The Gallery

Jennifer Kupcho’s Major Victory

It wasn’t a matter of if Jennifer Kupcho would win on the LPGA Tour, but when. Since turning pro in 2019, the Westminster native and former Wake Forest University superstar had come tantalizingly close with ten top-10 finishes, including three runner ups—one of which came in a major, the 2019 Evian Championship.

The wait ended April 3—and at a major championship, no less. With her fingernails painted green in honor of the third anniversary of her triumph in the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur championship, the 24-year-old newlywed earned her first LPGA victory in the 50th and final Chevron Championship at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif.

Kupcho led the field by six shots going into Sunday’s action, having set the 50-year-old tournament’s 54-hole record by carding a 16-under 200 during the first three rounds. That margin grew to seven after consecutive birdies on the fourth and fifth holes.

Although she would play the final 13 holes in 4 over, allowing the distance between her and the rallying Jessica Korda ultimately to shrink to two strokes, Kupcho made clutch shots when she had to—particularly the putts on 11 and 12, and the approach on the par-4 15th that yielded a tap-in birdie.

By the time she walked past the statue of tournament co-founder Dinah Shore waving near the 18th green, Kupcho was about to putt with a three-shot lead. Minutes later, the first American since Brittany Lincicome in 2015 to win the tournament found herself locked in a celebratory, feet-off-the-ground embrace with husband—and putting coach—Jay Monahan.

“I don’t think he’s ever picked me up, so that was pretty cool,” she said.

With the card signed and the trophy presented, kissed and held aloft, Kupcho admitted she had doubts whether her professional breakthrough would come.

“Yeah, for sure,” Kupcho said. “I’ve been so close a couple of times, so it’s just really hard sometimes, and here I am. It’s really exciting.”

The obligatory jump into Poppie’s Pond followed. After Kupcho, Monahan and her caddie, David Eller, took the celebratory leap, she emerged soaked and smiling, soon finding herself happily swaddled in a ceremonial bathrobe.

Kupcho’s first LPGA win marked the last time that iconic ritual will play out at Mission Hills. The beloved tournament that debuted in 1972 as the Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner’s Circle—and became a major in 1983—will move to Houston next spring.

“It’s surreal to be able to say that I was the last person here and first person at Augusta,” reflected Kupcho, whose first LPGA Tour win made her $750,000 richer as well as the first player eligible for the 2022 Rolex ANNIKA Major Award. lpga.com

KATELYN MULCAHY/COURTESY LPGA TOUR/GETTY IMAGES

A SHORE THING:

Kupcho exults after sinking the final putt to win the Chevron Classic (aka “The Dinah Shore”), the first major of the season and the first of Kupcho’s career.

FROM LEFT: TOM FERRELL, MICHAEL KEISER, BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW CHRISTIAN LEE AS GENE FLITCROFT AND MARK RYLANCE AS MAURICE FLITCROFT

COURTESY OF TOM FERRELL

A Dream Job

Afixture on the Colorado golf scene since arriving from his native Georgia in the 1980s, Tom Ferrell has informed Colorado AvidGolfer readers as the magazine’s editor-at-large since the inaugural issue. He was deeply involved at Colorado Golf Club from its inception and played major roles as the club recruited and hosted the 71st Senior PGA Championship in 2010, the 2013 Solheim Cup and the 2019 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship.

Over the years, Ferrell developed a passion for golf-course design and, specifically, the work of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, with whom he has worked informally for more than a decade. In addition to designing Colorado Golf Club and dozens of other courses, the pair has worked with famed developer Mike Keiser on Bandon Trails, Cabot Cliffs and Sand Valley.

It therefore made sense that Mike Keiser’s sons, Michael and Chris Keiser, would welcome Ferrell into their own growing resort development business as the firm’s first VP of Marketing and Communications.

“The interview lasted approximately a year,” Ferrell laughs. “But what became clear is that we share an ethos and a philosophy—that golf, done right, can enrich and enliven its players, and that conscientious development can showcase and even enhance natural environments.”

Mike Keiser set a high bar with Bandon Dunes in Oregon. At Sand Valley, in central Wisconsin, his sons are extending that work to golf purists and to younger travelers and families who value not just comfort and entertainment but memorable and sustainable experiences.

“I’m thrilled to help showcase golf’s great history at the Lido, just outside Sand Valley,” Ferrell says of Tom Doak’s meticulous recreation of the game’s lost C.B. Macdonald gem, which opens next year. “We’re also expanding the resort at Sand Valley and adding a Tom Doak heathland-inspired design, Sedge Valley, for 2024. And there plans for a couple of spectacular new sites yet to be announced.”

Ferrell and his family intend to maintain a presence in the Centennial State, and he will continue to serve as the magazine’s editor-at-large. “We’ll always have a foot in Colorado,” he says. “And surely golf will continue to grow here in the coming years.” dreamgolf.com

Very Bad Golfer, Very Good Movie

Most golf fans aren’t familiar with the story of Maurice (pronounced “Morris”) Flitcroft. But in 1976, the 46-year-old English shipyard crane operator was one of the game’s biggest stories.

Shortly after purchasing the family’s first-ever color television, Flitcroft found himself utterly mesmerized by a golf telecast and immediately had notions of lifting the Claret Jug.

Although he didn’t own any golf equipment, wasn’t a member of a club—indeed, had never actually played golf and was entirely bereft of talent—he entered the qualifying tournament for the Open Championship.

To cut a long story short, he shot a 49-over 121 at Formby Golf Club, and the R&A banned Flitcroft from ever entering again. But the determined, chain-smoking former Merchant Navy man entered a few more times using different pseudonyms and disguises.

He never made it to the Open proper, but he did become a minor celebrity and was even “honored” by several clubs that awarded Maurice Flitcroft-inspired trophies for bad golf. In 1988, Blythefield Country Club in Grand Rapids, Mich., invited the man himself to attend its Maurice Gerald Flitcroft Member-Guest Tournament.

In 2010, English actor and comedian Simon Farnaby co-authored with Guardian writer Scott Murray a Flitcroft biography entitled The Phantom of the Open. In 2017, Farnaby turned it into a screenplay, and three years later, Welshman Craig Roberts signed on to direct the movie and Academy Award winner Mark Rylance agreed to play the lead role.

The Phantom of the Open is every bit as enjoyable and amusing as a story this improbable should be. Rylance, as you might expect, is brilliant as Flitcroft, while actors Sally Hawkins (as his wife) and Rhys Ifans (as the R&A’s Keith Mackenzie) deliver their own magical moments. The artistic license is tolerable, though there are dubious moments—such as Flitcroft’s humorous conversation with Seve Ballesteros and the slapstick police chase around the course that looks as though it could have come from the Benny Hill Show.

Ultimately, none of that really matters. The Phantom of the Open, which opens in US cinemas June 3, is hugely entertaining and will make you very glad you have now heard of Maurice Flitcroft. thephantomoftheopen.co.uk —Tony Dear

NANCY LOPEZ AND SOPHIA CAPUA

COURTESY OF DRIVE, CHIP & PUTT

Sophia, So Good

Congratulations to Sophia Capua, an 8th grader at Aurora’s Vista PEAK Exploratory School, who won the chip portion of Drive, Chip & Putt National Finals for girls 14-15. One of four Coloradans who qualified for the competition held April 3 at Augusta National Golf Club, Capua chipped to an aggregate distance of seven feet—10 feet closer than any other competitor. She is the first Colorado player in DCP’s nine-year history to win a discipline, although Aurora’s Anthony Chen (boys 12-13) and Centennial’s Matai Naqica (boys 14-15) both barely missed capturing their division’s putting titles. Overall, Capua finished fifth out of the 10 competitors in her division; Naqica and Chen both came in ninth in theirs; and Judd Nikkel of Fort Collins tied for eighth for boys 10-11. A joint initiative of the Masters Tournament, USGA and The PGA of America, Drive, Chip & Putt is a free nationwide junior golf competition for kids ages 7-15. To become one of the 80 who make it to the national finals, a player must advance through local, sub-regional and regional qualifying events. drivechipandputt.com

THE SHOT

that keeps you coming back.

Want to Play with Paige?

Even if you aren’t one of the 11 million people who follow Paige Spiranac on social media, you probably wouldn’t turn down a round of golf with her. The Colorado native, who is the global brand ambassador for PointsBet, has also now partnered with Betsperts. This online portmanteau of betting and experts offers premium content and trenchant intelligence for sports bettors and Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) players.

After striking an official data partnership with the PGA TOUR, Betsperts CEO Reid Rooney brought in Spiranac as a partner and the “face” of Betsports Golf. Billed as “a sophisticated, proprietary subscription service engineered to provide actionable insights in a truly unique and complex sport,” Betsperts Golf gives subscribers a competitive advantage in golf betting and fantasy leagues by providing premium content, powerful tools, accurate rankings and insightful analysis.

As Spiranac’s energy shifts from her golf game to golf gaming, you could win big. From now until May 22, Betsperts Golf is holding a “Play a Round with Paige Giveaway,” wherein the lucky winners will tee it up “on one of America’s most prestigious courses” with one of the game’s most popular influencers. To enter, key in your email at betspertsgolf.com/newsletter. In addition to golf, the lucky winners also get the “full sports star treatment with a round-trip flight, two nights’ accommodation and meals.” The winners will be announced live May 23, the Monday after the PGA Championship. betspertsgolf.com

PAIGE SPIRANAC

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