Carson City, Nev.–Christy Atencio (Gross) and Laarni Gaurano (Net) claimed overall championships at the 2020 Nevada State Women’s Senior Am held Sept. 22-23, 2020, at Silver Oak Golf Course in Carson City. –by Bill Bowman, Las Vegas Golf Insider staff.
Overall Gross
For Christy Atencio it was a matter of survival as she hung on and won the overall Gross Division by one shot.
In the end, she only had one thought: “I’m just glad we ran out of holes,” she said with a laugh.
Atencio opened the tournament with an even-par 72 and all was going well.
“I was really hitting fairways and greens,” she said of her first-day play. “I was steady Eddy down the middle and if I missed a green, I chipped it close and made the putt. Yesterday my putter was my best friend.”
And the second round started promisingly as well.
“I started off with a birdie and then had another birdie (on the fifth hole) so everything was going along nicely,” she said.
But all of a sudden, it wasn’t.
“I had a bogey on the seventh hole and then a double bogey on the ninth so that wasn’t a great way to finish the nine at one-over,” she said.
There were more problems to overcome.
“I thought ‘OK, you’ll do better on the back,’ ” she said. “But my drive on No. 10 went almost dead against a tree and it’s a short par-4. I took a drop and wound up with a bogey. Then the wind came up and that really started playing with my mind.”
She said the victory lets her know she’s still able to compete at a high level.
“I’ve won the Nevada state title before and won the Northern Nevada amateur,” she said. “So I’m still trying to play this game. It’s just a good thing I had a good lead heading into today.”
Overall, she said the experience taught her there’s still more to learn about the game.
“You just can’t ever take anything for granted in this sport,” she said. “Today I had three birdies but also had a few bogeys and two double bogeys. And those double bogeys came on No. 9 and No. 18. Both of those are par 5s so I should have had birdie putts. You just never know what’s going to happen.”
Overall Gross
Christy Atencio, 72-78—150
Lynn Greer, 77-74—151
Regina Quintero, 76-80—156
Overall Net
Laarni Gaurano finished up the first day with back-to-back-net eagles en route to an eight-under-par 64 and went on to win her first state title. She added four net birdies in the round and had a six-shot lead after the opening round.
“I was really pumped up after the first day,” she said. “I was playing so well and very excited. This was beyond my comfort zone so I was really surprised I did so well.”
She added her main goal was to play smart.
“I was really concentrating on my game,” she said. “Usually I just go for it. This course is very difficult so I just tried to concentrate and be smart on where I should hit the ball.”
After the round, she looked at the second day pairings and fear gripped her.
“When I received pairings for next day, I was a wreck,” she said. “I couldn’t sleep. I was stressing so much. The players in my group are all good players and I don’t consider myself that good of a player.”
The second day she had seven net birdies during a roller-coaster round.
“I wasn’t very happy with the round,” she said. “I wanted to shoot better. I was pretty upset because I thought I threw away all the hard work I did yesterday. But then I was surprised and happy when they said I won.”
She said entering the event was a last-day thought.
“The main reason I entered was that I had qualified for the Silver Cup team,” she said. “I’m trying to gain experience in these types of tournaments and this will definitely help me.”
Net
Laarni Gaurano, 64-76—140
Kathy Streeter, 74-75—149
Debbie Fuetsch, 79-71—150
OTHER DIVISIONS
50-59 Gross
Regina Quintero, 76-80—156
Karen Hoppe, 86-84—170
Valerie Pike, 85-88—173
50-59 Net
Kathy Streeter, 74-75—149
Debbie Fuetsch, 79-71—150
Lisa Mantkus, 79-73—152
60-69 Gross
Lynn Greer, 77-74—151
Lori Elliott, 79-82—161
Joanne Bower, 86-85—171
60-69 Net
Robin Rakusin, 79-76—155
Jean Driver, 83-75—158
Shelly Brewster-Meredith, 81-78—159
70-plus Gross
Janice Campbell, 83-82—165
Terri Paden, 99-94—193
Bonnie Johnson, 97-106—203
70-Plus Net
Stevie Walter, 72-79—151
Jeanne Fadem, 79-88—167
Patty Conant, 79-91—170