Blinn's consistency propels her to second straight title

01:00 AM EDT on Saturday, July 10, 2004

BY PAUL KENYON
Journal Sports Writer

PROVIDENCE -- When she saw the door open, Valerie Blinn did not hesitate. She not only took advantage of it, she charged through it. And she did not stop until she had earned her second straight Ocean State Women's Golf Association Amateur title.

Blinn won the battle of talented young players in the title match at Triggs, 4 and 3, over Ally Caffrey.

The 23-year-old from Crestwood played excellently, going 1-under-par for the 15 holes. What made the performance even more impressive was that Blinn not only survived a great start by Caffrey, she used it to help propel her own game.

Caffrey, 18, from Wannamoisett, won the first hole with a par. Then, on the par-4 second hole, she stuck her six-iron second shot 18 inches from the hole for a tap-in birdie.

"When she hit that shot I stood there with my brother [Billy, her caddy for the week] and said, 'What a great shot,' " Blinn said. Rather than scare her, it spurred her on.

"Being down makes me work a little harder and play harder," Blinn said. "I don't mind being down."

She got down to business. She won the next two holes with pars to draw even. On the fifth, Blinn looked as if she was going to fall behind again when she got in trouble. She had to make a 12-footer to save bogey. When Caffrey missed her shorter par putt, the hole was halved. To Blinn it felt like a victory.

That's when she felt the door open. She was 2-over through five holes, but still in a tie.

"That fifth hole was the turning point," she said.

From there on, she kicked her game into high gear and played superbly. She never made another bogey. She rattled off seven pars and three birdies in the next 10 holes.

"I played very consistent. I kept the ball in play and I made some really clutch putts that I needed to make," she said.

"Valerie deserved it. She played her heart out," said Caffrey, who is headed to the University of Richmond in the fall. Caffrey, perhaps showing her inexperience -- she was playing in her first Amateur -- mixed in some excellent shots with some inconsistent play.

"I had no ball-striking control, which really killed me," she said. "On top of that, I wasn't putting well."

After her big start, Caffrey won only one hole, the par-3 12th, where she rolled in a 45-footer from the fringe for birdie. Even that, though, showed her lack of confidence. On that hole, as she did on several others, Caffrey elected to go with her putter from off the green. Her chipping had hurt her several times, most notably on the 9th and 10th where her inability to get up and down led to loss of those holes.

The last hole, the par-5 15th, provided a fitting ending as both players were just off the green in three. Blinn got up and down and saved par. Caffrey could not and lost the hole and the match.

Both players will head to the New England Women's Amateur next week and then the R.I. Women's Golf Association Championship the following week. For Caffrey, it then will be time to head to Richmond to play on the golf team and refine her considerable talent.

Blinn, a graduate of St. Francis College of Loretto, Pa., is trying to decide on her future. She is changing her swing, working with Marvin Lerman, the pro at the Coles River Driving Range in Swansea, with an eye toward possibly turning pro. She is only about halfway through major changes, which have started with her grip and are going through her posture and swing.

"I didn't think about my swing today at all," she said. "I was just working with what I brought." Obviously, playing 1-under in a title match is impressive. But Blinn said she feels she needs a more-consistent swing if, indeed, she is going to try life as a pro.

"Right now, I'm still working through my swing change, still focusing on my swing change," she said. "When I'm ready [for the next level] I'll know. I'd like to play in the U.S. Amateur. [Turning pro] is one of those opportunities that, when I feel like I'm ready, I'll take it. I know it's available to me if I want to go that route. But I enjoy playing with my friends and working with my instructor.

"It could be a year, it could be two years," she added. "I'm just taking each tournament, each week one at a time. I want to build my résumé and get more consistency."

The championship divison final was not the only match featuring excellent young talent. Sixteen-year-old Katherine Murphy of Wanumetonomy had three birdies on the way to 1-up decision over Judy Duarte in the A Division. Kay Bullock gave Crestwood two titles when she edged Lori DiPersio in 20 holes, Bullock's second straight extra-hole win, in the B Division. Kyong Kim edged Coleen Curley, 1 up, in an all-Triggs final in the C Division and Ann DeStafanis of Triggs topped Kathy Mis of Weekapaug, 3 and 2, in the D Division.