Kristie Smith Eagles Final Hole For First Pro Title In United States

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., April 11, 2010 – About 76 miles west of Daytona Beach in Ocala, Fla., a long-hitting, green-eyed Aussie with a model golf swing won her first professional tournament in 1995 on the FUTURES Golf Tour. That player, Karrie Webb, raised the bar for all others to follow.

So it was appropriate today, 15 years later, that another Aussie – one whose precision with her irons, length off the tee and internal fieriness are eerily similar to Webb’s – would replicate the kind of cool under fire that made Webb a World Golf Hall of Famer.

Second-year pro Kristie Smith of Perth, Australia won her first pro title stateside at the $100,000 Daytona Beach Invitational, slamming home a 20-foot putt from the fringe for an eagle-3 and the win. Smith posted rounds of 66-71-67 to finish at 12-under 204.

“It’s the best feeling to hole a putt on the last hole to win by only one or two strokes,” said Smith, 21, who jumped from 12^th to No. 3 on the Duramed FUTURES Tour’s money list. “And to come into the last hole with an eagle opportunity feels pretty good.”

While Smith held or shared the lead for most of today’s final round, the tournament was hers to win or lose on the last hole. The Aussie birdied her opening hole on the Champions Course at LPGA International to draw within one shot of then-leader Jessica Shepley (76) of Oakville, Ontario. With another birdie on the fifth hole, Smith took the lead and built on it with birdies on holes 8 and 9 to make the turn with a two-stroke lead at 11 under.

By the time she reached the 16^th hole in today’s final round, Smith led by two shots over Tiffany Tavee (68) of Tempe, Ariz., and LPGA Tour members Christine Song (70) of Fullerton, Calif., and Gerina Mendoza (67) of Roswell, N.M.

With Mendoza playing two groups ahead of her and Song playing in the final pairing one group back, Smith knew she had a tenuous lead. But when she gassed her approach shot over the 16^th green and missed her six-foot par putt to make bogey, even Smith knew it was time to buckle down with two holes to play. To make it worse, she heard a roar ahead from the 18^th green.

“I told my caddie Craig [Barber-Ball] that I wouldn’t be surprised if Gerina had eagled the last hole,” said Smith. “She’s as long as I am and that [par-5] hole is reachable in two shots.”

She was right. Mendoza hit her 5-iron second shot from 183 yards to 15 feet, and calmly drained her eagle putt on the last hole to draw even with Smith at 10 under for the tournament. Mendoza walked off the course at 10-under 206, hoping for a playoff or a stumble by Smith down the stretch.

That left only Smith -- and possibly Song -- in position to win on the last hole. Song could do no better than birdie the 18^th, rolling in a 20-foot putt to finish third at 9-under 207.  Even at the turn, she knew catching Smith was going to be tough.

“I saw the leaderboard when I made the turn and she was already at 11 under, while I was two strokes back,” said Song, 18, a second-year pro. “I needed to make a lot of birdies today, but I only made three.”

So when Smith smoothed her tee shot on the 452-yard, par-five finishing hole, and then hit her 6-iron 179 yards to the back fringe, she knew she had the line for her final stroke. Holding a new putter she had added to her bag on Thursday night prior to Friday’s opening round, the Aussie confidently walked behind the ball, gave it a look, and then found the heart of the cup for the win.

“Now she knows she can win in the U.S., which is massive to her mentally,” said caddie Craig Barber-Ball. “I think it’s been hard for her because she’s been told how good she can be, and yet she has struggled a bit until she finally got the monkey off her back earlier this year with her first professional win in Australia.”

Riddled by wrist injuries throughout her rookie 2009 season, in which she was only able to play in nine events on the Duramed FUTURES Tour, Smith displayed her rising talent when she did show up. She posted three top-10 finishes in an abbreviated season, including a tie for second at the 2009 ING New England Golf Classic in Bloomfield, Conn. Later in the year, she finished second in the Ladies European Tour (LET) Q-School.

So this winter, when the daughter of former Aussie touring pro Wayne Smith carded a 9-under 64 in the final round to win the Actew AGL Royal Canberra Ladies Classic at home in Australia against a field of LPGA and LET pros, the young pro from Perth sent up a signal that she was ready to emerge as the next top talent from down under. Unfazed by the stellar field, Smith stepped up and recorded an eagle and seven birdies in her bogey-free round to beat then-No. 35 world-ranked Katherine Hull by two shots.

Fast forward to this week, Smith moved to the top of the Duramed FUTURES Tour’s statistical charts in greens in regulation (83 percent), driving distance (average 264 yards) and sand saves. She also shot up the tour’s money list -- a detail that is certain to bring about more serious discussion at home next week in Australia when she, her dad and coach Ian Triggs, sit down to plot out her 2010 tournament schedule. Smith is currently scheduled to skip some events on the Duramed FUTURES Tour to play LET events in Turkey and Germany.

“I’m sure we will have a reassessment,” said Smith. “I want to keep my European Tour card, and if I can get a couple of checks under my belt over there, I’ll come back here in June and July and play here. I just have a funny feeling this is going to be a good year.”

It’s also a good start for the Aussie, who finally has her nagging injuries behind her and a world of potential ahead. Smith admits that Webb has been the player she has watched for many years and the one whose footsteps she would like nothing better than to follow.

“If I can do half of what Karrie’s done in my career, I’d be happy,” said Smith.

And for the record, that process started today 76 miles east of where Webb’s first professional trophy was hoisted.

For scores and more information on the Daytona Beach Invitational presented by the Daytona Beach Sports Council, visit duramedfuturestour.com.

Weather: Partly sunny with temperatures in the high 70s with light winds between 8-10 mph.

Amateur Jessica Korda Ties For 12^th In Pro Tournament

Amateur Jessica Korda of Bradenton, Fla., earned a spot in the Duramed FUTURES Tour’s Daytona Beach Invitational tournament for winning the South Atlantic Amateur (Sally) Championship earlier this year in Ormond Beach, Fla. The 17-year-old high school junior finished the week with scores of 68-70-73 for a 5-under total of 211. That tied for 12th place in the professional event.

“Even though I struggled a lot, I still managed to get two scores under par,” said Korda, daughter of 1998 Australian Open tennis champion Petr Korda. “My game’s still not up to par compared to these players, but I’m getting there. I saved a lot of good pars. It was fun.”

Korda says she plans to enter the LPGA Qualifying Tournament this fall.

“Race For the Card” Continues At Daytona Beach Invitational

The Duramed FUTURES Tour’s annual “Race For the Card” entered its third week at the conclusion of the Daytona Beach Invitational in Daytona Beach, Fla. The “Race For the Card” spotlights movement on the Tour’s 2010 season money list as players jockey for position among the top-10 money winners. Players finishing in the top 10 at the conclusion of the tournament season will earn membership on the 2011 LPGA Tour.

At the conclusion of the Daytona Beach event, players moving into the top-10 spots on the money list are as follows: 1. Cindy LaCrosse of Tampa, Fla.; 2. Gerina Mendoza of Roswell, N.M.; 3. Kristie Smith of Perth, Australia; 4. Jennie Lee of Henderson, Nev.; 5. Jane Rah of Torrance, Calif.; 6. Angela Oh of Maple Shade, N.J.; 7. Chelsea Curtis of New Seabury, Mass.; 8. Garrett Phillips of St. Simons Island, Ga.; 9. Christine Song of Fullerton, Calif.; and 10. Hannah Jun of San Diego, Calif.

Smith Wins PeakVision Sunglasses For Final-Round Low Score

For her final-round low score of 5-under 67, Kristie Smith of Perth, Australia was the recipient of a pair of PeakVision patented Dual-Zone lens sunglasses designed specifically for golfers. The “Official Sunglass of Duramed FUTURES Tour,” PeakVision will provide sunglasses for the season-long promotion Sunday Low Round Award. Smith improved from a tie for third to win with her total score of 204 (-12) on the Champions Course at LPGA International. She and Gerina Mendoza of Roswell, N.M., tied with final-round scores of 67, but Smith won the tiebreaker, which is the lowest total score.

Contact: Lisa D. Mickey, Duramed FUTURES Tour at 386 214-9726 and at lisa@duramedfuturestour.com.