Saskatoon’s Kathy Ziglo has gotten off on the right foot this golf season picking up a win in her debut Order of Merit Tour (OMT) event this past weekend.
The Saskatoon Golf and Country Club member battled the blustery elements over 36 holes at Dakota Dunes Golf Links holding off a trio of ladies in second place to win the Saskatoon Ladies Open. Ziglo was the lone golfer in the 38-player field to break 80 during round one on Saturday. She shot a 77 on the opening day. Ziglo said her everyday game is suited for windy Saskatchewan days.
“It was consistently three clubs, sometimes even four,” she said. “I am blessed sometimes; I have a low ball flight so I generally play the wind well. Everything I did wrong was with my short, my mistakes were not element based.”
With a six-stroke lead over Autumn Neiszner going into the second round Ziglo knew she needed to be consistent to potentially win the championship.
“I was struggling to find some intensity to hold onto, Sunday was a battle of attrition,” she said of her second round 82. “I knew from playing behind Kim (Brown) and them that no one was making a move up the leaderboard, so I knew if I got in without major mistakes I was good. I limited my mistakes. I didn’t have any bad holes, I just had blah holes. I bogeyed myself to death.”
Ziglo, a long-time golfer who got her start at Deer Park in Yorkton earned 500 points on the women’s OMT with the win. Neiszner, Carrie Lambden, and Brown all tied for second at plus-25, ten strokes back of Ziglo. The trio each earned 350 OMT points. Regina’s Kim Walker placed fifth at plus-28. Despite competing in the amateur women’s division, Neiszner was was awarded the junior women’s plaque.
Brown leads the early season OMT race with 850 points, Ziglo is next thanks to the win. She said getting off to a good start feels good ahead of the women’s amateur in a couple weeks.
“It’s always nice to get one early because you never know when you get older to see if you still have it or not,” Ziglo chuckled. “It’s good when you can come out and shoot a good score, it was good.”
Ziglo will be back in the women’s amateur field this year after taking a year off. The event runs from July 3 to 5 at the Moon Lake Golf and Country Club.
Click here to register or find all the results and current standings from the women’s OMT.