Whaley receives inspiration from fans

She credited the supportive crowd for keeping her going after a shaky start.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
CROMWELL, Conn. -- As she lined up what would be her final putt in the opening round of the Greater Hartford Open, Suzy Whaley still took time Thursday to acknowledge, with a wave of her hand and a smile, a couple of overserved patrons who yelled "Come on, Suzy."
That was nothing like the noise that would follow.
Whaley purely struck the downhill, 37-foot, left-to-right breaking putt and it dropped right into the bottom of the cup for a birdie, setting off a thunderous ovation from the crowd that ringed the green, and the smile that lit up the Tournament Players Club at River Highlands all day.
The birdie finished off a 5-over-par 75 for Whaley, the club pro from Blue Fox Run Golf Club in Avon, Conn., who was the first woman to qualify for a PGA Tour event since 1945 but had to wait 10 months for this day to arrive.
Not hiding her excitement
When asked whether she felt more relief or excitement, however, she didn't hesitate.
"I'm more excited how it went," she said.
Whaley, 36, wound up defeating 13 players in the field, including David Duval, a former No. 1 in the World Golf Rankings, who had the worst score of the day, an 83.
The score wasn't the only thing for Whaley. She thoroughly enjoyed herself. She waved often. She smiled continually between shots. She said thanks whenever her walk up the fairway was accompanied by applause. She even responded to residents of the homes that are adjacent to the fairways at River Highlands, some with "Go Suzy" banners draped over the balcony.
"The response of the fans was overwhelming," she said. "They were cheering for me on every single shot. They cheered me walking to every green and on every tee. They kept me going, kept me moving forward. I credit the fans with getting me through the round."
She also praised her playing partners, tour rookies Akio Sadakata (68) and Anthony Painter (76), as being "wonderful gentlemen."
The day got off to a shaky start.
From bad to good
Whaley 3-putted the first hole from 41/2 feet for a double bogey, conceding that nerves had gotten the better of her.
"I got on the green and I felt like someone sucked the wind right out of me," she said. "But I knew it was nerves and not that I made bad strokes. On the second green, I settled down."
She settled down quite well. Whaley needed only 29 putts -- 12 on the back nine -- and made three spectacular saves for pars at the sixth, 12th and 17th holes, the longest being a 27-footer at the par-5 sixth.
But Whaley saved her biggest highlight for the end. She drove it in the fairway and hit a wood to the left fringe. She was faced with a downhill sliding putt that would take off down a swale if she hit it too far.
"I had a fleeting moment to feed it up there, get it close, get a par and get out of there," she said. "But I'm a little too competitive for that. I wanted to make a birdie out here. So I decided to go ahead and hit it on the line I wanted to. When I saw it (break), I knew I had it."