Ladies Begin Fight to Stave Off Elimination

Editors note: The Golf Channel’s “Big Break III – Ladies Only” is the third installment of this hit television series. As the title suggests however, this season is just for the ladies. The 10 contestants will be vying for entry into select LPGA tournaments, including the Michelob ULTRA Open at Kingsmill.
 
With their nerves racing and tensions high, the ladies started off the day by battling it out in their first Mulligan Challenge. The winner would be granted an all-important mulligan that could be used strategically during the Skills Challenge.
 
Unlike the previous two Big Break series, the ladies would be playing for the mulligan before playing the Skills Challenge. The winner of the Skills Challenge would then be granted immunity from the dreaded Elimination Challenge.
 
“Everyone here has a great amount of talent,” said 41-year-old Debbie Dahmer. “It’s not a lack of talent that is going to eliminate the first player.”
 
The Mulligan Challenge had the group hitting two wedge shots from around 100-yards out. The two players with the lowest total distance from the pin would move on to a putt off and the winner there would grab the mulligan.
 
But before a single shot could be fired, the first surprise of the day came when LPGA Tour stars Kelli Kuehne and Lori Kane strolled up to the hitting area to show the ladies how it’s done.
 
“I was so extremely nervous,” said Pam Crikelair. “The first event, the first day and then all of sudden I had to follow Kelli Kuehne off the tee. I was even more nervous.”
 
After each contestant hit their tee shots, roommates Jan Dowling and Liz Uthoff had the best two scores and proceeded to the putting green. Kuehne went first to give the pair a good look at the break, but with the rain beginning to come down neither could capitalize on the first putt. A second miss by Dowling opened the door for Uthoff and she drained the putt and seized the mulligan.
 
With Mother Nature really letting loose with the rain and cold, the ladies made their way to the Skills Challenge. The name of the game was uneven lies, with each player hitting a shot from below their feet and a shot above their feet.
 
“It definitely added an element of difficulty to each shot,” said the group’s youngest contestant Sarah Sasse, from Lincoln, Neb.