PORTLAND, Ore. – Hannah O’Sullivan won the U.S. Women’s Amateur on Sunday, beating Sierra Brooks 3 and 2 in the 36-hole final at Portland Golf Club.
The 17-year-old O’Sullivan, from Chandler, Arizona, took the lead with a 30-foot birdie putt on the par-4 30th, added birdie wins on the par-4 32nd and par-5 33rd and ended the match with a two-putt par for a halve on the par-4 34th.
“I can’t really describe how good it feels,” O’Sullivan said. “It was just such a tough match today, and to be able to come out on top, it’s just incredible. I just feel so blessed.”
The 17-year-old Brooks, from Sorrento, Florida, took a 3-up lead with a birdie on No. 14 and led 1 up after 18 holes.
“This morning, I was striping it, and everything was really clicking,” Brooks said. “I didn’t miss a lot of shots. … When we came back out, she definitely played 100 percent and she definitely brought it on,” Brooks said. “I struggled a little bit, but I still played well, and she just played better, and she made more putts, and in match play that’s what it always comes down to.”
O’Sullivan eagled the par-5 23rd to pull even and took her first lead since the fourth hole with a 5-foot birdie putt on the par-4 24th. She won the par-3 26th with a birdie to take a 2-up lead.
Brooks fought back with a birdie on par-4 27th and tied it with a par on the par-4 29th.
O’Sullivan won Nos. 30, 32 and 33, holing a 7-footer on the 33rd.
“I knew if I was standing over that putt thinking about (winning), probably the result wouldn’t be what I would have liked,” O’Sullivan. “I just tried to push that aside and just stand over the putt, commit to it and put a good stroke on it, and to see it go in was awesome.”
Both players earned exemptions for the 2016 U.S. Women’s Open.
O’Sullivan won the Symetra Tour’s Gateway Classic in February at 16 to become the youngest winner in the history of the professional circuit. In May, she teamed with Robynn Ree to finish second in the inaugural U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball at Bandon Dunes.