Public Team Wins 2019 Women’s Atlas Trophy Matches

Public Team Powered by Record-Setter Yurika Tanida Wins Women’s Atlas Trophy Matches

  AUGUSTA, Mich. – With a strong showing in the singles matches and a record-setting performance by Michigan State University golfer Yurika Tanida the Public Team pulled away to a 15½-8½ win over the Private Team in the 28th Women’s Atlas Trophy Matches Sunday at Gull Lake View Golf Club and Resort’s Stoatin Brae course.

  Tanida, who will be a sophomore next fall, topped Oakland University golfer Veronica Haque of the Private Team 7 and 6, and also scored the point that put the Public Team at 12½ to secure the Atlas Trophy. She shot a 6-under 30 on the front nine in building her lead, and then after the match was over played on to see if she could set a course record. She did, shooting 8-under 63. The previous best score by a woman on the two-year-old course was a 3-under 68. The native of Japan’s previous personal best was a 67.

  “This was my first Atlas Trophy tournament, and I really enjoyed it,” Tanida said. “I made a lot of friends, and today my short game was on and I was feeling good. No bogeys, and I made a lot of 6-foot to 10-foot putts.”

  Her best shot of the day: “On No. 2, the par 3, it was playing 189 and I hit 5-wood to 5-feet and made it,” she said. “That was good and it made me confident.”

  The private team led 3½-2½ after the foursomes play on Saturday morning at Gull Lake’s Bedford Valley course, but the Public outscored them 4½-1½ in the four-ball play Saturday afternoon and started Sunday’s singles with a 7-5 lead.

  In addition to the key win by Tanida, others singles match winners for the Public Team were Chelsea Collura of Riverview, Nichole Cox of Empire and Bowling Green State University, Ariel Chang of Macomb, Jasmine Ly of Windsor, Kerri Parks of Flushing and Marshall University, Anika Dy of Traverse City and Anci Dy of Traverse City.

  Joanne Adams of Detroit, Elayna Bowser of Dearborn and Katie Childers of Northville were singles match winners for the Private Team.

  “This is my favorite event of the year and it is such a treat to watch such a great caliber of golf,” said the Public Team’s non-playing captain, Cynthia Pinkard. “It doesn’t matter who wins – almost. When you are competing, you like to win, but the real idea behind this is getting a group marvelous golfers together and enjoying competition.”

  Collura had the highlight of Saturday’s play at Bedford Valley. She made a hole-in-one on the par 3 No. 5 hole.

  “The yardage was 175, but it was playing like 195 in the wind and I had to hit 3-wood,” she said and laughed.

  It was Collura’s fourth ace, and Gull Lake View personnel had a special hole-in-one plaque made up for her and presented it Sunday.

    The Women’s Atlas Trophy matches, named for the late Edward Atlas, a noted golf leader in Michigan, were first played in 1989 and have become a competition between women GAM members who are members of a private club, and GAM members who do not belong to a private club. The matches are unique in that teams are made up of golfers of all ages, including seniors and juniors.

  The Private team still leads the series 14-11 with three ties.

  Representing the Public Team were Audrey Akins of LaSalle, Susan Campbell of Kalamazoo, Chang, Katie Chipman of Canton and Grand Valley State University, Collura, Cox, the Dy sisters, Ly, Parks, Tanida and Nicole Watley of Northville.

   Representing the Private Team captained by Jean Murray were Adams, Bowser, Kate Brody of Grand Blanc, Childers, Terry Delcamp of Grand Blanc, Joan Garety of Grand Rapids, sisters Savannah and Veronica Haque of Rochester Hills, Lilia Henkel of Grand Rapids, Kelsey McDougall of Canton, and sisters Karli and Karina VanDuinen of Muskegon.

via Greg Johnson