CAREFREE, Ariz. (AP) — Meghan Bolger successfully defended her U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur title Thursday, parring the 18th hole to beat Kerry Postillion 1 up at Desert Forest Golf Club.
The 29-year-old Bolger, from Haddonfield, N.J., joined Sarah LeBrun Ingram (1993-94) and Ellen Port (1996-96) as the only players to win consecutive title in the 21-year history of the championship.
``It's an absolute wonderful feeling,'' Bolger said. ``After last year, you don't know what to say, and then to go back to back and defend ... there is a little pressure, and I tried not to put that on myself. I'm just absolutely ecstatic right now.''
The 44-year-old Postillion, a Desert Forest member from Burr Ridge, Ill., took a 2-up lead with a par on the par-4 sixth, but Bolger countered with a birdie on the par-4 seventh and tied it with a par on the par-3 eighth.
Bolger took the lead with a birdie on the par-4 10th, and Postillion squared it with a par on the par-3 12th. Bolger took the lead again with a par on the par-4 15th, but Postillion pulled even again with a par on the par-5 16th.
On No. 18, Postillion drove into the left rough and she hit her 210-yard approach shot into a greenside bunker. Her sand shot sailed over the green and her fourth shot didn't make it back up to the green.
``I didn't catch enough sand,'' Postillion said. ``It was an uphill slope. The bunkers here don't have a lot of sand and if you catch it a little thin, there it goes.''
Bolger, with a 30-footer for birdie, stroked her putt within a foot. Postillion then conceded the hole and the match.
Postillion also finished second in 1996 and 2005. Despite the loss, she took away positive memories of the week, particularly playing in front of her fellow club members at Desert Forest.
``It was great support,'' Postillion said. ``Everybody was so nice. It was really fun having them around and have people pulling for you. That was really special. It's too bad I just couldn't get quite through that last hole.''
