AUGUSTA, Ga. — Lottie Woad performs two practice shots, her head turned toward the cup as she rehearses her ideal follow-through. She walks her feet forward, spreading them shoulder-width apart as she gently places her left hand on its leather handle. She places her mallet putter behind the ball. One more look. She pulls the trigger.
Behind every triumph at Augusta National is a process. Woad considers it a science.
The Florida State sophomore’s pre-putt ritual on that 16-footer on No. 18 — the one that capped her birdie-birdie comeback and won the Augusta National Women’s Amateur by one shot — was a routine she performed thousands of times. All she had to do was stick with it. That was never in doubt for the 20-year-old.
Turns out, following a game plan is Woad’s specialty. Her strategy for managing the Augusta National course has been developed since she first played there during the 2023 ANWA final round. Her practice sessions are scheduled down to the minute. She recently began working with a sports psychologist to learn breathing techniques during critical moments. Every time she spots a ranking, Woad looks down on it: she wants to know exactly where she stands, at all times.
“Lottie is almost an obsessive-compulsive golfer,” says Steve Robinson, Woad Saturday’s caddy and her coach for the England national team. “But it takes a bit to be a great player.”
The winning moment for Lottie Woad.#ANWAGolf pic.twitter.com/bedGPJ4wRQ
– Augusta National Women’s Amateur (@anwagolf) April 6, 2024
On Saturday, Woad’s behind-the-scenes preparation – and her unwavering confidence in it – was validated to the highest degree, especially when her beloved plan was momentarily shattered into pieces.
This tends to happen on this golf course.
As Bailey Shoemaker pulled ahead, making birdie after birdie en route to a record 66 in the final round, Woad knew she had to give herself a handful of birdie chances on the accessible closing holes to make up ground. . But after a disastrous series of misses on the 13th hole, it suddenly became clear that she would have to dig even deeper.
On the par 5 which closes Amen Corner, Woad blocked his tee shot badly. There aren’t many places to miss a tee shot on the fast dogleg, but the right side didn’t do him any favors. Woad then misjudged the wind and placed his layup much further back than expected. She hung her pitching wedge approach on the green. The trouble didn’t stop once she reached the putting surface.
“I mean my first putt was in the water, I hit it so hard and luckily it stopped,” Woad said.
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She left with a bogeyman. Shoemaker was pulling ahead – the USC sophomore suddenly had a two-shot lead. What Woad did next won’t necessarily make for the highlights, but it embodies how and why she won that golf tournament.
“The bogey was a turning point for her,” Florida State head coach Amy Bond said. “It’s like, okay, I didn’t come here to finish second.”
Still erasing his mistakes, Woad’s 14th tee shot hit a tree, leaving him 215 yards out, far too long a stand to give any spin to his approach. The shot circled the hole and came to rest alongside the green, a nearly impossible position for an up-and-down swing. Woad’s chip sank onto the putting surface, but it was never going to stay close: She left herself with a 10-footer to save par. A 10 footer to stay in.
Woad, ranked fourth in the world among female amateur golfers, might have strayed from her course on that 14th green, but the mentality behind her – the methodical, balanced driving that is obviously in her blood – kept her going. back on track. . This innate ability to stay in the moment, never getting too high or too high, but remaining fierce enough to compete, is Woad’s secret weapon. Well, it’s not so secret anymore.
She completed the putt and came away with par.
“(I learned) I never get out of it,” Woad said. “When it was difficult there, I held on. This will give me a lot of confidence. Mistakes are inevitable in this course. It just wasn’t the right time to do one, but I did it, and it’s happening. I just stayed calm and knew I could recover from it.
That’s what she did. Woad made three pressured mid-range putts for birdie on his final four holes. Whether she knew it or not, she was always ready to make those three birdies.
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On the 18th green, the unassuming sophomore made an unusual sound as her ball made its final spin toward the center of the cup. Woad raised his right forearm ever so slightly and clenched his fingers.
“I rarely pump with my fist. I probably threw a little one in there,” Woad said. “That’s probably all you’ll get out of me.”
That’s the problem with game plans. Sometimes the most satisfying part is having the privilege of letting go of them.
(Top photo: Warren Little / Getty Images)