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USGA SENIOR WOMEN'S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIPSeptember 17, 2009Sherry HermanHOT SPRINGS, VIRGINIA RHONDA GLENN: Sherry, you had a very gracious acceptance speech. That was just wonderful, really good. Just summarize, if you can, what this means to you. I mean you said you've waited 30 years to be at a USGA final, and you not only got to the final. You've won. You're the national champion. SHERRY HERMAN: I know. I guess it just means that, you know, as far as golf goes, and my golf, it's just -- it's a dream come true, and I don't know how you react when a dream comes true, you know, because you just -- you know, in competitive amateur golf, match play events, there's only one winner, and you never know -- people will never remember years from now who I beat, who came in second, or the semis. And as a young amateur, it always bothered me. And it took me a really long time to just say, you know what, it just doesn't matter. You know, just be happy with how you did. And I guess it's maturity. I think it's just maturity, because it was really -- it was a tough thing for me to accept all these years, that there's only one winner and you only know who the winner is. RHONDA GLENN: Right. And you were it! SHERRY HERMAN: And I wasn't it. And I came close a couple times, you know, but it's just so hard. It's just so hard. And so I'm very grateful. I'm very -- I'm thrilled beyond words, and I'm very proud of myself. I'm proud of my family for just hanging in there with me. The kids, I mean my girls, I get texts from them every day, you know, and they're just so pumped for me. And you know, I tried -- this year I kind of changed my attitude. Instead of trying to play for my husband or play for my family or make other people proud, I just tried to be selfish this year. I just played for myself to make myself happy. And right or wrong, you know, I guess it worked. RHONDA GLENN: Ben was with you all the way, walked every step of the way, and then after you won the championship on the 15th green, walked on the bottom of the green and you hugged each other for a long time. If I may be so intrusive, can you tell me what you said to each other, after you know, all this time? SHERRY HERMAN: I don't remember what he said. I know he said something, but I just said, "thank you." Because you know, look, this isn't an inexpensive sport. And he -- like I said yesterday, he's never said no. I've traveled all over the country. I've traveled all over the world. I've played in Europe, golf, amateur golf, and you know, you have to pay your way, for the most part. And he has never said no. And you know, he's just been my rock. RHONDA GLENN: Okay. Let's get to the match. Where do you think -- I've got notes on every hole, but where do you think that you started to see a glimmer of hope? SHERRY HERMAN: Well, to be honest with you, birdieing the second hole I thought was key. You know, I mean I missed a short putt on 1, which -- wasn't it 1 I missed the short putt? RHONDA GLENN: I didn't get out there till the fifth hole. Q. It was a birdie on 3, so you missed the short putt on 2. SHERRY HERMAN: I missed the short putt on 2. That's right. Thank you. I missed the short putt on 2. And you know, I usually don't. Then I think birdieing 3 was the key because at least I felt like, okay, I can make a putt, and you know, we're even. So let's take it from there, you know, and just relax a little, and just hit greens and give myself chances. RHONDA GLENN: Was it maybe that that putt on 3, that birdie on 3 made you feel like I'm worthy of being here? SHERRY HERMAN: Well, I did say to myself, when I missed the putt on 2, and yesterday -- when I missed the putt on 2, I said to myself, if you're going to be a champion, you have to make these. You know, you have to earn it. And I was just bound and determined that if I had the opportunity again, I was going to make those putts, you know. Yesterday I left a couple short, so I just didn't want to do that. Today I left a few too long. (Laughs). But -- RHONDA GLENN: Your worthy opponent, Carolyn, said that she felt that No. 8 was a key to the match, from her point of view. She was 1-up at the time. SHERRY HERMAN: Yeah. RHONDA GLENN: And she had a buried lie in the bunker, and she kind of frittered it away, and you went all square there. SHERRY HERMAN: Well, that was -- you know, that was the first sign -- because she was very solid till then -- that was the first sign that maybe she could miss a shot, and miss a green, you know. I mean that was the first sign to me, that maybe, maybe I have a chance, you know, that she -- you know, to do this. RHONDA GLENN: I thought the birdie on No. 10 was incredible. I mean that's a very hard hole. It's a hard driving hole. You have to get it over the creek. SHERRY HERMAN: Well, that hole owes me. (Laughs). That was payback. RHONDA GLENN: In what way? SHERRY HERMAN: Well, I mean I have been in great position all week with my drives on that hole, which is tough. And I have had very few good shots to that green. I've airmailed it. I've been in the bunker. I've been on the green and three-putted. I mean I don't think I've had very many pars on that hole. And for me it's an easy hole, you can hit a wedge into it. So I was perplexed. And I felt that hole owed me, so it paid me back, big time. RHONDA GLENN: And then Andrew, go ahead. 12, 13, 14 were key holes. Q. You can't win a USGA championship by hitting it in the rough, but you managed to get it out. SHERRY HERMAN: Well, I played the whole week out of the rough. I mean I usually keep my stats every round, you know, hitting fairways, greens, putts, those type of things. Here I started out, it was like, okay, well, forget the fairways, but including the fairways let's include the first cut. And then I was like, you know what, just forget that stat, because I don't want to be depressed, because it's just impossible. And I hit some irons off the tees, you know, to try and stay in the fairways or at least get favorable bounces so that I would be somewhere where I could work with the shots, you know, and I know there were some people -- Carolyn, I know some girls were talking that they were going to take the driver and just rip it and wherever they end up, they end up. And you know, I hit it long enough to do that, but I just can't -- I'd look and it's so tight, and I'm like I've gotta play -- my game is trying to play smart golf, course management. RHONDA GLENN: On 12, was it 12 where you were in the right rough and you had -- I quit taking notes after 11. I was so fascinated with what was going on. SHERRY HERMAN: Yes. RHONDA GLENN: Okay. You were in the right rough. I thought that was a key shot, your second shot into the 12th hole because I knew it was a very savvy shot that you had played and hit short and it was going to run out of the rough and it just -- SHERRY HERMAN: Yeah. RHONDA GLENN: Tell me about how you felt about that, because Carolyn was in the bunker again. SHERRY HERMAN: Yeah. Yeah. You know, my mindset is to hit the green, always. I mean even if my partner or my opponent is in the bunker or wherever, when I play safe, it just doesn't usually work out. RHONDA GLENN: So what was your target on your second shot? SHERRY HERMAN: Well, it was 140 to the -- it was 140 to the pin. It was 140 to the pin. I think it was longer. It was 146 to the pin, and I wanted to hit somewhere near the front of the green, but I only -- but it was 130 I think to the front of the green. If I hit my 9-iron, which I maxed out at 130 on the rough, I was afraid that it wouldn't pop up because it might hit it in the fairway there. So I choked an 8-iron to hit it 135. That was my yardage. I wanted to hit it 135 and see what -- and hopefully that would bounce and roll up a little. RHONDA GLENN: And it did. It hit in the fairway, and it took a couple of bounces. SHERRY HERMAN: Yeah, well, that was thick rough. RHONDA GLENN: Yeah. It was. SHERRY HERMAN: You know, I mean a 9-iron might have been a smarter shot, but I just -- you know, I -- you know, I just wanted to see if I could get there and bounce it up. RHONDA GLENN: That's the kind of shot a really experienced player plays, and I thought it was brilliant. I really thought the match turned on that, in my humble opinion. SHERRY HERMAN: Well, look, getting up-and-down out of these bunkers, is not easy, and I don't know how many bunkers she was in on her second shots on the back, but it was like three or so, wasn't it? And I mean it's just very difficult to get up-and-down. I know she's a very good short game player, but still, I know it's very, very tough. And I was just happy to get on the green and take my chances. RHONDA GLENN: Okay. Well, where do you go from here? Are you going to play in the Mid Am? SHERRY HERMAN: I am playing in the Mid Am. RHONDA GLENN: Good. I'll see you there. SHERRY HERMAN: Terrific. RHONDA GLENN: What other championships this year? SHERRY HERMAN: That's it. I'm going home this weekend. My girls are coming home this weekend, and then after the Mid Am, I'm going on vacation with my oldest daughter. RHONDA GLENN: Oh. Where are you going? SHERRY HERMAN: We're going to Puerto Rico, a little mother-daughter trip. It's been planned for a while. RHONDA GLENN: I'm sure you don't know yet what this means to you in your life, but you will have this forever, and my friend Barbara Romack won the Women's Amateur in 1954. She always says think of all the free chicken dinners. You will be invited to USGA events for the rest of your life, and reunions. SHERRY HERMAN: And that's something I haven't allowed myself to think about, like the speech next year or you know, any of it. I just haven't allowed myself to think that far ahead because I just didn't want to get ahead of myself. I really just wanted to stay in the moment. And also, you know, you knock off the first seed. Right? That's the match that I was really nervous about, and you knock off the first seed, and I said to Ben, you know what, it doesn't mean anything unless I win the next match, because how many times have you heard of someone knocking off the first seed, and then there's that drought on the next one, because they get so excited. You see it in sports all the time. So I said to Ben, I said, you know, don't congratulate me. It doesn't mean anything until I win tomorrow's match, and then when I won the next match, I said don't congratulate me because it doesn't mean anything unless I win the next match. And then I said the same thing last night, it doesn't mean anything until I win tomorrow. So I guess I was just trying to keep it there. RHONDA GLENN: Well, congratulations. Q. Do you consider this the most significant title of your career? SHERRY HERMAN: Absolutely. RHONDA GLENN: We have a wall at the Golf House that we hang the portraits of the champions each year, and yours will be right up there along with the U.S. Open champion and the Women's Open champion. There you'll be. Where is the trophy going to go, by the way? SHERRY HERMAN: Right now the kitchen, which is the focal point of the house. Right? (Laughs). But you know, right now it's going to be in the kitchen as soon as I get it there. RHONDA GLENN: Your family will see it. You cook a lot there. I like it there. Q. Great conversation piece. RHONDA GLENN: Thank you. End of FastScripts |
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