HELENA — A playoff paid off Saturday for Montana State golfer Lauren Greeny, who fended off a surge by Valentina Zuleta to capture the 106th Montana Women's State Amateur golf championship at Green Meadow Country Club.
Greeny sank an eagle putt in a playoff hole on No. 18 to outlast Zuleta, a Rocky Mountain College golfer. Greeny and Zuleta were tied after three rounds, each with a total gross score of 220, which necessitated a playoff.
Greeny, a graduate of Pullman High School in Washington, shot 73 in both the first and second rounds, and shot 74 in the final round on Saturday, good for 4-over par. Zuleta, of Bogota, Columbia, shot 78 in the first round and was four strokes off the pace, but came back with a 70 in the second round on Friday and a 72 on Saturday to also close at 4 over and force a playoff.
Greeny will be a sophomore at Montana State this year. Zuleta will be a junior at Rocky.
Another MSU golfer, Scarlet Weidig, finished in third place with a three-round score of 226, 10-over par. Jordan Briggs, also of Montana State, placed fourth with a cumulative score of 229 (13 over). University of Montana golfer Tricia Joyce tied Briggs with a three-round total of 229.
Meanwhile, Deb Porcarelli of Great Falls cruised to her second consecutive victory in the Senior Amateur division, shooting a three-round score of 232, 24 strokes better than the runner up. Libby's Jackie Mee was the Mid-Am division champion with a cumulative score of 231. Celi Chapman of Jefferson High School was the Carla Berg Trophy winner, finishing with a total score of 245.
