BANDUN, Oregon – Megagun came on Saturday from four down with seven holes remaining to win in 19 holes to reach the championship match in the US women’s amateur against Brook Beerman.
Biermann played on three holes when Kansas Junior Lyla Louderbaugh won the final three holes with a 10-foot birdie on the 17th and a 30-foot birdie on the 18th.
But in the first extra hole of the par 4 10th, Louderbow hit a wedge on the green well, then chipped across the green into the fairway, having five feet for a bogey when she admitted the match.
Ganne, the highest-ranked player to stay at No. 11 in the women’s amateur rankings, was on the ropes when Australia’s Ella Saysbrook made a hole in the 11th birdie putt, 40 feet from the green, and then four up.
However, the Australian handed out two holes, tipped into the bunker on the par 3 on the 12th, and took three innings for par on the 13th. Ganne went inside one with a 15-foot birdie putt holed at 15 feet, and Scaysbrook hit the bushes and lost the 17th by par.
In the par-5 closing hole in Bandung Dunes, both were in bad places from the tee, unable to reach green in three shots, and bogeyed the hole in half.
The 19th hole was almost a repetition of the previous match. Scaysbrook went behind Green at No. 10. Ganne stuffed her wedge into six feet and didn’t need to putt. The Australian took two tips before admitting birdies.
Ganne, an advanced Stanford player, gets a crack in her first USGA title. She reached the semi-finals in the US Women’s Amateur in 2019, and the New Jersey native almost stole the show at the Olympic Club in 2021, claiming she had low amateur honours over the weekend.
Beerman has just finished her college career in Michigan and plans to change professionals after becoming a female amateur in the US. Winners will be exempt from the Women’s Open in the US at the Riviera next year.
Despite her losing a slow lead, Beerman relied on experience. This was her third match since Wednesday, and she had an extra hole. She had to go to 22 holes in the second round to move forward, and in the 16th round, Beerman left time to miss a short putt on the 18th hole, calming herself down to win at 19 holes.
