When Jenny Chuasiriporn arrived at last yearPis U.S. Open, she did so with little fanfare. Sure, she was the low amateur the year before, but that accomplishment went relatively unnoticed.
She passed through the first two rounds, just hoping to make the cut, without so much as a mention. She was just four strokes behind after three rounds, but she still turned just a few heads.
Then came The Putt, and nothing has been the same since.
When Chuasiriporn returns today to the tournament that made her famous, not only will she be hounded by media and fans, most will even be able to pronounce her last name.
Since she sank The Putt, Chuasiriporn has become golfPis darling, a symbol of innocence and emotion in a game of the reserved and stoic. The 40-foot birdie that forced a playoff with Se Ri Pak was replayed time and time again and put Chuasiriporn in the middle of one of the yearPis top sports stories.
And undoubtedly that moment will be relived this weekend as The Putt is replayed a few dozen more times throughout ESPN and NBCPis broadcast of the 54th U.S. WomenPis Open in West Point, Miss.
But there will be one more big difference for Chuasiriporn this time aroundashe will no longer be playing as an amateur. The graduated senior who closed out her Duke career with a team title a week and a half ago will be making her professional debut this weekend.
It will be a great way to open up my pro career,<= Chuasiriporn said. [The extra attention] will be challenging, but its also nice to see how far womenPis golf has come. What I expect to see is a lot of enthusiasm for womenPis golf and just the younger players coming out. And thatPis whatPis really special about the Open, you get a lot more younger players out there. ItPis not the typical field of an LPGA event. I think itPis the most exciting event all year.<=
Thanks to Chuasiriporn, it was certainly exciting last year. After four rounds of play, Chuasiriporn and Pak were deadlocked at 6-over. After an 18-hole playoff, they were still tied until, on the tournamentPis 92nd hole, Pak drained an 18-foot birdie putt to claim the title.
And while today almost certainly represents the start of something big for Chuasiriporn, it brings closure to what has been a remarkable collegiate career. During her four years with the Blue Devils, Chuasiriporn has enjoyed so much success that she must be considered among the best female athletes ever at Duke.
She was the ACCPis player of the year for three straight seasons, as well as a three time All-America selection. As a freshman and sophomore, Chuasiriporn won ACC individual championships. Last season, Chuasiriporn won the Golfstat Cup, an award given annually to the player with the lowest stroke average in the country, and was named Golf WeekPis player of the year.
But perhaps more memorable than what she did was how she did itaalways enthusiastically and always with a smile.
Over the last four years, I donPit think anyone has represented Duke as well as Jenny Chuasiriporn has,<= said Blue Devil coach Dan Brooks in a speech dedicating the national championship to his star. I donPit think anyone has represented womenPis golf the way that she has.<=
After last yearPis Open, Chuasiriporn was pursued by agents who wanted her to leave Duke early. Chuasiriporn would hear none of it. She loved college too much, but more importantly, she wanted an NCAA championship.
I can definitely wait for the [LPGA],<= she said last fall. TherePis no need for me to rush it. I donPit want to be out there now. I like being here, IPive wanted to finish ever since IPive started. My biggest goal is to win a national championship and I havenPit done that yet. That would mean so much more to me than an LPGA win.<=
At the Championships, Chuasiriporn did not play as well as she wanted. She never contended for the individual title and she only finished fourth on her own team. But that didnPit matter. After years of work, the title was just as sweet as she had envisioned.
This is a great way to finish my career,<= Chuasiriporn said. This is a goal IPive been working toward for four years. I canPit begin to explain how happy I am to be a part of this national championship.
When they made the announcement that we won is when I probably first felt [that my career was over]. There was so much emotion riding into it and such a relief to finally have done it. It was really just indescribable.<=
Indescribable is a word many would use to describe ChuasiripornPis career, but now she is headed to the unknown. Chuasiriporn has accepted exemptions into the first three LPGA events in July and has applied for one to the British Open.
A win in any of those tournaments would qualify her for an LPGA Tour Card, but if that does not work, this summer she will join the Futures Tour, an LPGA minor league of sorts. Chuasiriporn will need to finish as one of the top-three money winners on the Futures Tour to qualify for the LPGA, or she will enter qualifying schools in August and then October which round out the 2000 tour.
But while the future looks bright, she still leaves behind a program that she has helped bring into the elite of the collegiate golfing world.
These four years have summed up what golf means to me,<= Chuasiriporn said. The team play and the team camaraderie is what I like about golf, and itPis why I play this game. I love the team and its been such an important part of my development in golf. I really owe it to the coach and the team for helping me get better.
IPive learned a ton of things here. IPive gained a lot of perspective on my game, and life in relation to golf. IPive gotten to experience so many things.<=
Now she will begin to experience new things. And while Chuasiriporn and Duke fans are sad to see her collegiate career come to a close, most realize that this is just the beginning for Jenny Chuasiriporn.
IPive been trying to tell Jenny there will be a lot of other great moments,<= Brooks said after the Championships. ShePill have big things to do in golf and in other parts of her life that will be just as special. The most important thing going on in life is whateverPis happening now. It happens to be college now for her, but itPis going to be other really special things. ItPis been great having her.<=
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