A two-day point total of 58 helped Vernon golf pro Kyla Inaba earn some cash.
Inaba, from Predator Ridge, finished fourth at the PGAS of B.C. Women鈥檚 Championship, presented by Dexim Golfwear, at the Northview Golf and Country Club in Surrey where players used the Stableford format over the 36-hole event. Players earn one point for a bogey, two points for a par, three points for a birdie and so on.
Inaba had scores of 26 and 32 to finish fourth and earn a cheque for $325. She was the runner-up at the same event in 2020.
Kat Kennedy鈥檚 steady play over two days led to her first professional victory.
Despite a windy and rainy final round to the 36-hole, stableford-scoring tournament, Kennedy (Point Grey Golf & Country Club, Vancouver) matched the 33-point performance she put up in Tuesday鈥檚 opening round to take the title with a 66-point total.
鈥淚t feels amazing,鈥� said the 26-year-old, whose last win came in the 2018 Alberta Ladies Amateur Championship. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been a while since I鈥檝e had a win and doing it while playing amongst some great ladies was a great experience for me out there.鈥�
Kennedy entered the final round one point off the lead. She made nine pars on the front nine before a 10th-hole birdie gave her an advantage over first-round leader and defending champion Christine Wong (University Golf Club, Vancouver) but sparked a back-and-forth battle for the lead. Wong was ultimately disqualified due to a scorecard error.
鈥淲hen I first made that birdie on Hole 10, the next swing I tugged it a little bit left, put it in the water and that rattled me a little bit,鈥� said Kennedy. 鈥淚 had to slow everything down again 鈥� stay patient. With the weather, you never know what鈥檚 going to happen.鈥�
Kennedy took the lead for good with a par on the par-3 16th and was able to clinch the victory with a low-stress par on the closing par-5 18th. She earned $900 for the win.
Michelle Waters (Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club, Vancouver) finished with 63 points to take runner-up honours and collect $600 for her performance. She was 10th out of 10 in 2020.
Stephanie Wong (Point Grey Golf & Country Club, Vancouver) matched Kennedy for best round of the day with 33 points and placed third, five points off the pace, to take home $425.
Northview Golf & Country Club served as a tremendous host for the event, honouring its history as a past PGA Tour stop by using weekend pin positions from the 1998 Greater Vancouver Open on the Ridge Course for the Women鈥檚 Championship.
