at Hatherly Country Club. When the dust settled, Curtin pulled away with her first state Women’s Senior Amateur win. Curtin swung the match with a 20-foot birdie putt on No. 12 to take the lead, capturing a two-stroke victory.
“Going in today, I just knew Pam would be such a hard competitor to be against, and she never lets up,” said Curtin, whose shot rounds of 75-76. “I just knew I had to stay steady and focus on one shot at a time and just managed to do that today.”
Entering the final round with a share of the lead, Curtin made a tremendous up-and-down for par out of the bunker on the opening hole. Despite a double-bogey on the third, she stayed within reach of Kuong. Curtin got a boost when her caddy, Hatherly member Mary Mulcahy, returned to guide her on the back nine.
“She helped me read greens and keep me focused shot by shot,” Curtin said of Mulcahy, who caddied for Curtin on Tuesday. “She has such a great demeanor, and we see many of the same things on the golf course.”
Kuong led by one when the final group reached the 12th hole, but when they walked off the green, Curtin then had the lead by a stroke and never gave it back. She didn’t even budge on the 14th, when her tee shot bounced into the woods right and she had to take an unplayable. Both she and Kuong made bogey on the hole.
“I had a good number in my hands and I love the shape of the shot,” Curtin said of the 12th hole. “[It was] an uphill lie, and I put a little draw on i. Where the pin was — being a little long and just left of it — left me in a good position for that putt.”
Curtin also gave a nod to the camaraderie of the women in the field. Many of them were watching and cheering from the porch as the final groups played the last two holes.
“We were commenting on what an incredible group of women we have out here,” said Curtin, also a two-time winner of the Massachusetts Women’s Championship Mid-Amateur for the Keyes Cup in 2017 and 2019. “It’s great to be out here with your friends and compete against them.”
LEGENDS DIVISION
For the second straight year, Mary Gale captured a convincing victory in the Legends Division (age 70+) of the championship. Gale, the 2010 and 2012 championship winner, shot 83-87 to finish T18 overall.
Mary Gale
“I’ve been playing in this a long time, and this is a gift to be able to continue to compete and win a trophy, so it’s great,” said Gale, who won the Massachusetts Women’s Amateur back in 1996.
Though she struggled to hit greens in regulation, Gale was accurate off the tee and hit solid chips to avoid big numbers.
“It was a very challenging golf course,” Gale said of Hatherly. “When I came down Monday, I walked the course and thought it was pretty open. But you have to hit it. A lot of the holes played very long, especially the par-4s. It was kind of them to give us a few days here.”
View results for Massachusetts Women's Senior
ABOUT THE Massachusetts Women's Senior
Classes A/B/C/D/E play 18-36 holes of individual stroke
play. Gross and net competitions for seniors (ages 50+)
and legends
(ages 70+). Must have a current established GHIN
handicap from a Massachusetts Golf Association
member club.
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