OLDS — For the fifth year in a row, a Calgary golfer won the Expedia Cruises Ladies Open at the Olds Golf Club.
However, a local golfer came tantalizingly close to taking her crown.
Celina Lam took the title yet again after shooting a 74 during the July 16 tournament. She won one shot over fellow Calgary golfer Susan Plum.
Olds resident Jenny Lee finished just three strokes back of Lam after carding 77.
Cathy Spicer of Olds shot 81 and fellow Olds resident Jocelyn McInnis finished just one shot behind her.
A total of 110 ladies from across Central and Southern Alberta participated in the tournament.
“Best turnout ever,” Olds Golf Club pro Wade Bearchell wrote in an email.
During an interview with the Albertan, Lee said she thought she could catch Lam, but her putting let her down.
“I thought I could win, but my putting wasn’t really good. I missed, like three, four birdie putts,” Lee said. “Normally my putting is good, but not that day.
“I thought I could beat Celina, but not this time. Maybe next year.”
Lee said those putting issues really cost her, especially in the last few holes.
“My last couple of holes I had a bogey,” she said. “It was three-putts and I was like,‘ Oh My God.’”
Lee loves golf. She plays every day, if she can.
She plans to enter several more tournaments during the remainder of the season, including the mixed open and an upcoming ladies open tournament in Lethbridge.
“I’m not that great, so I need a lot of practice,” she said.
