Gigi Stoll (L) and Amanda Jacobs (PNGA photo)
Pullman, WA (July 13, 2018) – Gigi Stoll of Tigard, Ore. defeated Alivia Brown of Gig Harbor, Wash. 2&1 to win the 117th Pacific Northwest Women’s Amateur Championship; while Amanda Jacobs of Portland, Ore. defeated Gretchen Johnson, also of Portland, 4&2 to win the 17th Pacific Northwest Women’s Mid-Amateur.
Both championships were held concurrently this week at Palouse Ridge Golf Club in Pullman, Wash. and conducted by the Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA).
Stoll, the No. 2 seed in the bracket, never trailed in her match with Brown, and had a 4-up lead after the morning round in their 36-hole match. Brown did put up a fight in the afternoon round, but couldn’t get closer than the 2-hole deficit.
“It was a tough match with Alivia, and I had a really great time playing today,” Stoll said after the match.
Although score is not technically kept during match play, Stoll had shot an 8-under 64 in the morning round of the today’s match. “Alivia is a great player, and I knew there weren’t going to be many bogeys today, so I went into the match with the attitude that I needed to go after it right away.”
Stoll won the first hole of the afternoon round to go 5-up on the match, and took it home for the win.
Stoll will be a senior at the University of Arizona, and recently led Arizona’s women’s golf team to the NCAA D-I National Title. Stoll made it to the quarterfinals of last year’s Women’s Amateur, and has been named PNGA Women’s Player of the Year three times (2014, 2015, 2017). She has won the Oregon Women’s Amateur three times (2014, 2015, 2017) and the Oregon Junior Amateur three times (2011, 2013, 2014).
Brown was the No. 1 seed in the championship’s bracket. She finished runner-up in the 2015 PNGA Women’s Amateur, won the 2015 Washington State Women’s Amateur, was named the 2015 WSGA Women’s Player of the Year, and is a recent graduate of Washington State University where she played four years on the women’s golf team. She was playing this championship on her home course of Palouse Ridge, home of the WSU men’s and women’s golf teams.
For Jacobs, this is her third PNGA Women’s Mid-Amateur title, having previously won in 2014 and 2016. In last year’s championship, she made it to the semifinals.
Jacobs and Johnson are friends, and in last year’s championship match, Jacobs, after being ousted in the semis, caddied for Johnson in the final match.
“It’s always a great day on the golf course when you have the opportunity of playing against your best friend,” said Jacobs, after closing out Johnson. “I took a break from golf after college, and this event (the Women’s Mid-Amateur) was the first one I played in once I started playing again, so it’s close to my heart from that standpoint; it got my competitive juices going again, and with a lot of practice I’ve been able to play well in it the past few years.”
Jacobs was the No. 1 seed in the bracket, and Johnson was the No. 2 seed. “I started striking the ball really well on the back nine today,” Jacobs said. “And then sunk a couple of 20-30 footers, which really helps. Gretchen played well, I just happened to make a couple more putts today.”
Jacobs was named the PNGA Women’s Mid-Amateur Player of the Year in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
This is the second year in a row that Johnson has made it to the final match, only to finish runner-up. She lost last year’s final match, 3&2, to Christina Proteau of Port Alberni, B.C.
First held in 1899, the Pacific Northwest Women’s Amateur Championship is one of the oldest amateur golf championships in the world. Past champions include Pacific Northwest Golf Hall of Famers who made up the Golden Age of female golfers in the Northwest such as JoAnne Carner, Jo Ann Washam, Pat Lesser Harbottle, Edean Ihlanfeldt, Violet Pooly Sweeney, Marcia Fisher, and Betty Jean Hulteng, among others. Past champions also include many others who would later go on to the LPGA Tour, such as Jimin Kang, Peggy Conley, Ruth Jessen and Shirley Englehorn
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ABOUT THE
PNGA Women's Amateur
The Championship will be conducted in two stages:
Stroke Play – All players must complete the 36-hole
stroke play qualifying in order to determine
the 32 players who will advance to match play. In
the event of a tie for the final qualifying
spot(s), a sudden-death playoff will be used to
determine the qualfiiers. In the event of a tie for
the Qualifying Medalist, a sudden-death playoff will
commence.
Match Play – The General Numerical Draw will be in
effect. Single elimination match play, with a
36-hole Championship Final Match. All other matches
are 18 holes.
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