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2011 TRANS AMATEUR CHAMPION
JULIE YANG

Julie receiving the George Ill Champion Trophy
from Trans President, Judy Stine

YANG WINS 81ST WOMEN'S TRANS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
The Powder Horn - Sheridan, Wyoming
6420 yards - par 72

By Aaron Atkins
The Sheridan Press

     Nestled in a serene crook of the Bighorn Mountains, a battle raged between two fierce young competitors during the final round of the 81st Women’s Trans National Championship golf tournament at the Powder Horn Golf Club in Sheridan, Wyo., on Sunday.
     Sixteen-year-old Julie Yang of Mesa, Ariz., and nineteen-year-old Alex Stewart of Carson City, Nev., squared off for 36 holes during the final round of match play to decide who would walk away the 2011 champion and who would go home empty-handed.
     While Yang would eventually triumph, nailing a putt for par on the final hole and sinking a late rally by Stewart to finish one up, both competitors walked away with their heads high, knowing they put everything they had into their game.
     Yang and Stewart were even after the first 18 holes, with Yang birdying two holes and bogeying one, and Stewart birdying four times and bogeying three. All Stewart’s birdies came on the back nine.
     During the second set of 18, Yang birdied three and bogeyed three on the front nine. Stewart got off to a slow start, bogeying three on the front to fall into a three-hole deficit.
On the back nine, however, Stewart birdied four holes to Yang’s two to close the gap to one. On the 18th and final hole, both ladies made par and Yang walked away a one-up victor.
     Starting the tournament off with stroke play, after two rounds of 18 Yang was seeded 21st and Stewart 30th. Neither golfer was considered a front-runner at the beginning of match play. That moniker was given to No. 1-seeded Sunshine Baraquiel of Antipolo, Philippines and defending champion Mia Piccio, also of the Philippines, and 2009 United States Golf Association girls’ junior amateur champion Amy Anderson.
     Baraquiel fell 2 and 1 to Australian native Ashlee Dewhurst 2 and 1 in the quarterfinal round, Piccio fell to 2010 Mexico Player of the Year in the second round and Anderson fell to Stewart 5 and 3 in the semis.
     Seven countries, including the United States, Australia, Argentina, Ireland, Sri Lanka, Mexico and the Philippines were represented in the tournament.
     91 golfers began stroke play. 64 made the cut and entered into five rounds of match play, with the field narrowing by half each round until a champion emerged.