LaBrae’s Haylee Harford ties for 7th at Augusta National

April 7, 2019 at 12:00a.m.

Senior was one of eight competitors who shot under par

Haylee Harford played a great round of golf and made some history along the way.

The LaBrae graduate shot 1-under par in her Augusta National debut on Saturday, closing out the Augusta National Women’s Amateur tied for seventh place. The tournament was the first women’s golf tournament at the home of The Masters.

“I really thing this is going be a big change for women’s golf and golf in general. Just seeing how many fans were out there — somebody said it was about 20,000,” Harford said. “I’m not sure how accurate that is, but to have that many people out there supporting women’s golf. It’s going to be a big driver for young women who think ‘I want to compete at Augusta National one day’ and that can be a dream of theirs.

“I hope it inspires young girls to stick with golf and maybe drive more people to the game.”

Harford made four birdies and three bogeys, finishing the three-round tournament even at 216. The first two rounds of the tournament were played at Champions Retreat. She was one of eight competitors who shot under par at Augusta National.

She credits using Augusta National’s caddy staff for her round. Normally, her father, Kevin Harford, caddies for her in tournaments, but she she needed the local expertise for the course. Just like in the PGA Tour, the caddies wore their white jumpsuits.

“When you see it on TV, you don’t see how severe the slopes are on the greens, so when you’re aiming at the greens, you need to aim 20 yards less. When you putt, you see the greens break to the left, you have to aim 10 feet to the left,” Harford said. “It takes someone who knows the lay of the course to tell you that.

“That course is maintained to perfection. Not a single blade of grass was out of place. The sand around the bunkers is shaved down so that it isn’t seen,” she added. “The way it’s maintained is what sets it apart from anywhere else. It’s picture perfect.”

The senior at Furman was 1-under through the front nine with a birdie on No. 7. After making the turn, she bogeyed No, 10, but got back to back birdies on No. 12 and 13. She bogeyed No. 14 and No. 17 before closing out her round with a birdie on No. 18. For Harford, the back-to-back birdies were her proudest achievement at Augusta National.

“[Getting a birdie] on 12 and 13 is something not even the guys [who play at the Masters] can say. That was awesome. That was special,” Harford said. “It was really hard, but I’m really happy with having four birdies at Augusta. I’m happy with how I played.”

Jennifer Kupcho of Wake Forest won the Amateur when she shot 5-under on Saturday to finish 10 strokes ahead of Harford.

She had an Eagle on No. 13 and birdied three of the last four holes to become the first woman to win at Augusta National.

Harford will finish her senior season with the Paladins and play for Team USA in the Arnold Palmer Cup before turning pro.