After having to postpone the event to December in 2020 due to the Covid19 Pandemic, the 2021 US Women’s Open is back to its rightful place in the calendar and this year it will take place June 3rd to June 6th. The site for the event this year is the historic Olympic Club, in San Francisco, California. Located on the west side of the city and just across Lake Merced from Harding Park, this 36 Hole complex boasts a Willy Watson design that was completed in 1924 after it bought the land from Lakeside Golf Club in 1918. The club held its first U.S. Open in 1955 where Jack Fleck edged out Ben Hogan in a playoff and most recently it hosted the 2012 U.S. Open who was famously won by the Birdman… errr, um, I mean Webb Simpson.
There are numerous sports tournaments such as the Stanley Cup Playoff and The Champions League in soccer but the U.S. Open remains a special event. Why? Because it is open to anyone, it is in the name of the event. Typically in sports, to play in the best tournaments you need to be young, in prime physical shape and also be on a roster. As a white male quickly approaching 30, it is safe to say that my childhood dream of playing in the NBA will never happen. I lack the youth, the physical size and years at desk job has put me way behind on Cardio and Muscle training. However, as a white male quickly approaching 30, I can still have the childhood dream of playing in the U.S. Open. The dream to be teeing it up against the best players in the sport, while the world watches as players compete over 72 holes for the coveted U.S. Open Trophy (which has never been named over all of these years).
The way that one makes it to the U.S. Open is through regional qualifiers. These qualifiers might be the most interesting competitions in golf. You have professionals from the LPGA/PGA Tour in groups with college phenoms, Club Professionals, and scratch golfers all trying to grab one of the limited spots available to play in the U.S. Open. And don’t let the name “regional qualifier” confuse you, these events are anything but regional as people travel internationally and from across the country to try and qualify for the prestigious US Open.
This year for the Womens U.S. Open, there was a qualifier at a course a mile from my house and it also happens to be the course that I started caddying at 15 years ago. The course is Somerset Country Club, a Seth Raynor design that opened in 1919 and has been a staple in the upper echelons of Minnesota golf since. I wanted to spectate for two reasons.
1. I wanted to see elite talent in the world of golf. Like I said earlier, there are people from all walks of life in these events but make no mistake, all of these ladies can play golf.
2. As someone who has walked the courses thousands of times and could tell you which way putts broke with my eyes closed, I wanted to see how Golden Age Seth Raynor could hold up to the best of the best in the modern game.
My Observations:
My time spectating unfortunately did not start until 2:30 PM as the event was on a Monday and I had to work. Upon arrival, all of the field was already out for their second 18 holes of the day. The event was a 36 hole event and consisted of 36 women fighting for just two spots and two alternates. After checking in at the club house and seeing the pairings, I walked my way out to behind 7 green. The 7th hole is Raynor’s Redan template and from that green you are able to see all of the 10th hole, the 8th, the 9th and of course the 7th hole. Being able to see 4 holes without moving was a great way to take in the first hour or so of spectating. I was able to watch multiple ladies hit their tee shots in the 7th and It was amazing watching how they all had different approaches to conquer the challenge that Raynor placed in front of them. After watching several groups cycle through the 7th hole and hit their tee ball on the 8th hole, I decided the next group off of the 10th tee, I would follow for the entire back 9. One thing that I think that gets lost on a TV Broadcast is how the top talent in the game puts together a round of golf. Rarely will a broadcast show a bad shot and rarely will they even show an average shot and I think everyone looking to improve as a golfer can learn from these players. It is what they do after they hit shots that are below their standard of excellence and how the recover.
The group that I got to follow turned out to be the perfect group to follow. The first lady in the group was Isabella Holpfer, a freshman at the University of Georgia. This Austrian has been ranked as high as 25 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR) and won the 2018 English Women’s Amateur. The second lady in the group was Taglao Jeeravivitaporn. As a junior at Iowa State University, this Thailand native is currently the 143rd ranked amateur in the nation (according to Golf Week) and boasted a stroke average of 73.00 in the 2020 season. Finally, the local phenom, Isabella “Bella” McCauley. The junior at a local high school was fresh off setting a course record at Loggers Trail (Stillwater, MN) and looking for more by punching her ticket to the U.S. Open. After a tough front 9 in her second round, McCauley found herself 3 shots outside of second place which was the final spot for getting a U.S. Open invitation.
One thing that made this group stand out from the rest was the small gallery that was surrounding the group. Holpfer had a group of 3-6 fans supporting her, McCauley had a verbal posse of friends and family and myself being a former Cyclone, I had to support Taglao (note: being a Minnesotan, I was cheering for Bella as well). All and all there were about 15-20 people following this group and it was exciting. Personally, due to the pandemic, I haven’t been to an in person sporting event in over a calendar year and even a crowd of 20 people was enough for me to feel the energy and importance of the golf being played.
After the first two holes of watching, the energy that I felt walking down the 10th fairway surrounding this group quickly evaporated with some bogeys and double bogeys due to some of the ladies being short sided on greens 10 and 11. Somerset is a shorter course and to hold up to the standard of today’s modern game, the green complexes are intricate and the course flexed on a couple of the ladies in the early part of the back 9. However it was the next hole where the fireworks began and some awesome golf started to unfold. The 12th hole started with Taglao murdering her drive well over 280 and it ended with Bella, the local high school standout, holing out for Eagle from just inside 70 yards. When the eagle shot dropped, the crowd erupted and I later heard reports that the roar could be heard just about everywhere on the property.
At this point everyone in the group knew what was possible. The growing reality that there was a chance that this high schooler, McCauley, could make the U.S. Open. She was just 1 shot out of solo second. This initial enthusiasm was quickly quelled by a sloppy bogey on 12 after a shorting an approach shot and a chip that seemed to bite more than she anticipated. However, like any good athlete, she bounced on the 210 yard par 3 15th Hole with another birdie that she walked in which again, sent the small crowd into a roar. Entering the 17th hole, Bella was tied for second place which meant playing the last two in one under would almost certainly punch her ticket to San Francisco next month. After walking in yet another birdie putt at the 17th hole from just off the back fringe (too much sauce!), McCauley sent her drive straight down the middle of the 18th fairway. Playing straight into a steady northwest wind that permeated the entire round, she hit 3 wood to the back of the green. After a less than desirable putt, she was looking at what appeared to be a 6 or 7 foot putt to retain solo second. After painstakingly reading the putt, consulting with her coach (who was caddying for her) and going through her pre shot routine, she lined up the putt. After she stood over the ball in her stance for what seemed like an eternity (but was probably closer to 10 seconds) she backed off and reset the whole process. Shaking off of the nerves, she stepped up and buried the putt with fellow competitors watching in hopes of a potential playoff. Bella shot a final 9 33 to finish solo second, one shot behind LPGA professional Sarah Burnham who finished Top 30 last month in the LA Open. Congrats to Sarah Burnham and Isabella McCauley!
Final Thoughts:
- What an awesome event! The U.S. Open Qualifiers display some of the best talent in the world and they are completely free with no ropes. You are free to walk around the course as you please (barring you aren’t holding up play or being a distraction) or can just camp out at a hole and watch the different approaches that different players take to the same hole. Not sure there is any better way to spend a beautiful Minnesota Spring day.
- These Women ARE worth watching. I was fortunate to follow around a stellar group which contained McCauley and Jeeravivitaporn who finished 2nd and 6th respectively but it is the little things that all of these ladies do that go unnoticed that make them worth watching. The amount of impressive two putts for par, the unassuming safe play to the middle of a green or how Bella stepped off of her clutch putt are “plays” that do not get a lot of attention but are mad impressive and cannot be overlooked. This event was a personal conviction that I need to watch more LPGA golf than I already do and make a conscious effort to seek out the leaderboard if I am unable to watch.
- While I will remember this event mainly by watching Bella McCauley shoot 33 to make the U.S. Open, I would be remiss if I did not give another shoutout to Jeeravivitaporn. Finish T6 at U.S. Open Qualifier is an accomplishment, especially when you do not have your A game. She was grinding out pars and her ability to hit driver kept her afloat and I appreciated watching someone put together a round when it clearly wasn’t their day. She also gave me her ball after the round, Shoutout to Ms. Jeeravivitaporn.
- Golf is a wild game. What other sport do you get to see a Junior in High School and a professional in the sports highest league square off and have the same success? I can not wait to watch Sarah and Isabella next month in the U.S. Open.
A Good Walk Spoiled 