U.S. WOMEN'S MID-AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

September 28, 2021

Dawn Woodard

Berkeley Hall Club (North Course)

Quote Quotes

Q. Is it right that you've made 17 or 18 consecutive championships that you've advanced to match play in?

DAWN WOODARD: So yes, I think this was my 17th Mid-Am -- or no, 19th Mid-Am. 17th in a row, but I think I've made the cut in all 19. I started on my very first one, though, and I got in at Cherokee in Atlanta in a playoff and had to play Carol Semple Thompson as my welcome to match play. She sent me home, and I came back better for it. But that was my welcome to the Mid-Am in '99.

Q. And it's only gone uphill from there.

DAWN WOODARD: Uphill from there.

Q. Talk me through what was working well for you today.

DAWN WOODARD: It's probably the best round of golf that I've played in a while as far as everything kind of coming together. Nothing was perfect. I mean, I struggled a little here and there, but my misses were in the right place today, and I just kind of -- she birdied 1 and 2, but I knew it was going to be one of those matches. She's made a lot of birdies. The birdies are out there for everybody if you're kind of below the hole and in the -- the greens are so true if you give yourself a good putt. So I just tried to stay patient and kind of felt like if I could just play my game and kind of play a solid round of golf that I felt like at some point I was going to make a couple birdies, and if I didn't make many mistakes, I thought I would still have a chance.

I made -- kind of every time I would get within one, she would win a hole. It would go right back to two. But finally I made birdie here on 9, which I almost holed it for 2, and that kind of was a little momentum. But really I hit a good sort of 50-yard shot into 12 and made that putt, and then I made -- got away with one on 13 again, a good miss, but I made the putt, and I felt like I kind of built a little bit -- at that point, I'm like, all right, I'm back to square. I was kind of like, if I could just put what's happened -- basically let's just win the next six-hole match basically.

I had a great look on 16 for birdie and probably make that putt six or seven out of 10 times, and I just didn't hit it hard enough or play enough break and caught myself walking to 17 kind of kicking myself a little thinking I could have closed the door or made it dormie, but I was like -- I did a really good job of just putting everything behind me and just looking forward today.

She played great. 17, we both hit it through the fairway on the right. It's getting so hard and fast out there. We both hit great drives, they just ran through. So neither one of us had an angle at the pin, and we both played the shot literally over to the left. I got mine a little deeper. She putted, and I didn't -- I had putter out. I was just in the fringe, but I didn't like the lie, and kind of back and forth. Neither one were really going to be easy, but I went with a wedge and hit it down there to probably six feet for par.

The putter has beat me up in this event so many times, and I just -- I've made a lot of really good putts and I kind of trusted it and kind of just stood there. I felt like I had to make it to still be even. She played great today and had not missed anything, and did not expect her to miss her putt for par. She was just inside of me, and so once mine was in and she missed the match was kind of over, but I was literally picking my driver up ready to walk to 18. I thought we were coming to 18 for sure.

We both played well enough, it probably would have been one of those that kind of comes to 18. But it was a great match, back and forth. Just fortunate to come out on the top end.

Q. What does it mean to be a quarterfinalist here this year?

DAWN WOODARD: It means I'm exempt next year, first of all.

Q. Not that you really need it, you've played in so many.

DAWN WOODARD: Well still, we do at least have the WAGR now to kind of help us, but when you start with qualifying and you've got one day, a lot of things can happen. At this point it just means I still have a chance, and that's all -- that's all I can ask for each time is to hopefully still have a chance.