Stroke-play medalist Akemi Khaiat, 50, of Japan, and defending champion Ellen Port, 52, of St. Louis, were among the 32 winners Monday in the first round of match play at the 52nd USGA Senior Women’s Amateur Championship at CordeValle.
Khaiat, who is playing in her first Senior Women’s Amateur, won four consecutive holes on the opening nine and defeated Ellie Layton, of Rochester, Minn., 5 and 4, on the 5,996-yard, par-72 Robert Trent Jones Jr. layout.
"At the beginning, because of nerves, I wasn’t swinging well," said Khaiat, a property investor who lives in Los Angeles and holds Japanese citizenship. "But at the end I got the rhythm back. It took a while but I hung around. I am just trying not to make a mistake."
Khaiat made a trip last week to Japan to play in the Kanto State Senior Amateur and returned just before Saturday’s first day of the competition, too late for a practice round at CordeValle, and admitted that she had low expectations. Earlier this summer, she was the runner-up at the 2013 Japan Senior Women’s Amateur.
"Match play is so different, said Khaiat, a seven-time club champion at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. "I am still learning. There is another match. There is still so much left."
Port, a five-time USGA champion, including the 2012 Senior Women’s Amateur at Hershey (Pa.) Country Club, won holes 15, 16 and 17 to come from behind to defeat Lisa Smego, of Olympia, Wash., 2 and 1.
"I was a totally different person from the two days of qualifying," said Port, who will captain the 2014 USA Curtis Cup Team. "I was swinging too slow. But I focused on swinging hard and through and ramping up the volume. That was experience."
Port said her considerable USGA championship background served her well in the up-and-down match.
"It looked like I was going to be up and instead she was up," said the high school teacher and coach. "I’ve been in every situation in the last 25 years. I’ve come from behind and when I had a big lead and I see it go away. I can assess what’s going on with myself. When I see any warning signs – that I’m starting to think poorly, or I don’t think I can come back in this match – I remember it’s not over."
Martha Leach, 51, of Hebron, Ky., the 2009 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion, Mary Budke, 59, of Palm Springs, Calif., the 1972 U.S. Women’s Amateur winner, and Corey Weworski, 51, of Carlsbad, Calif., the 2004 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion, also advanced.
In an all-Northern California match, Lynne Cowan, 50, of Rocklin, Calif., a golf sales representative who attended San Jose State, defeated Juvy Timan, 51, of Watsonville, Calif., 2 and 1.
"I didn’t play as well as I would have liked to," Cowan said. "I putted well. I didn’t hit the ball very well. I scrambled quite a bit. But, I had this on my calendar for two and half years since the press release went out from the USGA. I sat down and said, when do I turn 50? I did the math, figured it out. This has been on my calendar and I have been anticipating it for quite a while."
Only one other Northern California player advanced to the second round: Marianne Towersey of Pebble Beach, who defeated Carol Sarkissian, of Chino Hills, Calif., 5 and 3. Sandra Woodruff, of Santa Cruz, lost in 19 holes to Marilyn Hardy, of Houston, and Rachel Moreaux, of San Rafael, lost 2 down to Joan Higgins, of Glendora, Calif.
The second and third rounds of match play are scheduled for Tuesday with the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds set for Wednesday. The championship is scheduled to conclude with an 18-hole final on Thursday, Sept. 26, starting at 8 a.m. (PDT).
In addition to Port, three other past championships won their matches and advanced to the second round: Sherry Herman, of Holmdel, N.J., who won in 2009, Mina Hardin, of Fort Worth, Texas, who won in 2010, and Terri Frohnmayer, of Salem, Ore., who won in 2011.
The USGA Senior Women’s Amateur, for players 50 years and older, is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.
Pete Kowalski is the director of championship communications for the USGA. Email him at pkowalski@usga.org.
SAN MARTIN, Calif. – Results from Monday’s first round of match play at the 2013 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur Championship, played at 5,996-yard, par-72 CordeValle:
Round of 64
Upper Bracket
Akemi Nakata Khaiat, Japan (147) def. Ellie Layton, Rochester, Minn. (164), 5 and 4
Lisa McGill, Philadelphia, Pa. (158) def. Jane Fitzgerald, Kensington, Md. (158), 2 up
Patty Moore, Charlotte, N.C. (155) def. Gigi Higgins, Cape Coral, Fla. (160), 5 and 4
Ellen Port, St. Louis, Mo. (156) def. Lisa Smego, Olympia, Wash. (160), 2 and 1
Marilyn Hardy, Houston, Texas (152) def. Sandra Woodruff, Santa Cruz, Calif. (162), 19 holes
Leigh Klasse, St. Anthony, Minn. (159) def. Kareen Markle, Meridian, Idaho (157), 3 and 2
Michelle Burgess, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (162) def. Brenda Pictor, Marietta, Ga. (153), 5 and 4
Kathy Kurata, Pasadena, Calif. (159) def. Taffy Brower, Boynton Beach, Fla. (157), 6 and 5
Lynne Cowan, Rocklin, Calif. (150) def. Juvy Timan, Watsonville, Calif. (163), 2 and 1
Tanna Richard, Fort Smith, Ark. (158) def. Kathleen Kolar, Rancho Mirage, Calif. (159), 5 and 4
Liz Waynick, Scottsdale, Ariz. (154) def. Anna Schultz, Rockwall, Texas (161), 19 holes
Becky Neal, Mansfield, Texas (157) def. Jewell Malick, Rockwall, Texas (160), 5 and 3
Helene Maxe, Sweden (151) def. Peggy Brady, Huntersville, N.C. (163), 6 and 5
Mary Ann Hayward, Canada (158) def. Julie Massa, Holt, Mich. (159), 5 and 3
Mary Jane Hiestand, Naples, Fla. (154) def. Therese Quinn, Jacksonville, Fla. (161), 2 and 1
Terri Frohnmayer, Salem, Ore. (157) def. Linda Pearson, Glendale, Calif. (160), 3 and 2
Lower Bracket
Mina Hardin, Fort Worth, Texas (148) def. Mary Petrovich, West Bloomfield, Mich. (164), 6 and 5
Cindy Morris, Portsmouth, Va. (159) def. Sydney Wells, Menominee, Mich. (158), 1 up
Karen Ferree, Hilton Head, S.C. (161) def. Marie-Therese Torti, Canada (155), 19 holes
Sue McMurdy, Indiana, Pa. (160) def. Kim Eaton, Tempe, Ariz. (156), 3 and 2
Caryn Wilson, Rancho Mirage, Calif. (152) def. Maureen Sheehan, Grayslake, Ill. (163), 4 and 3
Mary Budke, Palm Springs, Calif. (159) def. Leilani Norman, Eugene, Ore. (157), 6 and 4
Amy Dickison, Rowley, Mass. (162) def. Lisa Schlesinger, Laytonsville, Md. (154), 2 and 1
Pamela Kuong, Wellesley Hills, Mass. (157) def. Carol S Thompson, Sewickley, Pa. (159), 2 and 1
Martha Leach, Hebron, Ky. (150) def. Laura Carson, Lake Bluff, Ill. (163), 5 and 4
Lin McMillan, Palm Coast, Fla. (159) def. Sue Wooster, Australia (158), 3 and 1
Corey Weworski, Carlsbad, Calif. (155) vs. Alexandra Frazier, West Conshohocken, Pa. (161)
Helene Chartrand, Canada (156) def. Carolyn Creekmore, Dallas, Texas (160), 2 up
Sherry Herman, Holmdel, N.J. (151) def. Deborah Anderson, Rancho Mirage, Calif. (163), 2 up
Joan Higgins, Glendora, Calif. (159) def. Rachel Moreaux, San Rafael, Calif. (158), 2 and 1
Susan Cohn, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (154) def. Nancy Kromar, Austin, Texas (162), 4 and 3
Marianne Towersey, Pebble Beach, Calif. (160) def. Carol Sarkissian, Chino Hills, Calif. (157), 5 and 3
SAN MARTIN, Calif. – Pairings for Tuesday’s second round of match play at the 2013 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur Championship, played at 5,996-yard, par-72 CordeValle (All times PDT).
Round of 32
Upper Bracket
8 a.m. -- Akemi Nakata Khaiat, Japan (147) vs. Lisa McGill, Philadelphia, Pa. (158)
8:10 a.m. -- Patty Moore, Charlotte, N.C. (155) vs. Ellen Port, St. Louis, Mo. (156)
8:20 a.m. -- Marilyn Hardy, Houston, Texas (152) vs. Leigh Klasse, St. Anthony, Minn. (159)
8:30 a.m. -- Michelle Burgess, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (162) vs. Kathy Kurata, Pasadena, Calif. (159)
8:40 a.m. -- Lynne Cowan, Rocklin, Calif. (150) vs. Tanna Richard, Fort Smith, Ark. (158)
8:50 a.m. -- Liz Waynick, Scottsdale, Ariz. (154) vs. Becky Neal, Mansfield, Texas (157)
9 a.m. -- Helene Maxe, Sweden (151) vs. Mary Ann Hayward, Canada (158)
9:10 a.m. -- Mary Jane Hiestand, Naples, Fla. (154) vs. Terri Frohnmayer, Salem, Ore. (157)
Lower Bracket
9:20 a.m. -- Mina Hardin, Ft Worth, Texas (148) vs. Cindy Morris, Portsmouth, Va. (159)
9:30 a.m. -- Karen Ferree, Hilton Head, S.C. (161) vs. Sue McMurdy, Indiana, Pa. (160)
9:40 a.m. -- Caryn Wilson, Rancho Mirage, Calif. (152) vs. Mary Budke, Palm Springs, Calif. (159)
9:50 a.m. -- Amy Dickison, Rowley, Mass. (162) vs. Pamela Kuong, Wellesley Hills, Mass. (157)
10 a.m. -- Martha Leach, Hebron, Ky. (150) vs. Lin McMillan, Palm Coast, Fla. (159)
10:10 a.m. -- Corey Weworski, Carlsbad, Calif. (155) vs. Helene Chartrand, Canada (156)
10:20 a.m. -- Sherry Herman, Holmdel, N.J. (151) vs. Joan Higgins, Glendora, Calif. (159)
10:30 a.m. -- Susan Cohn, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (154) vs. Marianne Towersey, Pebble Beach, Calif. (160)