Yorkton’s Ella Kozak is the 2021 Saskatchewan Women’s Amateur champion.
The 15-year-old golfer took the lead into the final round on Thursday at Swift Current’s Elmwood Golf Club.
Kozak was pushed by Autumn Neiszner all the way to the 54th hole but Kozak’s final hole par and round of 77 was enough to edge Neiszner by a single shot.
“It felt really good,” she told Yorkton This Week Friday. “It was certainly a battle towards the end.”
Going into the final day Kozak had an edge, but a thin one.
“I had a two stroke lead going into the last day,” and the pressure just stayed on through the final round. “It was very nerve racking.”
But, Kozak said she wanted the win, and used that desire to focus.
“I tried to just keep calm and finish the round,” she said.
It seemed to be working.
“I was two up with two holes to play,” said Kozak, who watched the runner-up cut the lead in half before her par on 18 secured the win.
Kozak’s win at the Women’s Amateur championship follows Kathy Ziglo, who started her golf career in Yorkton winning in 2019. Ziglo also won in 1995.
Kozak, while only 15, is a veteran golfer now having played in her first tournament eight years ago. She said the Saskatchewan Women’s Amateur championship is certainly her biggest win to-date.
Kozak will try to repeat her effort this weekend in Moose Jaw at the Hillcrest Golf Club as she participates in the Saskatchewan 2021 Junior Championships.
“I just want to play some strong rounds,” she said.
Kozak’s Women’s Amateur championship earns her a spot at the Canadian Amateur Women’s Championship in Spruce Grove, Alberta from July 27 – 29.
