For a girl who says she doesn’t know how to win, Shannon Aubert did pretty well Friday.
The ever-smiling Aubert was smiling more than she usually does after capturing the Dixie Amateur Women’s Golf Championship in dramatic fashion, beating Simin Feng on the first playoff hole at Heron Bay Golf Club in Coral Springs.
“This was nice, it really ranks up there,” said the French-born Aubert, who is Stanford bound.
Aubert started the day three strokes up but actually trailed by a shot at one point. She recovered with birdies on holes 10, 12 and 13, and by the time the final group got to No. 18 it was apparent the winner would come out of that final threesome — Aubert, Feng and Nicole Morales.
Aubert had a one-stroke lead over the other two players as they prepared to tee off on 18.
Morales sent her drive into the reeds next to a lake and had to take a penalty stroke, but then managed a spectacular par when she rolled in a 33-foot putt. Next up, Feng was on the fringe but managed to chip in a 50-footer for birdie using a 60-degree wedge.
Aubert, still smiling as usual, was also shaking her head in bemusement as her two playing partners were finding nothing but the bottom of the cup from far, far away. Aubert, who had a 71 Friday for a 280 total, made her two-putt par, and that left her and Feng (68-280) in a playoff as Morales (69-281) was on the outside looking in.
Aubert could only laugh about the turn of events and went over and told Feng her chip-in was “mean and cruel.”
In the playoff, going back to No.18, Feng chipped five feet away from just off the green with her third shot. Aubert blasted from a trap nine feet past the pin.
Advantage, Feng.
Aubert responded by dropping the nine-footer and punctuated it with a fist pump. Feng then lipped out her short putt.
Of the winning nine-footer, Aubert said, “Yeah, it felt more like 60 feet. It was nerve-racking.”
After the putt, she unsuccessfully tried to escape her friends, who rushed the green to pour water on her from cups, plastic bottles and pitchers.
She walked away soaking wet, and — as usual — smiling.
In the men’s competition after two rounds, Chris Carlin of Plantation shot a 66 Friday to go with his opening 70 on Thursday to take a two-stroke lead over McCormick Clouser (67-71) and Richard Donegan (66-72).
The men played the first two rounds at Woodlands Country Club, and those making the cut will switch over to Heron Bay for the final two rounds. Those not making the cut will play a separate tournament at Heron Bay.
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