Written by Beaux Yenchik, Manager of Media and Communications
MCCALL, Idaho—Why is it that people are drawn to sports? Is it the Top 10 moments? Is it the story of the underdog conquering the Goliath? The list could go on and on, but for the 2022 Women’s Mid-Amateur at Jug Mountain Ranch, it was the comeback by the eventual winner that made the event so compelling as a fan. A true test of endurance and patience, especially in a sport that demands both on every shot of every round played.
In the Women’s Mid-Amateur, Lori Ruiz took down the six-time champ Karen Darrington and Kris Fenwick by carding an impressive 74 (+2) in the final round to finish at 19 over par for the tournament—winning by four shots over Fenwick.
Starting her final round two shots back of the leader, which was Darrington at the time, Ruiz knew it was now or never in terms of making a move for the victory circle. Having just come off an impressive showing at the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Qualifier as the medalist, Ruiz looked to keep that same mojo going on a course she had never played before until this week.
Ruiz, the longest player in the women’s field, would normally have that to her advantage on every other course except Jug Mountain. However, she found herself having to play more 5-woods and long irons off the tee to get into position to hit some difficult pins, all while avoiding the long grass and penalty areas.
She said: “I knew that safe play was going to probably be what got anybody a ‘W’ out here, and as long as we kept it in play and tried to stay hopefully somewhere on the right side of the green, we were going to be OK.”
Lori Ruiz going with 5-wood off the No. 1 tee.
With three bogeys on the front nine, Ruiz had managed to stay within one shot of Darrington, who had shot four over on her front nine. Needing to get something going, Ruiz pulled off what could be the shot of the tournament. Pulling her tee shot on the par-3 10th well left, she found herself with a chip that would require her to bounce it into the hill and hope it would end up on the green semi-close to the hole.
“The up and down on 10 was pretty fun because there was no way I could get up and down if I hit the green,” she stated. “So, I knew I had to throw it into the rough and pray for a good bounce, which we got. The turning point was 10 because then [Kris] just turned it on, so competing with [Kris] the whole back nine was really what the focus was on…She was putting like a wizard out there.”
Doing just that, Ruiz executed the shot to perfection. With 10 feet left, she stepped up and sank what was a very much-needed par putt. Clearly now with the momentum, Ruiz proceeded to play the back nine of her life en route to her victory.
After a couple of bad breaks, Darrington’s lead had come and gone as she began to fade from the top of the leaderboard—having shot a very uncharacteristic 11-over-par 46 on the back nine. The race for the podium was now between Ruiz and Fenwick, who was the tournament’s round-one leader.
"The final round was so much fun,” Ruiz said. “Getting to play with two of your golf idols, [Kris and Karen], and being able to compete with them. It was going to be a win either way because of how much fun it was.”
With a five-shot advantage after nine, Ruiz’s short game and ability to maneuver the ball around a shot-shaping course was what helped her hold off a charging Fenwick, who had missed out on having three birdies in a row as her birdie putt on the par-3 14th hit the flagstick and bounced out of the hole.
Lori Ruiz on the 12th green watching as her putt is about to drop for her first birdie.
Ruiz was working on all cylinders. But how on was she? Well, Ruiz had stuck her approach shot on the short par-4 12th to eight feet, which lead to her lone birdie of the day; she narrowly missed out on a second straight birdie as she left her putt on the lip of the next hole; she then proceeded to nearly can her approach shot on the dogleg 15th. Did I mention she was nearly hole-high with an iron off the tee on the par-4 18th? And this was just her closing nine.
“So, after the first birdie dropped, I tried to do a little bit more pin-seeking,” she said.
Ruiz had brought her game when it mattered most. She had hung tight all week on a course that was brutal for even the best of Idaho’s top golfers. She had conquered what was thought to be an unconquerable beast.
Click HERE for a complete look at the final leaderboard.
Women’s Payout:
1st Place Gross: $400 (Lori Ruiz)
1st Place Net: $300 (Jennifer Harper)