Ohio pro takes Kentucky Open. ‘I was going to do whatever it takes to win.’
Ohio professional Kasey Miller took the lead at the turn and went on to fire an even-par 72, capturing a one-stroke victory in the 23rd Kentucky Women’s Open at Frankfort Country Club on Wednesday.
Miller trailed Hebron native and Southern Illinois junior Moyea Russell by one stroke after Tuesday’s opening round. On Wednesday, Russell’s triple-bogey on the par-5 No. 3 hole gave the rest of the field an opening. Miller took advantage with birdies on No. 5 and No. 9, then parred her final eight holes and wrapped up the title when runner-up Mikhaela Fortuna, a sophomore at Oklahoma, missed a 15-foot birdie try on No. 18 that would have forced a playoff. Three players finished tied for third two strokes behind Miller, including Owensboro native and Xavier sophomore Ke-Asha Phillips.
“I’ve played in a lot of tournaments this year where I’ve been in the same situation at the start of the final round,” Miller said. “All I could think about was holding the trophy at the end of the day and I was going to do whatever it takes to win.”
Miller, who graduated from the University of Findlay in 2016 after finishing second in the NCAA Division II National Championship, has played in two LPGA events since turning pro. She earned a spot in the 2016 U.S. Open by winning a qualifying tournament, and missed the cut in last month’s Marathon Classic.
“It feels great to win. This was one of the first events I played as a professional in 2016 and I won the Low Professional Award that year,” Miller said. “This time I decided it would be better to be named as overall champion.”
Four current University of Kentucky golfers finished in the top 30. Sophomores Casey Ott and Ryan Bender tied for 12th. Junior Sarah Fite was 20th, while senior Josephine Chang tied for 29th. Recent Eastern Kentucky graduate Elsa Moberly finished alone in seventh place. Western Kentucky’s Bailey Tyree tied for eighth while fellow Hilltopper Lizzie Loy tied for 21st.
