18TH Connecticut Women's Open
May 31 - June 1, 2016 ~ Round Hill Club
A
CLUTCH CARAFIELLO
fter an opening round of two
under-par 69, Jessica Carafiello
of Innis Arden Golf Club
began the day with a threestroke lead over a pair of fellow professionals,
Ashli Bunch of Morristown, Tennessee and
2008 Champion Lynn Valentine of East
Lyme, Connecticut. Carafiello extended
her lead to as many as four midway through
the front nine, but winning a championship
of this caliber would not come easy. She
suffered a trio of bogies on the 8th, 11th and
14th holes, and suddenly, her early cushion
had evaporated.
“I missed a few iron shots, but I
made a couple of good up and downs and
mentally I stayed in the moment the whole
time,” said Carafiello.
No doubt the shot of the
tournament came on the par-3 17th hole.
Standing on the tee, Carafiello was coming
off a three-putt bogey on the 16th, and with
Breed subsequently making birdie on her
final hole in the group ahead, Carafiello
again found herself tied for the lead. Playing
at 147 yards with a back-left hole location,
her shot hit twenty feet behind the hole, and
with a crowd of family and friends watching,
the ball trickled ever so slowly down the
slope to within a foot, leaving her a tap-in
birdie.
However, Carafiello would still
need to par the closing hole, which played
as the second most difficult hole in the first
round. After striping her tee shot down the
middle of the fairway, a mediocre approach
left her a difficult birdie putt from forty feet
above the hole.
“I knew I needed to two-putt to
win, so my strategy was just to play enough
break and have good enough speed to get it
close,” said Carafiello.
She did one better, watching her
birdie putt roll end-over-end as it trickled
into the hole with perfect pace, securing a
two-stroke victory and her first Connecticut
Women’s Open title. The win adds to her
impressive resume which includes a victory at
the 2014 Women’s Met Open Championship.
She also successfully qualified for the 2016
KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at
Sahalee Country Club.
“The greens were really challenging
out there,” said Carafiello. “The pin
placements were testing, and if you didn’t
pay attention and put your ball in the right
spot, you were going to have a difficult two
putt, so you really had to be smart with your
approach shots.”
Finishing runner-up was
Breed, and while she was unable to catch
the eventual champion, she was certainly
pleased with the way she played in her first
appearance at the Women’s Open.
Amateur Catherine McEvoy of
Riverside, Conn. helped cap off a clean sweep
for Innis Arden GC, shooting rounds of 7574—149 to earn low amateur honors and
a tie for 8th place. Finishing low amateur
at the Women’s Open adds to her already
impressive resume, as McEvoy, who won
the 2015 Connecticut Women’s Amateur
Championship, would go on to defend her
Women's Amateur title at Heritage Village
Country Club (page 34).
ABOVE: Women's Open Champion Jessica Carafiello (right) and Low Amateur Catherine McEvoy (left) completed a clean
sweep for Innis Arden Golf Club.
Greenwich, Conn. ~ Yardage: 5,747 ~ Par: 71 ~ Entries: 73
1
Jessica Carafiello, Stamford, Conn.
69-71--140
152 (13) Elizabeth Caron, Greenlawn , N.Y. 153 (14) Michelle Winkler, Greenwich, Conn. 154 (15) Jordan
2
Elizabeth Breed, Waynesboro, Penn.
73-69--142
Lintz, Milford, Conn. // Chelsea Sedlar (a), Merrimack, N.H. // Shabril Brewer, Fairfax, Va. 155 (18) Ashley
3
Emily Flanigan Motta, Davenport, Fla.
73-70--143
Gersten, Norwalk, Conn. 156 (19) Ellen Nighbor (a), Fairfield, Conn. 157 (20) Laura Shanahan Rowe,
Ashli Bunch, Morristown, Tenn.
72-71--143
5
Danielle Mullin, West Islip, N.Y.
76-69--145
6
Brooke Baker, Orlando, Fla.
76-70--146
7
Anna Ausanio, Hopewell Junction, N.Y.
74-74--148
8
Catherine McEvoy (a), Riverside, Conn.
75-74--149
Lynn Valentine, East Lyme, Conn.
72-77--149
Johnson (a), Stamford, Conn. // Kammy Maxfeldt, Westport, Conn. // Sharon Hoffman (a), Lawrence, N.Y. 168
10 Linda Wang (a), Fresh Meadows, N.Y.
77-74--151
(40) Mercedese Large (a), Bloomfield, Conn. 169 (41) Kathleen Ricci, Howell, N.J. // Anelise Browne (a),
Kyra Cox (a), South Salem, N.Y.
77-74--151
Westport, Conn. 170 (43) Jill Robbins (a), New York, N.Y. // Amy Carver, Norwalk, Conn. 171 (45) Elizabeth
Sara Dickson, Scarsdale, N.Y.
76-75--151
Garfield (a), Fairfield, Conn.
Hampton, N.H. // Ellen Ceresko, Jefferson Township, Pa. 159 (22) Kate Weiss (a), Greenwich, Conn. // Kelsie
Carralero, Fayetteville, N.C. // Hope Kelley, Sturbridge, Mass. // CJ Reeves, Bedford, N.Y. 160 (26) Abby Hood
(a), Gloucester, Mass. // Susan Bond, Stowe , Vt. 161 (28) Marjorie Jones, Orlando, Fla. 162 (29) Monique
Thoresz, White Plains, N.Y. // Alexa Re Rancourt, Simpsonville, S.C. // Sarah Stone, Locust Valley, N.Y. 163 (32)
Annesley MacFarlane (a), Greenwich, Conn. // Maisie Filler (a), Bloomfield, Conn. 164 (34) Danielle Lamy,
Weston, Conn. 167 (35) Carla Wasienko, Scarborough, N.Y. // Christine Reuss, Staten Island, N.Y. // Debbie
2016 ANNUAL / CONNECTICUT STATE GOLF ASSOCIATION / 17