In April 1977, when entries for the first U.S. Women's Amateur
Public Links Championship began to trickle in, there was concern.
Would this, the first national championship ever staged for women
who play the country's public courses, attract enough players
to fill the field? Did it justify the effort to set up 27 qualifying
sites around the country?
By May, the trickle of entries had become a steady stream. When
the June deadline for entries arrived and the results were tallied,
the astonishing reality was that this championship had attracted
a field of 686 players — more than the combined fields of
the 1977 Women's Amateur, Women's Open, Senior Women's Amateur,
and Girls' Junior.
The entry figure was amazing for several reasons. First, this
was a new championship that would need time to build interest.
Secondly, some states didn't even have organizations to assist
women public course players, conduct sectional qualifying, or
raise funds, and the 686 entries were drawn from only 24 states.
The 1977 Championship was played at Yahara Hills Golf Course (East
Course) in Madison, Wis. Kelly Fuiks, 19, of Phoenix, Ariz., was
the first champion. In fact, for the first four years, the championship
was the personal property of two outstanding players. Fuiks won
again in 1978 before turning professional. Lori Castillo won in
1979 and 1980, and at one time held or shared every individual
record in the championship. Miss Castillo won 11 consecutive matches
before losing in the second round in 1981.
The championship received a boost when Castillo was selected as
a member of the 1980 United States Curtis Cup team. By that year,
the Women's Amateur Public Links was regarded as a highly competitive
arena for some of the best amateurs in the country. Since then,
Heather Farr, Danielle Ammaccapane, Cindy Schreyer, Tracy Kerdyk,
Pearl Sinn, Tracy Hanson, Amy Fruhwirth, Jill McGill, and Jo Jo
Robertson, all WAPL champions, also have been named to Curtis
Cup teams.
Pearl Sinn accomplished a unique double in 1988 when she won the
Women's Amateur as well as the Women's Amateur Public Links. When
she repeated as WAPL Champion in 1989, she and Curtis Strange,
who won the U.S. Open, were the only two to repeat as USGA champions
that year.
McGill also achieved the double win. She was the holder of the
1993 U.S. Women's Amateur
title when she won the 1994 Women's Amateur Public Links Championship.
The championship also is noteworthy because of its team trophy,
which has been captured a record five times by a team from Phoenix,
Ariz.
In 2002, the final will be played over 36 holes for the first
time.
