US Women's Open Qualifier (June 7)

I was all excited when the LPGA decided to return with a new sponsor back in Malaysia this year.  The Maybank of Malaysia will be hosting again at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club later this October!  It got all my golfing juices flowing again, so I decided to sign up for the US Women's Open qualifier. Coincidentally, there was a qualifying site 20 minutes down the road in Palatine. 

But first, some final prep work.  My club head cover needed some mending.  This one was a gift from my caddy way back when during the 1994 ASEAN Games in Hiroshima, Japan:

Much better... considering it already has some prior mending work done and it's almost 30 years old!!

My caddy then was this cute little Japanese lady and she knitted an entire set of 4 of these headcovers in green. And right before I left on the last day, she knitted another set of 4 in yellow!

Also prepping by some practice rounds.  Check out all that white cotton/fluff that's all over the fairway!! It's like it's snowing.  Seems that it's from the female cottonwood trees:

And practicing mentally - never too late for some last minute "mind practice".  My putting has been so bad lately!!

Here's the day of the qualifier!  Palatine Hills Golf Club is actually a city-run club and it's been in good shape for the qualifier:

So there are only 2 spots available for grabs for the qualifier, out of 78 players.  And we played 2 rounds on the same day. I'm glad I had asked Bobby and the boys to come by the club to order lunch for me and my caddy because we only had 20 minutes between finishing up on #18 and going back to #1 tee!

And here are my scores.  Rather embarrassing!!

Despite all those practice rounds, my body just did not react to how my mind wanted it to. I was very hesitant and tentative with a lot of my shots.  If I had to guess, it's probably due to the lack of competitive golf. My last event was back in Long Beach, CA in 2018!! 

It was great to see Bobby, Graham, and Charlie though - as I exited the 18th green (36th hole at this point): One with a bag of gummy bears, another with a bar of 70% dark chocolate, and finally one with a cactus plant with purple flowers.  All of my favorites! 

If anything, it was great being back in some sort of competitive play again. I had a local kid as a caddy, although it probably would have been better to have a familiar face on the bag. Maybe that would have calmed my nerves down a bit more.  This really made me think about whether I want to continue playing "Pro" or reinstate my amateur status. I was actually planning on going back to an Amateur right before I signed up for this qualifier.  The good news is there are a lot more professional events to play in the Midwest. And with both boys being back in middle school, perhaps I will have more time to practice?! Decisions, decisions!!  And of course, I can always keep my Pro status so I can play in Senior events when I turn 50. Ha!!