Hardin Extends Lead at Women’s Senior Stroke Play
Waco: After 36-hole, Mina Hardin of Fort Worth leads by three strokes heading into the final round. Her three-stroke lead comes after she carded a Round 2 score of 7-over-par, 79. Ridgewood Country Club played significantly more difficult during the second round of the tournament and although conditions were tough, Hardin stayed focused. Her second round started on the par-3 fifth hole where she made her first bogey of the day. Quickly gathering her thoughts, she made par on eight of her next ten holes. Following her stretch of pars, Hardin made two more bogeys before making birdie on the par-5 18th. She finished her second round trading a pair of pars and bogeys. Hardin’s Round 2 score of 79 and Round 1 score of 73 puts her at 152, 8-over-par, for the tournament.
Leaderboard
1.Mina Hardin (+8, 73-79, 152)
2.Anna Morales (+11, 78-77, 155)
T3.Linda Light (+12, 80-76, 156)
T3.Joanna Staton (+12, 74-82, 156)
T5.Kelley Nittoli (+13, 82-75, 157)
T5.Jewell Malick (+13, 78-79, 157
In Contention: Three strokes behind Hardin is Austin’s Anna Morales. Morales followed-up her Round 1 78 with a 77 in Round 2. This puts her at 155, 11-over-par, through 36-holes. Tied for third place at 12-over-par, 156, are Linda Light of Arlington and Joanna Staton of McKinney. The two are one shot back of second place and four back of the leader. Kelley Nittoli and Jewell Malick find themselves in a tie for fifth place at 13-over-par, 157. Nittoli’s 75 was the low round of the day and enough to move up six spots on the leaderboard.
Weather: Wednesday evening and early Thursday morning thunderstorms brought 2.25 inches of rain to Ridgewood Country Club before the second round. With the storms passing well before play, Thursday’s second round again saw an overcast sky with the sun periodically shinning through. The overcast sky kept temperatures cooler in the mid to high 70’s. The wind remained calm during the second round setting up for ideal scoring conditions.
Golf Course: Designed by Texan Ralph Plummer, Ridgewood opened for play in 1947. Plummer utilized the site’s natural features – rolling, wooded land overlooking Lake Waco – to create a classic layout that features narrow fairways, cavernous bunkers and exceptionally quick, undulating green complexes.
Next Up: Next on the TGA Women’s schedule is the Women’s Texas Pinehurst. This year’s championship will be played November 1-2 at Lady Bird Johnson Golf Course in Fredericksburg. Registration for the Women’s Texas Pinehurst will close on October 20 at 5:00 pm.
For more information on the Texas Golf Association, Women’s Events and more, please visit www.txga.org.