With apologies to those who have never gotten ink stains on their fingers and gone to the driveway to pick up the morning newspaper, “Stop the Presses!†Breaking news has halted the print run.
It didn’t take place in Wales, where the Curtis Cup was played. Nor did it take place outside of Baltimore, Maryland, where the PGA Tour conducted the second of three playoff events. It had nothing to do with the upcoming Solheim Cup or the health status of any PGA Tour player going into the season-ending Tour Championship. This breaking news took place in the sweltering heat of St. Louis, Missouri, where the slow-rolling Mississippi River can turn a summer day into a sauna. There, at Sunset Country Club in triple-digit heat, 59-year-old grandmother Ellen Port, the winner of seven USGA championships, captured the Metropolitan Amateur Golf Association’s Senior Amateur Championship.
This wasn’t the men’s golf association at her local club. These were the best seniors in the region. And she beat them all straight up. Playing the same tees.
What’s the big deal, you wonder? Why should you care about a Midwestern association’s senior amateur tournament? Glad you asked. Port’s victory is stop-the-presses news because she defeated 111 men older than age 50 to claim the George F. Meyer Trophy. This wasn’t the men’s golf association at her local club. These were the best seniors in the region. And she beat them all straight up. Playing the same tees.
Port had to work overtime to add to her already lengthy golf résumé. After opening with even-par 72, she roared back with a bogey-free 5-under 67 to tie Joe Malench after the regulation 36 holes. A four-hole playoff ensued, which ended when Port canned a 20-foot birdie putt.
“Remarkable†was the only word Tom O’Toole, the founder of the Met Golf Association who went on to become the president of the USGA, could come up with to describe this achievement. Added Skip Berkmeyer, a longtime, high-level competitor in the St. Louis area, “She belongs in the World Golf Hall of Fame.†Former Walker Cup player and captain Jim Holtgrieve, another veteran of elite Missouri golf, said, “She is a competitor like no other.â€
Lest you think this is a one off, Port prepared for the event by playing a week earlier in the Normandie Amateur, another prominent men’s event on the MAGA schedule. She finished T4 in the senior amateur division.
So, what does Port think about playing with and beating men?
“The only man I ever think about beating is old-man par.†she said to me, quoting the great Bobby Jones.
Port, who took her first swing in her early 20s, has been a member at Sunset Country Club for three decades. Still, beating the guys can’t be totally written off to home field advantage. Her winning score was the third lowest total score in MAGA Senior Amateur history.
Port has been playing well for several weeks, a fact that she attributes to a lot of competition. Prior to the Normandie, she tied for low-amateur honors at the U.S. Senior Women’s Open in Connecticut and was in contention for the first 36 holes before falling back on the weekend. “I am in a good place with my game.†she told GGP last week.
Fittingly, and so on point for Ellen Port, she agreed to talk to me about her achievement on Thursday, but only after she had finished her babysitting duties for the grandchildren of a deceased friend.
What’s next for the indomitable Port? Back to playing with the girls. This week, Port defends her Missouri Women’s Senior Amateur title. Last year, she won the championship by seven shots.
And then it’s onto the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur as well as the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, both of which she has won.
What are her chances of capturing an eighth USGA championship?
There are at least 111 men in Missouri who will tell you not to bet against her.
Top: Ellen Port
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