AUGUSTA, Georgia – LSU sophomore women’s golfer Ingrid Lindblad represented her school and her home country well Saturday as she finished in a tie for third at the second Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

The 30 golfers who made the cut after 36 holes of the event at Champions Retreat, played the final round at the Augusta National Golf Club and the famed venue turned the second nine holes into what you would expect from a major championship event.

Lindblad posted a final round of 3-over 75 to finish 54 holes at 2-over 218. The Swedish star posted 73-70 at Champions Retreat on Wednesday and Thursday.

The LSU golfer was one of six that finished just one stroke out of the playoff of Emilia Migliaccio of the United States (a senior at Wake Forest) and Japan’s Tsubasa Kajitani. That playoff was won by the 17-year-old Kajitani on the first playoff hole (No. 18) with a par 4.

As has been known to happen at The Masters on the same course, things began to happen quickly over the second nine of the ANWA as at one point six golfers were tied for the lead deep in the round as several leaders had trouble with hazards and the subtle moves of Augusta’s greens.

“I mean, it was tough out there,” Lindblad said after the round.  “Even if you hit the green, it’s not a given two-putt.  I’ve experienced that on the back nine today. And I mean, it’s tough out there and then
you see the leaderboard and you’re like, oh, I’m only one back or I’m leading by one. So, it’s a lot of thoughts like outside the golf–the whole golf experience.”

Lindblad had tee troubles early on the first and third holes leading to bogeys but began to get her round going with great two putts from distance on both the fourth and fifth holes. The 2020 SEC Player of the Year had birdie putts on six, seven and nine with her putt on six rimming out and her putt on nine burning the left edge.

She finally was able to get a birdie to drop after a wonderful third-shot approach on the par 5 13th, hitting to five feet and making the birdie that put her at 1-over for the tournament at that point and with things happening elsewhere on the golf course, she was suddenly part of that six-way tie for the lead.

Unfortunately, a couple of bad breaks on the next three holes took Lindblad out of the lead when she took a five on the par-4 hole 14.

“I did not hit a good iron shot into that green,” she said. “I was long left and then I just told Thomas, my caddie, I was like, I don’t feel like this could end up close to the pin and it just kept rolling.  I tried to hit a shot that landed on the fairway and then kind of slowed down a little bit but I didn’t hit it that good and just rolled out to about 40 feet. Left the par putt short and then made a 6-footer or something for bogey.”

On 15, the famed risk-reward par 5, Lindblad had 225 to the green and nailed her approach shot, setting up a long eagle putt. The attempt rolled out past the hole leading to a three-putt par.

“And then I went for the green on 15 and just got up there, hit a 5- wood in so I just thought why not go for it,” Lindblad recalled.  “Then I three-putted that one because I didn’t think it would be that fast behind the hole. It just kept rolling and then I missed the birdie putt.”

On the par 3 16th, Lindblad’s tee shot flew the flag to the back part of the green where several players had struggled to two-putt from and her difficult left-to-right breaker again rolled out past the hole, leading to bogey.

Lindblad rallied on the 17th hole with two great shots that left her with an uphill putt which she buried in the hole for her second birdie of the round. Needing birdie on 18 to make the playoff her chip from off the green slid to the right and she settled for par.

Lindblad was the first LSU golfer to play in the event which was first played in 2019. Lindblad was invited to the 2020 event which was canceled because of the pandemic.

“It was awesome out there,” Lindblad said of the experience. “The course is amazing. We had a great time. I’m just happy to be here because I know not many people get to be here and the whole experience is awesome.”

Now the sophomore will return to Baton Rouge to rejoin her teammates for the annual renewal of the LSU Golf Classic which begins Tuesday at the University Club. The tournament which will feature 14 teams, 12 from the Southeastern Conference along with Florida State and Pepperdine, is set for 36 holes on Tuesday and the final 18 holes on Wednesday.