Whitney Britton won three straight holes to secure her win
USGA/Matt Sullivan photo
Ashley Tonore, 38, of Monroe, La., and Kay
Daniel, 44, of Covington, La., advanced to the
quarterfinals of the 29th U.S. Women’s Mid-
Amateur Championship, conducted in their home
state at the 6,061-yard, par-72 Squire Creek
Country Club.
Both Tonore and Daniel took exciting paths to
Wednesday’s quarterfinals, as Tonore won both of
her Tuesday matches in 19 holes and Daniel
eliminated two Women’s Mid-Amateur champions
in Julia Potter (2013) and four-time winner
Meghan Stasi (2006, 2007, 2010, 2012). Daniel
also eliminated 2004 champion Corey Weworski in
Monday’s Round of 64.
Trailing 1 down in her Round-of-32 match against
Shelly Stouffer, 45, of Canada, Tonore won the
18th hole with a par to force extra holes. Tonore
sealed the win on the par-4 first hole with a tough
two-putt down a steep ridge, while Stouffer’s chip
on her third shot rolled off the other end of the
green.
Tonore then seemed in control in her Round-of-16
match against Rachel Smith, 27, of Mansfield,
Texas, holding a 3-up lead after 12 holes.
However, Smith rallied to win 13, 14 and 17 to
square the match. Tonore again headed to the
first hole, where she won with a par when Smith
missed a 6-footer in her bid to extend the match.
Tonore had a strong show of support from the
locals, which she said helped get her through the
long day.
“I love it. It's great. I think it spurs you on, gives
you that adrenaline when you're playing in front
of people,” said Tonore, an alumna of Louisiana
State University who works in pharmaceutical
sales for Eli Lilly. “I appreciate everybody coming
out and showing their support.”
Daniel won the first two holes in her Round-of-32
match against Potter and never trailed en route to
a 4-and-3 win. Daniel was 1 up through 10 holes,
but pulled away with wins on 11, 13 and 14.
Daniel then found herself in a big hole early in her
match with Stasi. Stasi won the first three holes
before Daniel fought back with wins on 6 and 7.
Daniel was 2 down after 13, but then won four
consecutive holes to stun the four-time champion.
“My first two greens were actually very well-
struck irons. I hit them the way I wanted,” said
Daniel, who is a practicing orthodontist. “So even
though I was 3 down, I didn't feel like I was
playing poorly. I have a lot of confidence in my
short game, so I just had to keep grinding.”
Daniel will face Whitney Britton, 25, of Laguna
Niguel, Calif., in the quarterfinals. Britton
eliminated Sarah Davison, 35, a Choudrant, La.,
resident who lives on the Squire Creek property,
in the Round of 32, and Connie Isler, 31, of
Annapolis, Md., in the Round of 16.
Tonore will face defending champion Margaret
Shirley, 29, of Roswell, Ga., in the quarterfinals.
Shirley had to rally from 2 down at the turn in her
Round-of-32 match against Amanda Jacobs, 27,
of Portland, Ore. Shirley, the 2013 runner-up,
won holes 10 and 12 to draw even, then won 15
and 16 to go 2 up. Jacobs got one back on 17,
but Shirley took the 1-up victory with a halve on
18. Shirley had less trouble in her Round-of-16
match against Dawn Woodard, 41, of Greer, S.C.,
as she only lost one hole on the way to a 4-and-2
triumph.
“I missed a couple really short putts on 2 and 5 in
my first match and my dad pointed out that I was
too quick with my stroke,” said Shirley, the
executive director of Atlanta Junior Golf. “After
that, I made a nice putt on 6 to tie and then
played really well on the back nine. I felt much
better in the afternoon, and that showed with my
play.”
Christina Proteau, 32, of Canada, advanced to the
quarterfinals for the second straight year, which
would have been hard to imagine after she shot a
15-over 87 in the first round of stroke play.
Proteau, a prosecutor for the province of British
Columbia, rebounded with an even-par 72 in the
second round to make match play and has posted
three impressive wins. Proteau defeated fellow
2014 quarterfinalist Debbie Adams in the first
round, then defeated stroke-play medalist Casey
Ward, 25, of Canada in the Round of 32, 3 and 1,
and 2009 Women’s Mid-Amateur champion
Martha Leach, 53, of Hebron, Ky., 4 and 3, in the
Round of 16.
After getting over the initial disappointment of her
opening-round 87, Proteau returned determined
for Round 2.
“Sunday morning, before I teed off, I had my
mind made up what I was going to do,” she said.
“It doesn't always work out that you get it done,
but I did and after that I felt great. If I can do
that, then I can do anything this week if I just
stick to my own game.”
Proteau will face Paige Bromen, 29, of
Minneapolis, Minn., in the quarterfinals. Bromen
won the final three holes of her Round-of-64
match against fellow Minnesotan Olivia Herrick,
27, of Roseville, to advance to Tuesday. She
reached the quarterfinals by defeating Lacy
Shelton, 35, of Overland Park, Kan., and Kristin
Paulson, 25, of Pella, Iowa, in the Rounds of 32
and 16, respectively.
The youngest competitor in the field, Lauren
Greenlief, 25, of Oakton, Va., advanced to the
quarterfinals via victories over Sue Wooster, 53,
of Australia, 3 and 2, and Tara Jay-Connelly, 42,
of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., 4 and 3.
The final Round-of-16 match between Dani Mullin
and Mercedes Huarte was suspended due to
darkness with the match all square after 18 holes.
That match will resume at 7:20 a.m. CDT on
Wednesday on the 10th hole, with the winner
facing Greenlief.
All quarterfinalists are now exempt into the 2016
U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur at The Kahkwa Club in
Erie, Pa.
The quarterfinals begin at 8 a.m. on Wednesday
with the Proteau-Bromen match. The semifinals
will also be conducted on Wednesday, and are
scheduled to begin at 1 p.m., as the field is cut to
two for Thursday’s 18-hole final.
The 2015 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur
Championship is open to female amateur golfers
with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 9.4. It
consists of 36 holes of stroke play followed by six
rounds of match play, with the championship
scheduled to conclude with an 18-hole final on
Thursday, Oct. 8.
The U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship is
one of 13 national championship conducted
annually by the United States Golf Association, 10
of which are strictly for amateurs.