Ward and McFadden Claim Women’s Senior Match Play
VILLANOVA, Pa. - Top-seeded Beth Ward overpowered the field on her way to a victory in the Senior Division of the inaugural Pennsylvania Women's Senior Amateur Match Play. Ward, of Colonial Golf & Tennis Club, won the Senior Division by topping Ruth Averback in the championship match.
“It’s great to win this in the first year of the event,” said Ward, of Harrisburg, Pa. “I’m just glad we were able to have the event. Obviously, coming in, you never know what to expect out of a new event but I’m honored to win.”
Ward won her opening two matches on Monday and needed just 27 out of a possible 36 holes to advance to Tuesday’s semifinal round, where she took out Alexandra Frazier of Gulph Mills Golf Club, 3 and 1, in the morning round. She then faced off with Old York Road Country Club’s Averback, the 13th seed, in the final after Overback upset second-seeded Amy Kennedy of Country Club of York in 20 holes.
In the championship match, Ward jumped out to an early lead with a par on the 313-yard first hole and extended her lead with a win on No. 3. But Overback cut the margin in half by capturing the fifth hole. As the ladies approached the seventh tee, the championship was about to be decided over the following six holes. Ward began the surge by rolling in a 25-foot birdie putt on the par-5 seventh hole.
“I was on the other side of the slope there and fortunately I made the putt,” said Ward.
She added wins on the next two holes to take a 4-up lead after the opening nine at RVCC. After losing the 10th to Averback, Ward cemented her advantage by notching victories on No. 11 and No. 12, putting her 5 up for the afternoon. Then on No. 14, another hole victory pushed Ward to six holes up with just four to play, clinching the championship with a match where she never trailed.
“I played pretty well today,” Ward said. “I did just enough to win out there.”
In the Super-Senior Division, Karen McFadden, seeded third in the bracket, won a trio of tough matches to claim the crown, including a championship match win over Moselem Springs Golf Club’s Barbara Naglak by the score of 3 and 1 on Tuesday morning. McFadden, a member at nearby Overbrook Golf Club, got off to a good start on her way to the title with a birdie on the first hole.
"Making a birdie on that first hole really got me going," said McFadden. "That's not my typical MO."
McFadden's 9-iron approach on the first ended up with a five-foot uphill putt for birdie. Starting on the third hole, however, the competitors traded hole wins, with Naglak evening the match on No. 3 and McFadden reclaiming the lead on the fourth hole. The alternating wins continued through the rest of the front side, and after nine holes, the match was all square. After a halved hole on No. 10, Naglak took her only lead of the day by winning the 11th.
But as the golfers approached the 12th tee, McFadden’s run for the championship began in earnest. She won the 12th and 13th to go 1 up for the match, then the 15th to extend her margin. As they headed to No. 17, McFadden needed just to win or tie the hole to win the title, and she was able to put an exclamation point on her time at Radnor Valley with a win on 17 to clinch the 3 and 1 victory and a state championship.
"It was really nice to get in and I never expected to get this far," said McFadden.
The Pennsylvania Golf Association would like to thank the staff and membership of Radnor Valley Country Club for their hospitality in administration of the championship. Thanks as well to DICK’S Sporting Goods for sponsorship of the event.