Bernstein & Herman Win Women's Four-ball For Second Time
It’s been four years now that the NJSGA has conducted a Women’s Four-Ball Championship and on Wednesday, May 25, Sherry Herman of Colts Neck and Helen Bernstein of WGA of NJ won the Anna Zorlas Trophy for a second time.
The victory was punctuated with the third hole-in-one of Herman’s career, on the 130-yard eighth hole, using a nine iron.
Herman, one of the state’s most prolific women’s golfers, teamed with Helen Bernstein for a 7-under-par 65 to easily win the NJSGA Women’s Four-Ball Championship by six strokes on Thursday, at the par-72, 5,365-yard Trump National Golf Club in Colts Neck.
Two years ago, Herman and Bernstein carded a 68 to win by four strokes at Preakness Hills Country Club in Wayne. Last year, collegians Alice Chen of Neshanic Valley and Furman University combined with Allison Herring of TPC Jasna Polana and the University of Tennessee for a 66. They did not defend their title in 2016.
Herman and Bernstein’s 65 on Wednesday bested the 71 posted by Tara Fleming of New Jersey National and Adrienne MacLean of Somerset Hills. Fran Gacos of Copper Hill and Alison Vanraaphorst of Plainfield were third with a 77.
Net winners of the Jean Gascoigne Trophy were Catalina Wiatroski and Janet Vartinen of EWGA of North N.J. with a 84-22-62, followed by Gina Louie and Sue Dahabsu of Jumping Brook with a 73-9-64 (match of cards) and Sue Chung of N.J. National and Hyun Kang of Galloping Hill (83-19-64).
Herman, who has won five NJSGA Women’s Amateur champions and a U.S. Women’s Senior Amateur Championship, and Bernstein, with whom she has partnered in Garden State Women’s and WMGA events.
“Helen played great. I don’t think I helped her until the hole-in-one on the eighth hole. After that something clicked,” said Herman, who began her round with bogey, double bogey, bogey. “The course was in perfect shape. It was hard and fast and the greens rolled true.”
Bernstein shot a 71 on her own ball.
“It’s always good to win. It was a perfect day of golf, great course and great weather, with good friends,” Bernstein said.
Waitroski and Vartinen partnered in the EWGA’s Match Cup last year, but we first timers in the NJSGA event.
“We played well. We offset each other,” said Wiatroski, a resident of Long Valley. Vartinen lives in Ramsey.
“It’s funny. We compete to outdrive each other. We actually came out to have fun and play the course. We had no aspirations to win.”
Course and slope ratings were 72.3/133.
