If for no other reason, Mary Weinstein enjoyed winning the CWGA Junior Stroke Play Championship so she wouldn’t be left in the position she was earlier in the week at Heritage at Westmoor in Westminster.
“It’s a good feeling because one of the CWGA ladies came up to me before the tournament — she wanted to give a little spiel about every single person when we teed off — and she asked me if I’d won a CHSAA tournament or a CWGA tournament,” Weinstein recounted on Wednesday. “I was like, ‘No, I haven’t. Sorry. My bad.'”
But that won’t be an issue again.
On Wednesday, the 17-year-old from Highlands Ranch overcame a quadruple-bogey 8 and birdied the final hole Wednesday to win the 37th Junior Stroke Play Championship.
The senior-to-be at Regis Jesuit High School, who took a six-stroke lead into Wednesday, recovered from going quadruple bogey-bogey-bogey on holes 11 through 13 to play her final five in 2 under par and post a one-stroke victory.
Not that either of the top two contestants knew the outcome when they walked off the 18th green. Gillian Vance of CommonGround Golf Course had no idea she’d finished a stroke behind Weinstein, who was so convinced she was headed for a playoff that she put her glove back on as she exited the green.
“I didn’t think I won,” she said. “I thought Gillian made the (4-foot par) putt on the last hole to get into a playoff. I thought I needed that eagle putt to go in (to win outright).”
Weinstein (left and above), who last week qualified for the IMG Academy Junior World Golf Championships, shot a 7-over-par 79 Wednesday and recorded a 4-over 220 total.
Vance, who won the 5A state high school title last month, was a stroke ahead going into the final two holes on Wednesday, but a bogey on 17 and Weinstein’s birdie on 18 left her a shot back overall, good for second place. Vance carded a 74 on Wednesday.
Caroline Jordaan of Cherry Hills Country Club placed third Wednesday as a 74 left her at 224.
If you think Vance would have been better off knowing exactly how she stood coming down the stretch, she begs to differ.
“I never want to know exactly where we are because I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself,” said the University of Colorado signee. “I just like to float in my own little zone.”
Vance (left) actually caught Weinstein when the latter made her snowman on No. 11. And Vance had a two-shot advantage after Weinstein bogeyed the next two.
“I wasn’t really keeping Gillian’s score but in the back of my head I was,” Weinstein said. “So I thought after that (11th) hole she was gaining on me. So I was like, ‘I’ve got to get this back, I’ve got to get this back.’ That 8 kind of ruined my day.”
But Weinstein’s strong finish, with birdies on 14 and 18, salvaged the victory.
“It was a good fight and it was really fun,” Vance said, noting that it was likely her final CWGA junior championship. “I felt good. I was happy that I was kind of consistent. I would have loved to have putted better but that happens to everybody.”
With Weinstein and Vance all square through 17, both found the fairway off the tee on the par-5 18th. But Vance pulled her second shot left of the green, and her pitch over a bunker went 25 feet past the cup.
Weinstein hit the green in two with a 190-yard approach, leaving her 40 feet for eagle. She two-putted for birdie, and Vance couldn’t convert on her birdie attempt to force a playoff.
Weinstein called the win her biggest accomplishment in golf.
“I’ve never won a three-day tournament or a tournament this big,” said Weinstein, who has helped Regis to back-to-back girls state team titles in Class 5A.
CWGA Junior Stroke Play
At Par-72 Heritage at Westmoor in Westminster
Championship Flight
Mary Weinstein, CWGA Junior Club 70-71-79–220
Gillian Vance, CommonGround WGA 74-73-74–221
Caroline Jordaan, Cherry Hills CC WGA 75-75-74–224
Hailey Schalk, Colorado National WGA 76-76-77–229
Rachel Hardy, Dos Rios WGA 71-80-79–230
Delaney Elliott, CommonGround WGA 76-76-79–231
Hannah More, Pinehurst CC WGA 78-75-78–231
Delaney Benson, CommonGround WGA 73-80-81–234
Flight 1
Erin Sargent, Twin Peaks LGA 75-80-78–233
Ashlyn Kirschner, West Woods Wgc 78-79-79–236
Joanna Kempton, Lone Tree WGA 78-80-79–237
Amy Chitkoksoong, Commonground Wgc 77-81-80–238
Anna Kennedy, Denver CC Lga 75-83-82–240
Jaclyn Murray, Bookcliff CC Wga 74-89-78–241
Adara Pauluhn, Indian Peaks WGA 78-78-85–241
Kelsey Webster, Boulder CC Wga 78-86-87–251
Flight 2
Emilee Strausburg, The Club at Rolling Hills Wga 80-76-80–236
Kellsey Sample, CWGA Junior Club 80-81-78–239
Lexi Ringsby, Denver CC 80-84-75–239
Lauren Murphy, Aspen Glen Wga 80-80-80–240
Alexis Mikayla Chan, CommonGround WGA 79-82-79–240
Sarah Hwang, CommonGround WGA 79-84-79–242
Elena Barboza, CWGA Junior Club 81-84-90–255
Emma Mellman, Cherry Creek CC Wga 81-87-94–262
Flight 3
Sarah Hunt, CWGA Junior Club 83-77-75–235
Kelsey Mckenna, CWGA Junior Club 84-83-77–244
Sydney Prey, CWGA Junior Club 86-82-80–248
Natasha Brandy McClain, Denver CC Lga 85-80-86–251
Julia Baroth, CommonGround WGA 87-88-81–256
Ashlee Sample, Cwga Junior Club 84-87-85–256
Mariah Ehrman, Heritage at Westmoor WGA 87-88-84–259
Flight 4
Lauren Lehigh, Loveland Wga 89-79-79–247
Riley McKibbon, The Club at Rolling Hills Wga 92-82-89–263
Caitlyn Olson, Highland Hills GC 92-90-84–266
Makena Prey, CWGA Junior Club 99-94-89–282
Molli Boruff, Twin Peaks WGA 95-104-85–284
Sarah Goldsmith, Lga at Blackstone/Black Bear 97-92-108–297
