US born Australian, Gabriela Ruffels, completed a remarkable week at the US Women’s Amateur in Mississippi, birdies at three of her last four holes under the most intense of pressure allowing the 19-year old Victorian to become Australia’s first US Women’s Amateur Champion.

Ruffel’s 36-hole final match against Switzerland’s Albane Valenzuela was one of the closest fought in the history of the contest, the match tied at lunch after the opening 18 holes and only 1 hole between the pair over the final round.

The match was tied through 29 holes but when Valenzuela birdied the 30th she would take a 1 up lead into the final six holes.

Ruffels, though, would birdie the 33rd to square the match and then birdied the 35th to take a one-hole lead to the last.

Ruffels converted a downhill, right to left curling 14-foot birdie putt on the 36th green at Old Waverly Golf Club to clinch the title which she need to do as her opponent was facing only a six foot putt for birdie herself.

Ruffels is not only the first Australian to win this championship and is also is the 11th player from her country to win a USGA championship, joining the likes of Karrie Webb, Minjee Lee, Jan Stephenson and David Graham, Minwoo Lee and Geoff Ogilvy.

“I don’t really know yet, it’s been kind of a blur the last kind of 20 minutes,” said Ruffels of her mindset shortly after her victory. “But this is amazing. This is what you dream of as a kid when you start playing golf. This is the biggest championship in amateur golf. I’m still speechless.”

Ruffels has gone ahead in leaps and bounds since heading to the US to attend the University of Southern California where she has quickly settled into the collegiate system.

“I think I can credit that to my USC team actually,” added the winner when asked about the elevation in her game which has included a victory at the North and South Amateur Championship earlier this year.

“We just included last year Malia Nam as a sixth person, and five people travel, so there was a lot of competition between us at school. I think we’re all ranked maybe in the top 80 in WAGR, so there was definitely a lot of competition to go and travel, and we all push each other so much.

“And having that pressure to make the team, especially with all these great players around I think has pushed me to a new level and has made me try and work harder and harder, and I think I can credit that.”

For winning the U.S. Women’s Amateur, Ruffels receives a gold medal and custody of the Robert Cox Trophy for one year. Her name also will be on a plaque in the Hall of Champions at the USGA Golf Museum that will commemorate all of the USGA champions for 2019.

She also earns a 10-year exemption into the U.S. Women’s Amateur as well as an exemption into the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open at Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas. She also earns an invitation to next April’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur as well as invitations to the ANA Inspiration, Women’s British Open and Evian championships, provided she is still an amateur.”

The finalists – Ruffels left and Valenzuela ahead of today’s match – courtesy of USGA Steve Gibbons

Ruffels with mother Anna Maria after today’s win – courtesy of USGA / Steve Gibbons

Victorian, Gabriela Ruffels, has advanced to the semi-finals of the US Women’s Amateur Championship, reeling off a powerful finishing burst to defeat American Kenzie Wright in her quarter-final match today.

The 19-year old was facing defeat when losing a 1-hole lead at the turn to go 1 down through 14 holes but birdies at her final three holes saw her take the match 2&1.

Ruffels reached the shortened par-5 15th hole (450 yards) in two and deftly rolled her 40-foot birdie putt to a foot for a conceded birdie to tie the match.

Then on 16, she stuffed her 6-iron approach to a couple feet for another conceded birdie and a 1-up lead and completed the run by hitting her tee shot on the par-3 17th to 18 feet to set up another birdie.

“I was just telling myself, this is good for you to be in a pressure situation,” said Ruffels, who had not gone past the 15th hole in any of her three previous matches. “It’s good to see how you handle it. I didn’t want to shy away from it; I just kind of took it head on and did pretty well.”

Ruffels will now face American, Andrea Lee, who is the number two world-ranked female amateur, is a two-time Curtis Cup team member and is about to enter her senior year at Stanford University.

Lee easily accounted for her Curtis Cup teammate, 16 year old Lucy Li in her quarter-final match and having reached the semis of the US Amateur three years ago she brings both credential and experience to the looming semi-final encounter.

Ruffels, though, is in the middle of a purple patch of form of late having won the North and South Amateur at Pinehurst recently, ensuring tomorrow’s encounter shapes as an intriguing battle.

It won’t be the first time Ruffels and Lee have squared off in a match. Ruffels beat Lee in last year’s East Lake Cup in Atlanta. “It was a great match. I mean, I know she’s one of the best players in amateur golf right now, so I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be fun,” said Ruffels.

Three Australians have advanced to the match-play phase of the US Women’s Amateur Championship at the Old Waverly Golf Club in West Point in Mississippi, Victorian, Gabriela Ruffels, heading the way after she finished in a share of 5^th place.

Ruffels will be joined by NSW’s golfers Doey Choi (21^st) and Stephanie Kyriacou (54th) in the field of 64 golfers who will now face off in the knockout phase over the next few days.

Other Australians in the field, Becky Kay, Jessica Whitting, Amelia Grohn and Sue Wooster all missed the cut in the 36-hole stroke-play contest.

Ruffels, a sophomore at the University of Southern California, recorded a round of 68 today to easily play her way into the next stage of the championship and will play the 59^th seed, Shaebug Scarberry, in tomorrow’s round of 64.

Ruffels has been in excellent form in recent weeks winning the prestigious North and South Amateur at Pinehurst last month and is excited about what lies ahead.

“I love match play,” she said today. “I just won the North & South [Women’s Amateur] a couple weeks ago and I really enjoy match play, especially coming from a tennis background, kind of that one-on-one. So we’ll see how it goes.”

“You’ve just got to hit your spots. I don’t think it’s too long. I was talking to my coach [at USC, Justin Silverstein], I think you’ve just got to stay patient, pick your holes that you want to be aggressive on but then kind of lay off on the harder holes. Yeah, I feel like I did a pretty good job of that.”

No Australian has won the US Women’s Amateur Championship in its more than 120-year history, Lindy Goggin and Anne Marie Knight doing best when they finished runner-up in 1981 and 1995 respectively.

New Zealand’s Lydia Ko won the event in 2012.

Gabriela Ruffels

Last week was a disappointing week results-wise in terms of betting on the Open Championship but, irrespective, watching Shane Lowry complete his emphatic win was still an enjoyable experience.

This week I take a look at the W.G.C FedEx – St Jude Invitational in Memphis, the fourth major of the year for women’s golf, the Evian Championship in France, and the Barracuda Championship in Reno, Nevada.