Seasoned senior wins Canadian Women’s Mid Am

Not even a three-putt on the final hole of the final round could tarnish the shine of Judith Kyrinis’s stirring victory in the 2023 Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur tournament this past Thursday.  At age 59, Ms. Kyrinis fashioned a 10-shot victory in both divisions of play – the mid-Am, open to all players age 25 and over, and the mid-Master for those over 40.  It’s the third such double victory in this event for the Thornhill, ON resident, having managed the feat in 2016 and 2019.  She was also the 2017 U.S. Senior Women’s Open Champion.

In fact, the retired nurse and mother of three pretty much had this tournament locked up after her first drive on the first hole two days before.  Her opening 69 – the only score recorded in the 60s over the challenging Mad River Golf Club layout over the course of the three-day event – gave Kyrinis a comfortable 5-shot lead, that expanded to 11 after round two.

In the end, it was a 10-shot margin over South Carolina’s Dawn Woodard that allowed Kyrinis to avoid another sleepless night.

Sleepless night??  With an 11-shot lead??

“Yeah, because this course can come up and bite you, and it certainly did on the first couple of holes [today],” said the winner.  “You just have to be really smart around this golf course, and that’s what I did the first two days, and today was really tough conditions with all that wind.

“Y’know, we all put a lot of hard work in, so to win is just… it’s icing on the cake.”

Four players tied for third in the overall mid-Am competition, including Canadians Augusta James from Marysville, ON (a former junior golf standout and former pro), and defending champion Shelly Stouffer of Nanoose Bay, BC.  The low round of the final day, a stirling two-over-par 74 played in gusty, swirling conditions, was recorded by Nonie Marler of Vancouver, BC.

While scores were generally high over the three days – a quick scan would suggest an average tally in the low-to-mid 80s – there was no doubt that, aside from Judith Kyrinis, the star of the show was the Mad River course itself.  All the players I spoke to – regardless of their performance – were effusive in their praise of the challenge of the layout, and the impeccable conditions managed by Course Superintendent Chad Vibert and his team.  Considering that Mad River has experienced three significant washouts and course closures since mid-June, the grounds crew clearly exceeded all expectations in presenting a fair and true test of golf.

Indeed, during the closing ceremony, one official suggested that the course should change its name to “Chad River” in recognition of the Super’s outstanding work.

Designed by the late, revered architect Robert Cupp, the members-only Mad River Club was opened in 1991, and now enjoys a solid and active membership of 350 golfers and their families. The course is perennially ranked in Canada’s Top 50.

For Ms. Kyrinis, meanwhile, there will be little rest in the coming days.

“I’m leaving on Tuesday to go for a [U.S.] Senior Open qualifier in the Boston area, then it’s the [Canadian] Senior out in PEI, and that kinda goes right into the U.S. Mid-Am.”

With her Mad River performance, one would think that Ms. Kyrinis has a fruitful few weeks ahead.