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Oooo-la Waugh
NEW ALBANY, Ohio -- Shani Waugh sat back in the distance and watched as Lorie Kane was doused with champagne on the 18th green Sunday. Waugh most likely was thinking that should have been her victory celebration. But while she might have not hoisted the trophy at the New Albany Golf Classic, Waugh did win the hearts of many fans over the weekend. As Waugh held a one-shot lead heading into the final round, LPGA message boards on the Internet were filled with notes of admiration as if she were the second coming of Jan Stephenson.
"Who is this hot babe leading the LPGA event," asked one writer from Texas. Another user wrote, "Because of Shani, I will watch the LPGA every week." With an Olivia Newton-John accent that can make your knees buckle and a smile brighter than the fireworks that closed the Sydney Games in her native Australia, the 31-year-old didn't shy away from any post-tournament interviews even though she blew a three-shot lead with three holes to go. She even joked about how she was preparing her victory speech with nine holes remaining and how she wanted to do a little six-shooter salute after she made the last putt to win. That, obviously was all for naught. Growing up in Bunbury, Western Australian, Waugh says she was a bit of tomboy. She loves all sports, especially team sports, and she dreams of one day playing team handball in the Olympics. As a kid, she played cricket, soccer and Australian Rules football. While she likes playing golf and, as evidenced by last week's performance, has a bright future ahead of her, she says she misses getting dirty and physical. "When I was younger, I was bigger than the boys because girls grow quicker," she said. "So I used that to my advantage and roughed the boys up." When asked what she was going to do to regroup after her late-round debacle, Waugh said, "I think I will have a good cry and a glass a wine." Given all the interest generated online about this bachelorette, she won't likely have a hard time finding a shoulder on which to shed those tears. "I'm up for anything," she said. "I didn't win but maybe I can get a husband out of the deal." Sister actOn Thursday, Dina Ammaccapane faced a wait on the par-three 14th tee. "We were waiting for the group in front to get off the green, and the volunteer marshal at the hole asks, 'Are you Danielle's sister?'" Dina said. "I turned around and said yes. And he goes: 'She hit it in the water here.' I just shook my head, and said, 'I really didn't need to hear that.' So what did I do? I hit it in the water and made triple. I was not happy. I mean, comments like that happen a lot. And yeah, we are sisters, but just leave it at that. I didn't need to know that." Not surprisingly, the marshal was not seen or heard from the rest of the week.Tom Hanson, a regular contributor to Sports Illustrated's Golf Plus section,
is a longtime caddie on the LPGA Tour. Click here
to send him a question or comment. The opinions expressed here are solely those
of the writer.
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