Sasaki and Bendrick to square off in PNGA Women’s Amateur final; Jacobs and Johnson to meet in Mid-Am rematch

Rino Sasaki of Japan will meet Jacqueline Bendrick of Mercer Island, Wash. in the final match of the 118th Pacific Northwest Women’s Amateur; while Amanda Jacobs and Gretchen Johnson, both of Portland, will face each other in a rematch in the final of the 18th Women’s Mid-Amateur.

Both championships are being held concurrently this week on the par-71 Arrowhead Golf Club in Molalla, Ore., and are conducted by the Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA).

Championship links:

• Women’s Amateur – Brackets/Pairings| Photos | Complete Information
• Women’s Mid-Amateur – Brackets/Pairings | Photos | Complete Information

To stay connected on social media, follow @PNGALIVE on Twitter for live updates and use the hashtag #PNGAWomensAm.

The four semifinalists in this afternoon’s Women’s Amateur matches all had some serious game. Susan Xiao of Surrey, B.C. was the 2017 PNGA Junior Girls’ Player of the Year; Mary Parsons of Delta, B.C. was the 2018 PNGA Women’s Player of the Year; Bendrick, the No. 2 seed, just finished her senior year playing on the Furman University women’s golf team; and Sasaki, a sophomore on the University of Washington women’s golf team, won the Washington State Women’s Amateur last month, and last week was the medalist in qualifying for the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur.

In this morning’s quarterfinal match, Sasaki easily defeated No. 1 seed Emily Baumgart, 5&4. In Sasaki’s semifinal match with Xiao this afternoon, no player had more than a one-hole advantage, as the match went back and forth. Sasaki birdied the par-4 17th for a 1-up lead, and closed out the match on the 18th with a par.

Bendrick defeated Parsons in this afternoon’s semifinal, 2-up. She was 4-up over Parsons after 10 holes, but Parsons closed the gap when Bendrick bogeyed three of the next five holes and her lead had shrunk to just 1-up after 15. Bendrick sealed the win with a birdie on the par-5 18th.

The scheduled 36-hole final match between Sasaki and Bendrick in the Women’s Amateur will begin at 7:30am on Friday, July 19.

The Women’s Mid-Amateur final will be a rematch of last year’s final, when Jacobs defeated Johnson, 4&2. Along with winning last year’s championship, Jacobs also won in this title 2014 and 2016. She was the No. 1 seed last year, and earned that No. 1 seed again this year.

Jacobs defeated Catherine Allen, 7&6, in this morning’s quarterfinal; and then beat Tina Papatolis in this afternoon’s semifinal, 3&1.

Johnson has been runner-up in this championship the past two years, and will be looking to close the deal this year, competing against her good friend Jacobs.

Johnson’s path to this year’s final is impressive, as she defeated two PNGA Hall of Famers – Alison Murdoch 7&6 in the Round of 16, and Marcia Fisher 4&3 in this afternoon’s semifinal. Fisher was playing on her home course of Arrowhead, which is owned by her family.

The scheduled 18-hole match between Jacobs and Johnson in the Women’s Mid-Amateur will begin at 7:50am on Friday, July 19.