Just 4 1/2 feet from the cup, it’s a putt Britney Yada had made many times before on the Big Island as she grew up dreaming of playing on the LPGA Tour.
The dream became reality this season, but it wasn’t until Friday in Cambridge, Ontario, that the Waiakea graduate was able to enjoy it with a further sense of relief.
Yada put the finishing touches on a 3-under 69 with the birdie she needed at the Manulife LPGA Classic, making the cut for the first time in five tries on the top women’s professional tour.
“Definitely a huge weight off my shoulder to finally make a cut,” Yada said. “It’s a sense of knowing I belong out here. And I know I will continue to get better with more experience.”
Yada, who lives in Arizona, was guaranteed her first LPGA payday when she teed off at 1:50 a.m. Hawaii time in Saturday’s third round along with Thidapa Suwannpura in the $1.7M, 72-hole tournament north of the border.
Yada was 1-under for the tournament Friday when she approached her final hole, the 472-yard ninth, a par 5. She was over the green in two and set herself up for a birdie putt that turned out to be as crucial as it was makeable.
“I decided not to look at the big screen by the green that showed the cut line,” Yada said. “But I had a feeling it was going to be 2-under.”
She was tied for 61st, 10 strokes behind co-leaders, Lexi Thompson and Alena Sharp. Yada is believed to be the first former BIIF player to make a cut on the LPGA Tour, and she’s also the first Portland State graduate to do so.
Playing in a group with fellow Hawaii native Stephanie Kono and another good friend, Jenny Coleman, Yada finally found the composure and consistency she was looking for as she competed in an LPGA tournament for the third consecutive week.
After a 73 on Thursday, Yada got to even par with a birdie on the par 5 No. 12 at Whistle Bear Golf Club. She made the turn even after a birdie on 15 and a bogey on No. 18, before going bogey-free on the front nine. She also birdied No. 4.
Through 36 holes her only blemishes were two bogeys, both on par 4s, and double-bogey Thursday on No. 17, a par 3.
“I definitely felt a lot more comfortable,” she said. “It helped a ton that I had an awesome group. We talked and laughed a lot. It was a lot of fun and it helped with the nerves.”
