Sarah Balding (Brookfield, Wisconsin) competed at the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals this past Sunday, April 7th at Augusta National Golf Club. The entire competition aired live on The Golf Channel. Sarah, Wisconsin’s lone finalist, was among nine other 14-15 year old females in the final age group to compete. The competition begins with the Driving skill, followed by Chipping, with Putting on the 18th green at Augusta to round the finals out. After hitting her first drive outside of the grid, Balding rallied and fired one down the right side. Local, Sub-Regional and Regional qualifying follows a different scoring structure. At the National Finals, you hit two drives, two chips and end with a 30-foot putt and a 15-foot putt–in that order. After each skill, you are ranked compared to the nine other finalists. For more on the National Finals format visit here:https://www.drivechipandputt.com/gallery/how-it-works#00000169-f4f5-d57a-abef-fdf50ee20000
After the driving skill, Sarah was ranked 3rd out of the ten finalists in her age group. Chipping put her in a tie for fifth, and then she putted strongly to put her back into third place overall. Great job Sarah! The full leaderboard can be found here: http://www.drivechipandputt.com/finals/leaderboard. In addition to testing her skills at golf’s holiest of places, Sarah got to enjoy meeting PGA and LPGA Tour Professionals and attending the Monday practice round with her family. PGA Professional Chuck Wood of Oconomowoc Golf Club served as her caddie for event.
2019-2020 Drive, Chip and Putt Registration is open! Go to https://www.drivechipandputt.com/ to find a qualifier near you! Call our office at 414-443-3570 or ask your local PGA Professional for more information.