By Steve DiMeglio,USA TODAY
By Jack Gruber, USA TODAY
Angela Stanford shot even-par 72 with four birdies. Kristy McPherson had four birdies, too, and shot 1-over despite a double-bogey. Anna Rawson made two birdies but lost track of what her score was on the back nine.
An LPGA tournament last week? Not quite.
In a happenstance moment, the three LPGA tour players ended up in the same place for a memorable 18 holes of golf.
At Augusta National Golf Club.
"What an unbelievable place! It lives up to all the expectations!" is what Rawson tweeted on Twitter shortly after finishing her round at the home of The Masters,where Bobby Jones, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watsom Seve Ballesteros and Tiger Woods all have left lasting imprints. And don't think the three didn't soak in that 7,445-yard stroll through the Hall of Fame.
"One for the books," is what Stanford tweeted about a day between the Gerogia pines under sunny skies with barely a hint of wind. "Amazing day at Augusta National! 1 over with a double on 13 :( but 4 birdies on the front! A pretty spectacular day!" is what McPherson tweeted.
Some 48 hours after they drove down Magnolia Lane to head home, the three were still bustling with memories.
"God was having a really good day that day" when the course was designed, Stanford remembered thinking as she walked down the 11th fairway and saw the heart of Amen Corner. A few moments later, she chipped in for birdie on the 11th hole, which triggered the caddies to start chanting, " Larry Mize," in reference to Mize's tournament-winning, 140-foot chip-in to stun and defeat Greg Norman in a playoff in the 1987 Masters.
A few moments after that, the golf gods struck back as Stanford, ranked No. 11 in the world, dumped her tee shot into Rae's Creek at the famous par-3 12th where winds swirl and tee shots go to die.
"All I wanted to do was hit it at the middle of the green because the Sunday pin placement (far right) was there and you don't go at that flag," said Stanford, who made birdies on the sixth, 11th, 15th and 16th holes. "I remember yelling at the TV in last year's Masters when Phil (Mickelson) hit it into the water. All he had to do was hit the middle of the green. But I fanned it to the right with a 6-iron. Made double."
McPherson, ranked No. 20 in the world, made double on the par-5 13th when she also dumped a shot into Rae's Creek. The "7" marred a scorecard that revealed birdies at the fourth, sixth, seventh and eighth but came far from spoiling the day in which she played with Stanford and her father as a guest of an Augusta National member.
McPherson had played the course twice before as a collegiate player. This time, however, she and her dad and Stanford also got in nine holes at the par-3 short course. Her favorite place at Augusta National, however, is some 50 yards from the first tee.
"I just love standing on the back porch" of the clubhouse, McPherson said. "It's pretty cool to be standing there looking out at the course as the sun sets. Even though I knew how special it was to play there because I had already played there twice, I was still excited to play again. You just don't get very many chances to play in such a spectacular, special setting."
Rawson, who played the revered Seminole Golf Club in North Palm Beach, Fla., prior to arriving at Augusta National, was in a different group on the course than Stanford and McPherson — but was left with the same lasting impressions. Her course favorites were the bridges — the Hogan Bridge at the 12th, the Nelson Bridge at the 13th and the Sarazen Bridge at the 15th.
"I lost track of my score on the back nine and was more focused on embracing the whole experience," said Rawson, who made birdies at the 4 and 12. "I bogeyed a bunch of holes on the back nine. I had a lot of close putts but couldn't quite get the speed of the greens."
She isn't the first person to mention the world famous, challenging greens at Augusta National. And she certainly won't be the last.
"The feeling I got when walking the course was amazing," Rawson said. "I couldn't stop thinking about how I had got to this position. I began to get emotional and realized I was there because of the opportunities that my Dad had created for me in life. The fact that he introduced me to the game of golf and gave me every opportunity to succeed in whatever I chose.
"I kept thinking how much he would have loved to have been there."
