The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Cox holds off Lee to win Conn. Women’s Am
ORANGE — It’s not easy to keep positive thoughts when things aren’t going right on the golf course, but Kyra Cox did her best to keep that positive mindset.
That wasn’t easy as Cox’s 5-shot lead dwindled down to 1 on Wednesday. But Cox righted herself with pars on the final two holes to win the 56th Connecticut Women’s Amateur championship at Race Brook Country Club.
“Today was tough. I didn’t play very good golf. Off the tee was a lot better (Tuesday), especially on this course, you have to stay in the fairway,” Cox said. “I tried to keep calm, not get too upset, stay positive and try to finish out strong.”
Cox, a Ridgefield resident, shot a 77 in the final round to finish her tworound total at 3-over-par 145, 2 strokes better than Kaitlyn Lee. Cox had shot a 3-under 68 in Tuesday’s opening round.
Both Cox and Lee are Division I collegiate golfers: Cox a rising senior at Furman, Lee a junior-to-be at Yale. The two played in the same group on Wednesday. Cox’s lead stood at 2 through 13 holes when a lightning delay suspended play.
“I didn’t check the board or anything (to see where she stood),” Lee said. “I stuck to the same game plan and (during the delay) focused on other things, talked with my friends.”
Lee cut the deficit to 1 when she parred 16 and Cox made bogey. But Lee then hit it into the tree line on 17 and made bogey. Lee shot a 73 Wednesday.
“I left every putt short. I didn’t really give myself chances for birdie,” Lee said. “I had a lot of those opportunities. I didn’t really take advantage of that, but I’m really happy with my game right now.”
For Cox, it’s her second victory in the championship, having won it in 2018 at Hartford GC. And like in 2018, Cox won the New York State Women’s Amateur just before this event.
“To do it in the same year again is really special. That win (in the New York State Amateur) gave me a lot of confidence,” Cox said.
The victory was also a bit of redemption for Cox. She led going into the final round in 2019, but faltered and finished tied for sixth.
“Two years ago was really, really rough. Then COVID was awful,” said Lee, who didn’t play in the Women’s Amateur last year.
Sophia Sarrazin, the defending champion, finished seventh with a 157 two-round total.
CONNECTICUT WOMEN’S AMATEUR
(At Race Brook CC)
Kyra Cox, 68-77-145; Kaitlyn Lee, 74-73147; Tracy Lee 75-74-149; Mia Grzywinski, 75-76-151; Liz Garfield 74-79-153; Charlotte Wagner, 71-82-153; Sophia Sarrazin, 77-80157; Jen Holland, 81-78-159; Kate Hong, 8178-159; Catarina Petrovic, 79-80-159; Sydney Nethercott, 84-76-160; Madeleine Hong, 75-85-160; Nicole Elliott, 80-81-161; Mercedese Large, 79-82-161; Molly Mitchell, 81-81-162; Mia Holbrook, 84-81-165; Emily Cohen, 84-81-165.
MARCOUX LEADS AT NEW ENGLAND AMATEUR
Xavier Marcoux from Massachusetts shot a 5under 67 at Great River GC in Milford to take a oneshot lead into the final round of the 92nd New England Amateur.
Marcoux leads Cody Paladino of Connecticut by a shot. Paladino has a tworound total of 7-under 137. Jack Brown of New Hampshire is third (138).
The cut is going to be the low 60 players and ties. At press time, the second round had not been completed due to Wednesday afternoon’s thunderstorm that delayed play for nearly two hours.
JUNIOR AMATEUR TO BE HELD FRIDAY
The championship final of the 80th Connecticut Junior Amateur Championship between defending champion Matt Doyle and Connor Goode will be held at Watertown GC Friday at 8 a.m.
The championship was originally supposed to be held on July 8, but once the tournament final was shifted to the next day. Tropical Storm Elias forced the postponement for that new date.
JAMES, ROMAN FALL AT U.S. JUNIOR
Ben James of Milford and Jackson Roman of Kensington both advanced to match play at the U.S. Junior Amateur, but both lost their first-round matches Wednesday at The Country Club of North Carolina.
James fell to Jonas Appel 2 and 1 and Roman lost to Hunter Thomson 2-up. Both James and Roman are playing in the Connecticut Open next week at CC of Darien, followed by the Northern Junior Aug. 3-4 at New Haven CC.
James was going to be one of the selections for the U.S. Junior Ryder Cup Team against Europe, but that event was officially canceled on Tuesday “due to ongoing travel issues for the European Junior Ryder Cup party” according to a joint statement issued by the PGA of America and Ryder Cup Europe.