Around the Green

Women’s Stroke Play Set for June 25-27

KERRVILLE – The 2021 Women’s Stroke Play Championship will be played June 25-27 at The Club at Comanche Trace.

This will be the first Women’s Stroke Play and seventh TGA major championship overall to be hosted by Comanche Trace. The 2017 Texas Mid-Amateur, won by Colby Harwell, was the most recent TGA major contested at the storied Central Texas club.

The Club at Comanche Trace is a sprawling 27-hole complex set amid 1,300 acres overlooking the Guadalupe River in the heart of the Texas Hill Country. The Women’s Stroke Play will be held on The Hills and The Valley nines, the original 18 holes at Comanche Trace, designed by World Golf Hall of Fame member Tom Kite, along with Roy Bechtol and Randy Russell. The Creeks nine, added in 2008, was designed by the father-son team of Jay and Carter Morrish.

“Comanche Trace has a proud championship history, and we are confident the golf course will test the players’ skill and help to identify a worthy champion,” said Jeff Hunter, Director of Golf at Comanche Trace. “Our membership really enjoys hosting major events. They are very welcoming and love watching great players in action. We are certain this year’s Women’s Stroke Play Championship will be an exceptional experience for everyone.”

The Women’s Stroke Play is the newest major on the women’s schedule and was first played in 2015. The championship annually attracts the state’s best amateurs across all age divisions, from juniors and collegians to mid-amateurs and seniors.

“Since the event was established six years ago, the field has continued to get stronger and stronger and has been a showcase for the most talented players in the state,” TGA Director of Women’s Operations Amy Worthington said.

This year’s 75-player starting field is one of the deepest ever assembled.

Oklahoma State University sophomore Hailey Jones of Dallas makes a reappearance in the Women’s Stroke Play after finishing tied for sixth last year. Jones is a three-time Legends Junior Tour Player of the Year and a two-time Texas Junior Amateur champion. During her sophomore year at OSU, Jones posted a 74.67 stroke average, ranking fifth on the team that secured a spot in the NCAA Championships this past May.

Montgomery’s Hailee Cooper was declared one of three co-champions at the 2017 Women’s Stroke Play when the sudden-death playoff was canceled due to severe weather. The UT junior also won the 2016 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball with partner and UT teammate Kaitlyn Papp of Austin, who won the inaugural Women’s Stroke Play Championship in 2015.

UT freshman Bentley Cotton of Westlake is the reigning Women’s Texas Amateur champion and Texas Women’s Player of the Year. She also has qualified for multiple USGA national championships, including the U.S. Girls’ Junior and U.S. Women’s Amateur.

At the 2020 Women’s Stroke Play, held at Crown Colony Country Club in Lufkin, then SMU junior Serena Shah of Carrollton carded rounds of 76-71-77 to finish 8-over 224 and earned a one-stroke victory over runner-up Zoe Slaughter of Houston. Shah is unable to defend her title, setting the stage for a new champion to be crowned at Comanche Trace.

Format for the championship is 54 holes individual stroke play. The top 30 players with the lowest World Handicap System Indexes must compete in the Championship Flight. All other players will have a choice to play in the Championship Flight. Those players who do not wish to play in the Championship Flight will be split into additional flights after 36 holes.

Live scoring updates, daily recaps, as well as tee-times and pairings, will be available at txga.org once the action gets underway from The Club at Comanche Trace.