Global Golf Post - January 16, 2012

Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn recovered from
a ragged start to Saturday’s final round of the
Women’s South Atlantic Amateur Golf Champion-
ship, better known as The Sally, to
post a closing 2-under-par 70 and
hold off younger sister Ariya by three
shots to claim the title.
The 17-year-old posted rounds of
75-66-65-70 in chilly weather at the
par-72 Oceanside Country Club in
Ormond Beach, Fla. Her 12-under
276 total was just one shot off the
tournament record set by Jessica Korda in 2010.

Moriya looked anything like a winner when she began her round bogey, double-bogey. But she rallied with birdies on four of her last five holes on the front nine, and added two more against a single bogey on the back nine.

“After the first two holes, I said, ‘No, Moriya,
you have to just come back,’ ” Moriya said. “And
I just kept going and tried to make birdie. My
first birdie (on the par- 4 fifth hole) made me
feel confident.”
Younger sister Ariya Jutanugarn, 16, who
led the first two rounds with scores of 67-71,
finished second on 9-under 279 after a closing
round of even-par 72. Fifteen-year-old English
schoolgirl Charley Hull placed third on 8-under
280, posting a 2-under 70 on Saturday.

Hull and the Jutanugarn sisters were at the top of the leaderboard two weeks ago at the Harder Hall Invitational in Sebring, Fla., where Hull won, Ariya finished second and Moriya third. Hull finished second at last year’s Sally.

The Jutanugarn sisters were scheduled to
fly home to Bangkok with their parents Sunday.
They are hoping to receive sponsor exemptions
to play in the Honda LPGA Thailand Feb. 16-19.

The Indiana duo of Clarence Hardison Jr. and Kenny Cook survived a wild final-round shootout at the Dye Preserve in Jupiter, Fla., to take home the title at the National Senior-Junior Championship. Hardison and Cook posted a final-round 60, 12-under par on the 7,149 yard Pete Dye redesign to finish at 23-under-par 193, one shot clear of Robert Gregorski and Kevin Hammer.

The National Senior-Junior, played continuously since 1991, is a unique tournament that pairs one senior amateur (age 50-plus) with a mid-amateur. The 54-hole format begins with a best-ball round, followed by a Chapman round and closing with a two-man scramble. Each age group plays from a separate set of tees.

Harddison and Cook trailed second-round leaders Pat Tallent and Scott Shingle by three shots as the final day began, while Gregorski and Hammer were just a shot off the pace. The winners birdied four of the last five holes for a final-round 60, one of two such scores posted on a day when almost every team went low on the pristine golf course with little wind. The Gregorski-Ham-mer duo each missed a five-and-a-half foot putt on the last hole that would have tied for the lead.

Vinny Giles and playing partner Jimmy Dunne won the Legends Division with a score of 205, four shots clear of second-place finishers Charles Green and J.P Leigh. Giles and Dunne took a three-shot lead into the final round, and they closed the door with a 62.

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