Sherry Herman Rallies From 4-down, Wins In U.S. Sr. Amateur
Former U.S. Women’s Senior Amateur champion Sherry Herman of Jackson, N.J., claimed one of her best come-from-behind victories in her career Monday when she rallied from four holes down to win going away, 4 and 2, over Joanne Manley of England in the first round of match-play at the 2014 Women’s Senior Amateur at par-73, 6,109-yard Hollywood Golf Club in Deal on Monday, Sept. 15.
Herman, 56, winner of five NJSGA Women’s Amateur championships and this year’s NJSGA Women’s Best-Ball Championship with Helen Bernstein of Arcola, struggled from the start, bogeying all of her first three holes for losses and adding another bogey on the par-4 fifth hole to trail Manley by four holes heading into No. 6.
Then she began a slow, methodical procession of victories, winning eight of the final 11 holes with zero defeats to shock Manley.
Herman moves on to Tuesday’s Round of 32 where she faces Pamela Kuong, 52, of Wellesley, Mass, winner of the 2011 New England Amateur who on Monday defeated Lea Anne Brown of Mount Pleasant, S.C.
MATCH-PLAY BRACKET PHOTO GALLERY
Herman responded from her deficit with a birdie victory on the par-4 sixth hole, then won the par=4 ninth with a bogey to trail by only two holes heading into the final nine.
Herman then reached the par-5, 488-yard 10th hole in two and two-putted for birdie to suddenly cut the deficit to a single hole. She avoided the massive bunkering on the par-4 11thhole, while Manley found the sand, and won the hole with a par to go all square.
Herman continued her onslaught with a par triumph on the par-5 12th, and did it the hard way. She found the left rough off the tee, then hit into a fairway bunker. She got out of the sand to the lower portion of the green, 65 feet from the flag.
Manley, meanwhile, was on in three. Herman’s long putt ended a foot from the hole for a par, but Manley three-putted from 12 feet to give Herman an unlikely victory and a 1-up lead.
After an all-square on the 13th hole, Herman won the par-4 14th hole with a par for a 2-up lead as Manley found the creek fronting the green. Herman then won par-3 15th with a par and closed out the match with a par victory on the par-5 16th hole.
“I didn’t start out well, but it came together. There were two things I thought of, one, that I came from four down to win a match when I won the championship in 2009, and the other thing was that my two girls took the day off work to see me play in an event close to home and I was letting them down,” Herman said.
Herman’s daughters, Jillian, 29, and Stacy, 26, both live and work in New York City. The Hermans were members at Hollywood until 2010.
“I had to turn it on and play solid, but I also needed her (Manley) to make mistakes and she made a few. I started swinging better and gaining confidence. When I’m in the zone, I don’t focus on what the other person is shooting and I was glad to see a glimpse of it today.
“I tried to do what I used to do, try and play the holes in my sleep. I was going over these holes al last night so I didn’t get much sleep. I’m also working now, so this was only my 10thround of golf this year. I wanted to enjoy the experience of being her. I know so many people.
“I think I’ve gained some momentum heading into (Tuesday). It felt good to win and get the adrenaline going again.”
Herman tied for 23rdplace in the stroke-place portion at 78-83-161. Kuong was sixth at 76-78-154.
Ellen Port of St. Louis, who won the last two championships, was medalist by nine strokes at 73-71-144.
“It’s a demanding bt fair golf course,” said Port., who won on Monday, 6 and 4, over Kim Briele of New Bern, N.C.
“You have to think on every shot. People think the fairways here are wide, but you can yank it into trouble. You have to manage your game well. I’ve been hitting 3-woods and 5-woods off the tee to stay out of the bunkers. It just makes you think all the time.”
