Hiestand Captures Women's Senior Match Play
Mary Jane Hiestand defeated Taffy Brower after 21 holes to win the Inaugural Women’s Senior Amateur Match Play Championship. Sandie St. Onge, Rebecca Montgelas, Ginny Orthwein, Barbara Magie, Karen Varner, Maria McDavid, and Nancy Hersey captured their respective division titles at Bear Lakes Country Club in West Palm Beach, December 8 -10.
Eighteen holes was not enough to determine the Champion between the 2014 Women’s Senior Player of the Year, Mary Jane Hiestand, and the 2014 FSGA inductee into the Hall of Fame, Taffy Brower. In the final match, Brower, of Boynton Beach, was three down after the sixth hole, but fought back to all square going into the 18th hole. On number 18, Taffy faced bunker trouble but sunk a ten foot putt to tie Mary Jane, of Naples, and extend the match to extra holes. On the 19th hole, which is a par four, Brower hits the green in regulation while Hiestand struggles to reach the green in three shots. Hiestand sinks a clutch putt for bogey and Brower three putts to continue the playoff. Hiestand and Brower tie the 20th hole with pars and move onto the 21st hole. Both players hit their approach shots short of the hole and Hiestand was first to putt. Hiestand rolls her 40 foot putt into the hole for birdie and wins the Championship. This caps off Hiestand’s excellent year after winning the Women’s Senior Amateur Championship in April.
In the Championship First Flight, Sandie St. Onge, of Jensen Beach, defeated Patsy Ehret, of Stuart, after a par on the 19th hole to win the match. Rebecca Montgelas, second seed in the Championship Second Flight, from Hobe Sound, defeated Bridget Koch, of Palm Beach, 6 & 5. In the Middle First Flight, Ginny Orthwein, fifth seed from Wellington, defeated second seed, Karen Moss, after 19 holes. Barbara Magie, of Wellington, and Kerry Timm, of Tampa, played one extra hole to determine the winner of the Middle Second Flight. Timm three putted for a bogey and Magie, number two seed, claimed the win with a par. In the Middle Third Flight, Karen Varner, a member at Bear Lakes, dominated the match as the number one seed to win 6 & 4 over Sandi Deschaine, of Jacksonville. Maria McDavid, of Stuart, defeated Sara Aye, of Gulfport, 2 &1, to win the Forward First Flight. In the Forward Second Flight, Nancy Hersey, of Greenacres, conquered her bracket in all matches, never making it to the 17th hole. In the final match Hersey defeated Carole Browne, of Wellington, 5 & 4.
Each flight had a consolation bracket after the Quarterfinal Matches. Alison Reifers, Joann Ferrieri, Kathie Westlund, Patti Petersen, Nora Faller, Joyce Martin, Charliene Lemon-Steiner, and Carol Brown were winners of their respective consolation bracket.
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