NEWTON, Mass – Hana Ryskova turned a tight fight into a rout in the final match to claim victory in the 37th U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship when she posted a 5 & 4 win over Lindsay Gahm on a spectacular postcard-perfect September day at the 6,135 yard par 72 challenging and historic Brae Burn Country Club.
It took six days and 138 holes of golf for the 25-year old native of the Czech Republic, and graduate of University of Louisville, to win the prestigious title, open to female amateurs age 25 with handicaps under 4. The U.S.G.A. received 491 entries, the most for the tournament since 2007, and the field of 132 started with 36 holes of qualifying for match play, then pressure-packed, one-on-one intense match play and exceptional golf to determine the winner.
“The course played firm and fast all week and I was very happy with the way I stayed with my course management plan throughout the week,” said Ryskova, who is the third youngest winner of the event since turning 25 in November. “This is my first time playing golf in New England and Brae Burn is the type of course I would love to play every day. To win, it’s a dream come true.”
Ryskova brought her A-plus game to the final day and never trailed, taking the lead for good on the par-3 sixth hole, then reeling off four wins in five holes to seal the victory over Gahm. The long-hitting Czech birdied all three par 5s on the incoming nine (Nos. 10, 13 and 14) and said after the awards ceremony she had no ambition to turn pro.
Linsay Gahn, 32, is a lifelong Louisville resident employed as a golf irrigation sales manager, has a 5-month-old son, Wyatt, and husband Gutgsell flew into Boston the previous night to caddie for his wife in the final. She advanced to the final in her third U.S. Women’s Mid-Am start, having survived her Round-of-16 match with Judith Kyrinis, of Canada, by sinking a 30-foot birdie putt on the 18th green to extend it, then winning in 19 holes.
“I’m just grateful to be here,” said Gahm, who reached the Round-of-16 in 2022. “I haven’t been playing much golf since having our baby. I really didn’t have any expectations; just getting here to the final was a dream come true. Really happy for Hana, though. She played solid today. She’s a great person and a fierce competitor.”
Along with the Mildred Gardinor Prunaret Trophy (named for a longtime member of Brae Burn Country Club who captained the USA Curtis Cup Team in 1960), Ryskova is exempt into the next 10 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateurs, the 2025 and 2026 U.S. Women’s Amateur and the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open.
NOTEBOOK
* Lindsay Gahm is the granddaughter of Dwight Gahm, the founder of Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, three-time host of the PGA Championship (including 2024) and the 2008 Ryder Cup Matches. She and husband Austin Gutgsell are members at Valhalla.
* Hana Ryskova played 102 holes over the six rounds of match play, which is tied for the fifth-most holes required by a champion all-time. The most is 108, by Corey Weworski in 2004 at Holston Hills Country Club in Knoxville, Tenn. The fewest holes needed came in the inaugural championship in 1987, when Cindy Scholefield needed just 81 holes at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla.
* At 25 years, 10 months and 1 day, Ryskova is the third-youngest U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion. The youngest is Lauren Greenlief, who captured the title just 25 days after turning 25 in 2015. Greenlief, of Ashburn, Va., reached the semifinals this week, losing to Gahm, 2 and 1.
* There were 11 extra-hole matches this week at Brae Burn, which is tied for the second-most in championship history with Holston Hills in Knoxville, Tenn., in 2004. The most ever is 13 at Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas, in 2017.
* The 2025 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur will be played from Oct. 4-9, at Monterey Peninsula Country Club in Pebble Beach, Calif. Lindsay Gahm is also exempt into the 2026 championship at Montclair Golf Club, in West Orange, N.J., and the 2027 championship at the Country Club of Buffalo in Williamsville, N.Y.
* Brae Burn Country Club, which had hosted seven USGA championships before this week, including three U.S. Women’s Amateurs, two Curtis Cups, the 1919 U.S. Open (won by Walter Hagen) and the 1928 U.S. Amateur (won by Bob Jones), will host its ninth USGA championship in 2028, when it becomes the first club to host four U.S. Women’s Amateurs. The championship will be played from Aug. 7-13.
* From the 12 New England players who qualified for the tournament only 3 advanced to match play – 2018 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Champion Shannon Johnson, Tracey Martin and Megan Buck. Only Megan Buck advanced into the Round of 32 but knocked out by Raegan Bremer # & 2.
QUOTABLE
“I just need to tell my future employer that I need some PTO for [the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills and the U.S. Women’s Amateur, at Bandon Dunes]. We were looking at the sites, and I’ve never been to Wisconsin or Oregon. I’m just super excited. It’s a big thing just to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Amateur in general. And for the U.S. Open, dream come true. I’m an amateur. I didn’t really want to turn pro ever. It’s just a good experience to go as an amateur and play that tournament.” – Hana Ryskova, on the exemptions she earned for her victory
“The front nine doesn’t really play in my cards because I can’t use my driver, and if I use driver on 5 I can’t reach it most of the time anyway. I knew if I was patient – again, patience is everything. I was just being patient and really more focused because I knew Lindsay is a really good player.” – Ryskova, on her conservative strategy for the final match
“Oh, man, it felt good because I am a good wedge player and it hadn’t showed up yet, so I was glad it showed up in the right moment. It was 76 meters [83 yards], and I hit 58½ degree wedge.” – Ryskova, on the wedge shot she hit to 3 feet for the match-clinching birdie on the par-5 14th hole
“The speed was not really there. I was being a little more tentative and the greens weren’t as quick as I was used to. Just not really judging it correctly. Same thing with my ball-striking, just a little shaky, honestly, from the start. Yeah, just didn’t really have it today – again, Hana played solid. It just wasn’t my day.” – Lindsay Gahm
https://championships.usga.org/uswomensmidamateur/2024/scoring.html
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