ROSWELL, Ga. -- Morgan Pressel stood under a tree, shielding
herself from the rain while her opponent tried to keep the match
alive with a short putt.
When the ball slid by the hole, Pressel had won the U.S. Women's
Amateur -- with eight holes to spare.
No way she was going to lose this championship on an improbable
shot.
The 17-year-old Pressel eased some of the disappointment from
her excruciating defeat in the U.S. Women's Open by winning the
sport's most prestigious amateur event Sunday with a 9-and-8 rout
of Maru Martinez.
Pressel kept up her march toward predicted stardom on the LPGA
Tour and showed why she's one of the brightest prospects in the
deep pool of emerging teenage golfers.
She had only one close call during match play, needing an extra
hole in her second-round victory. She won two matches with five
holes to play, and turned the 36-hole final at Settindown Golf
Course north of Atlanta into one of the biggest routs in the
tournament's 105-year history.
"I came here expecting big things from myself and had a lot of
expectations from everybody," Pressel said. "I struck the ball
very well this week. I had a lot of tight iron shots for birdie and
converted many of the putts. Yeah, it was definitely one of my best
weeks."
When Michelle Wie decided to skip this year's amateur
championship, Pressel became the overwhelming favorite. She didn't
disappoint -- only three other finals have been decided by a larger
margin, topped by Anne Quast Sander's 14-and-13 victory in 1961.
The match ended on the 10th hole, when Martinez missed a
4-footer to save par on a gloomy afternoon. The 21-year-old from
Venezuela, who plays college golf at Auburn, dumped four balls in
the water over the course of 28 holes and broke down in tears when
it was over.
Pressel knows the feeling, losing two USGA events this year on
unlikely shots.
The emotional teenager went to the 18th hole of the Women's Open
tied for the lead, only to finish second when Birdie Kim knocked in
a shot from a greenside bunker. Less than a month later, it
happened again in the U.S. Girls' Junior Amateur -- Pressel was
eliminated when her opponent chipped in from 40 feet.
After Martinez chipped in at the 12th during the morning round,
Pressel said to herself, "Uh oh, here we go again."
Not to worry. Pressel won three straight holes before the break,
reaching the midway point with a 4-up lead. Rain delayed the start
of the afternoon round by 50 minutes, giving the weary Martinez a
little extra break, but it didn't matter.
"I guess it's a good feeling not to lose on a shot like that,"
Pressel said. "But I wasn't concerned. I came here to win."
When Pressel won two of the first three holes in the afternoon,
extending her lead to 6-up, Martinez's body language told it all.
She stood in the fourth tee box with her head resting on the
shoulder of her father, Julio Martinez, who carried her bag. He
gently patted her cheek and tried to give her some encouragement.
Martinez also was cheered on by a large contingent of fans
decked out in Auburn colors -- including her teammates and coach,
who painted their faces blue and orange.
"There's a lot of golf left," a Tiger-clad fan told her. "You
can make history."
Pressel was the only one making history on this day. She stepped
up at the fourth and hit a soaring drive down the middle of the
fairway. Martinez yanked her tee shot into a creek along the left
side, erasing any thoughts of a comeback.
"I didn't do that all week," Martinez said. "But my body just
wasn't responding the way I wanted it to."
Pressel isn't likely to defend her amateur title. She has
applied to join the LPGA Tour and will be allowed to attend
qualifying school this fall. If she makes it through Q-school,
she'll get her tour card next spring after turning 18.
From all indications, Pressel's game is ready for the pros.
Clearly, the amateurs were no match for her.
Pressel never trailed in the championship match, taking the lead
for good in the morning at the 13th hole. Martinez missed the
green, pitched 45 feet past the hole and couldn't save par.
A drive into the rough cost Martinez the 16th hole, and her
deficit grew larger when Pressel made a 28-foot birdie putt from
the fringe at the 17th. Then, at 18, Martinez knocked her approach
into the water and Pressel put her ball safely on, stretching the
lead to 4-up.
A few hours later, with the champion's medal around her neck,
Pressel looked ahead to bigger things.
"It's going to give me a lot of confidence," she said. "I've
got a lot going on in the next few months or so. We'll see how it
all unfolds."