Wade ties for 58th at U.S. Open

By JOHN VERSER
Glasgow Daily Times

GLASGOW June 30, 2008 04:31 pm

— Whitney Wade shot 7-over par in the final two rounds to tie for 58th in the U.S. Women’s Open at Interlachen Country Club.
Wade, who shot 4-over the first two rounds to make the cut, finished with a 1-over 74 on Saturday and ended the tournament with a 6-over 79 Sunday. Her four-day total of 303 was 20 strokes off the pace of Inbee Park, who won the tournament with a 283.
Although the finish wasn’t where she’d like, the Glasgow native saw a lot of things in her second career Open that she can build on after playing toe-to-toe with the world’s best golfers for four days.
“I saw a lot of things this week that really opened up my eyes,” Wade said. “I know that I can play with these girls. It’s just the little things that I have to work on and improve.”
Wade played well in all phases of the game at times over the weekend. She had her best putting day on Sunday, despite shooting a 79, and needed just 26 putts to average 1.44 per hole. But it was by far her worst day getting to the hole with just 5-of-18 greens in regulation. It was just the opposite to open the tournament when the University of Georgia graduate needed 34 putts but hit 14 greens in regulation.
“If I hit a good driver, then I hit a bad iron or three-putted it,” Wade said.
Wade opened the third round with a bogey on the par-4 first hole. She went even on the next five holes and bogeyed the par-4 seventh hole. Wade hit a birdie on the par-3 227-yard eighth hole and made par on the ninth to end the front nine with a plus-1 37. She finished the back nine even with a birdie, a bogey and hit par on seven holes to finish with a plus-1 74 on Saturday.
Wind gave Wade problems to start out on Sunday. She double bogeyed the opening hole and bogeyed the second hole to start out at 3-over. The GHS grad then birdied the third hole before coming back with another bogey on the fourth hole.
“It was quite windy out there today, but it was my problem because I wasn’t hitting the ball very well,” Wade said. “I hit the driver into the bunker (on hole number one) and started with a double.
“Then I came back with a bogey. I kept telling myself that there were a lot of holes left and I birdied three. But then I came back and bogeyed four.”
Wade parred back-to-back holes and birdied the par-4 seventh hole to inch closer back. But she ended the front nine with a double bogey and a bogey to finish 5-over at the turn.
“I hit my 3-wood 50 yards short and then I come back and I’m still 15 feet short,” Wade said of her problems on the par-3 316 yard eighth hole. “I had just made birdie on it (the eighth hole on Saturday) and now I come back with a double bogey.
“It was so windy on those two holes, but I made the turn and I found out that I wasn’t the only one having trouble.”
Wade bogeyed two of the first three holes on the back nine, sandwiched around a par on the 11th hole. She birdied the 13th hole, a par-5 525 yard hole, and finished the day with five straight pars. Wade finished the back nine 1-over to end with a 6-over par 79.
“It’s something special to come up 18 with a grandstand full of people,” Wade said. “That always puts a smile on your face, no matter how you did.”
It’s moments like those that Wade said made the Open special.
“It was a lot of fun,” said the UGA alum. “The people there always support you, no matter how you do. And the little kids around all asking you for your autograph. That was kind of cool.”
Wade has a rare weekend off this week before returning to the Duramed FUTURES Tour’s next event, the CIGNA Golf Classic, which will be played July 11-13 in Bloomfield, Conn.
But it won’t be an off week for Wade, who’s already looking to apply the lessons she learned at the Open to her game.
“I think this is going to give me confidence in the next few events,” Wade said. “I learned a lot this week. I know what I’ve got to work on and I’m going to spend time between now and the next FUTURES tournament working on those things.
“This experience is something that is definitely going to help me down the road.”