Ebster, Sorenstam Share Lead at U.S. Senior Women's Open

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By Ron Driscoll, USGA

FAIRFIELD, CONN., (July 29, 2021) -- At the top of the leader board in the 3rd U.S. Senior Women’s Open Championship in rain-delayed Round 1 on Thursday at Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield, Conn., were a pair of rookies: Annika Sorenstam and Dana Ebster.

Sorenstam, of Sweden, a three-time U.S. Women’s Open champion, turned 50 last October and seemed ordained to step into the lead of this championship. The World Golf Hall of Famer birdied her first and last holes of the day in delivering a six-birdie, one-bogey effort that fell one stroke short of the 18-hole record for the fledgling championship, 66s by Laura Davies in 2018 at Chicago Golf Club and by Trish Johnson in 2019 at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club.

“I love the golf course,” said Sorenstam, who played her last U.S. Women’s Open in 2008. “I was very happy how I played today. This course can be quite tricky around the greens. I realize I had a few slippery ones, but it was nice to finish on a high note.”
That Ebster, 51, joined Sorenstam at the top was quite unexpected. The part-time instructor and junior college assistant coach from Modesto, Calif., “was pulling out carts at 6 a.m.” in the days before she traveled to the championship.

“I’m so thankful for my club back home, Turlock Golf and Country Club,” said Ebster, who competed against two-time USGA champion Pat Hurst while growing up in Northern California. “They raised money for me to get here. I’m just the little club pro who came out, and so I’m super-excited.”

Ebster joined Sorenstam at 5 under in dramatic fashion, with an eagle on her final hole of the day, the 513-yard, par-5 11th, holing out a 115-yard shot with a 9-iron. Afterward, Ebster stood at the interview podium and tried to assess her lofty position in the 120-player field that includes 11 past U.S. Women’s Open champions.

“OMG – that’s all I got to say, OMG,” said Ebster, who has run the junior golf program at Turlock for three years and got into the field as the first alternate from the Woodburn, Ore., qualifying site.

“I play every Friday with my ladies’ group, and then between lessons I’ll get out and hit a few shots and practice chipping and putting. But, you know, I really don’t get a lot of time to practice.”

Sorenstam and Ebster have a two-stroke cushion on the 60 players in the morning wave who completed their rounds, with Kris Tschetter (the runner-up to Sorenstam in the 1996 U.S. Women’s Open) posting a 3-under 69, and 1988 U.S. Women’s Open champion Liselotte Neumann, of Sweden, at 2-under 70. Laura Davies, of England, who won the inaugural U.S. Senior Women’s Open at Chicago Golf Club in 2018, was in a quartet of players at 1-under 71 with 1984 U.S. Women’s Open runner-up Rosie Jones, 2021 Solheim Cup captain Catriona Matthew of Scotland and seven-time USGA champion Ellen Port.

Play was halted by rain at 3:53 p.m., and it was suspended for the day at 5:15 p.m., with the afternoon wave roughly halfway through the round. The course absorbed about an inch of rain.

What's Next
Play is scheduled to resume on Friday morning at 8 a.m. EDT, with Round 2 tee times delayed 2.5 hours from when they were originally scheduled. Upon completion of 36 holes, the field will be cut to the low 50 scorers and ties. Play will be televised on Golf Channel from 2-5 p.m. EDT on Saturday and Sunday.

Notable
Martha Leach, who has played in more than 70 USGA championships, made her first hole-in-one in USGA competition – and fourth ace overall – on Thursday morning. Leach, 59, of Hebron, Ky., who won the 2009 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur and was the low amateur in the inaugural U.S. Senior Women’s Open, is the sister of six-time USGA champion Hollis Stacy, who shot 3-over 75 on Thursday. With her daughter, Madison Gerstle, on the bag, Leach holed a 9-iron on the 125-yard 15th hole on the way to a 2-over 74.

Leach went 3-2-2-1 on the four par 3s at Brooklawn on Thursday. Her ace is the second in U.S. Senior Women’s Open history: Lara Tennant, the two-time U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur champion, made an ace on the 7th hole in Round 1 at Chicago Golf Club in 2018. Tennant, of Portland, Ore., opened with a 4-over 76 on Thursday.

Five-time USGA champion and two-time U.S. Senior Women’s Open runner-up Juli Inkster shot 1-over 73 and was joined at that figure by Michelle McGann, a first-time competitor in the championship. McGann, 51, won seven times on the LPGA Tour between 1995 and 1997. Defending champion Helen Alfredsson, of Sweden, was one stroke farther back at 74.

JoAnne Carner, 82, shot her age on Thursday for the second time in this championship, becoming the oldest player in USGA history to accomplish the feat in the process. The eight-time USGA champion had a 10-over-par 82, and had a chance to break 80 before making a double bogey on her final hole. “I had some back spasms out there and could not do what I wanted to do,” said Carner. “I think I only missed like four greens. I three-putted a lot, and if I missed a green – well, I made two doubles missing the green.”

Carner also became the oldest player to compete in a USGA championship, topping Harold “Jug” McSpaden, who was 81 when he played in the 1990 U.S. Senior Open.

Quotable
“I’m one of those people that always tells my players, don’t be nervous. We worked all of our life to be in this moment. You know, as a kid, on the putting green, this putt is for the U.S. Open. I turned to my son [Chris] out there and I said, this is what it’s all about. This is what we work hard for.” – Dana Ebster, who is an assistant coach at Modesto Junior College.

“I love playing golf, and that’s really all I want to do. Just play, and if I play with the 18-hole ladies’ league or… Hopefully they will still invite me to the Ladies Invitational, because that’s the most fun.” – Ebster, on playing with members at Turlock Golf and Country Club in Modesto.

“I actually asked Liselotte, when did we play last? We said maybe 15 years plus or something. So it’s been a long time. It was nice. I loved the pairing; it brings back some great memories. That's what I think this week is about.” – Annika Sorenstam, on playing with Liselotte Neumann and Laura Davies.

“What I like about being a little older and being away from the game is I can forget about bad shots quickly. Before I couldn’t. I would hold onto them for a while and they would beat me up. Now it’s like, OK, just move on. When you don’t play a lot, you’re going to hit a fat shot, you’re going to hit it to the right. So, you know, just go find it and make the most out of that.” – Sorenstam, on her attitude.

Ron Driscoll is the senior manager of content for the USGA. Email him at rdriscoll@usga.org.