Brigitte Thibault of Fresno State and Canada defeated Jackie Lucena of UC Davis and Chico, 4 and 3, to capture the 120th Western Women’s Amateur Championship at Prestwick Country Club in Frankfort, Ill.
Thibault, from Rosemere, Quebec, also won the 2019 Golf Ontario Women’s Amateur Championship and the 2019 Mountain West Conference Championship.
“I didn’t want to get my hopes up, because I know my game right now is kind of on a roller coaster,” Thibault told the Women’s Western Golf Association. “I feel like I gained a lot of momentum from yesterday. I just kept the faith. I kept fighting and didn’t give up.
“I think it was just like a switch. I had missed a lot on the front, and I could feel how close I was to hitting it really good.”
Thibault held a 2-up lead after six holes, but Lucena pulled even after at the turn by winning the eighth and ninth holes.
It remained even until Thibault took control by winning the 13th, 14th and 15th holes to pull away.
By winning, Thibault joined Maddie Szeryk (2017) as the only Canadians to win the Western Women’s Amateur Championship, and she also earned an exemption into the U.S. Women’s Open in December at Champions Golf Club in Houston.
In the semifinals, Thibault needed 21 holes to get past Sophie Burks of Tallahassee, Ala., while Lucena routed Chelsea Dantonio of East Aurora, N.Y., 7 and 6.
Former winners of the Western Women’s Amateur include Nancy Lopez, Louise Suggs, Betty Jameson, Patty Berg, Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Beth Daniel, Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand, Grace Park, Brittany Lang, Kellee Booth, Jane Bastanchury, Joanne Gunderson Carner, Moira Dunn, Barbara McIntyre, Opal Hill and Amy Benz.
For complete results, visit https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/6441593845326038412
