Follow the leader: Teens get a glimpse of golf greatness

By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
VIENNA -- A few hundred yards from the 18th green, in the Squaw Creek Country Club parking lot, a 15-year-old girl named Natalie Sepulveda was holding a sign with two names: Annika Sorenstam and Jennifer Rosales.
She was a Sunday standard bearer for the two players, which means she had to (or got to, depending on how you look at it) walk 18 holes holding a big heavy sign next to the best female golfer in the world.
"I haven't really followed golf, but from what I hear, [Sorenstam] is really famous," said Sepulveda, who will be a junior at Liberty High School this fall. "I just signed up for this because I'm a cheerleader and we'll get money for uniforms."
Makes sense. You volunteer to be a standard bearer, next thing you know you're hanging out with arguably the most famous female athlete on the planet.
Nice job perk.
"It was fun," she said. "I thought it would be really boring, but it wasn't."
The plot thickens
But there's something you should know about this interview. It happened a few minutes after Sorenstam finished her round, after she missed nine straight birdie putts on the back nine that could have won the tournament, and after Rosales birdied 18 to earn a spot in the four-player playoff -- which was going to start in about two minutes with Lori Kane and Rachel Teske.
Wait a minute. She did know Sorenstam was about to play a playoff hole, right?
"No," Sepulveda said. "I just know I have to take this [sign] in."
Oh.
If you've read any of today's headlines, you know what happened next. Sorenstam missed a winning birdie attempt on the first hole, and Teske made an 18-footer two holes later to win the tournament.
Follow the leader
Sepulveda didn't see it. Her friend, Jennie Baroff, did.
Baroff, Sorenstam's other standard bearer, ran from playoff hole to playoff hole, watching every shot.
"It was really fun because I play golf and I really look up to [Sorenstam]," said Baroff, who will be a freshman at Liberty. "I knew this morning [that she was assigned to Sorenstam] and my brother and I were fighting over who would get it."
She won. Her brother got the next group, Jean Bartholomew and Teske. (Not a bad consolation prize.)
The only downer about the day was that neither girl got Sorenstam's autograph.
"But I got this person's autograph," Sepulveda said, slapping Rosales' name on the sign.
"Annika said that after she plays the playoff, she'll come back," Baroff said.
It's unlikely that she did. After losing the playoff, Sorenstam took a few questions from reporters and quickly headed home. (To her credit, she did sign quite a few autographs this weekend.)
Worthwhile experience
Autograph or not, Sepulveda said she had fun.
"She seemed very nice," she said of Sorenstam. "But we didn't talk that much. She had police officers and there were a lot of people."
There was also a lot of mud.
"Yeah, I've got mud all over me," she said.
Baroff also said she had fun, but she seemed to have more fun watching the tournament than walking it.
"It was really tiring," Baroff said. "That sign is heavy."
scalzo@vindy.com