Jieni Li’s blood pressure likely spiked watching Sophia Trombetta try to catch her Friday at the Golfweek Purdue Amateur. The two were paired together in the final round at Purdue’s Ackerman-Allen Course in West Lafayette, Indiana, and Trombetta was trying to make up ground.
What was it like to watch her putt for birdie on No. 18 to force a potential playoff?
“It was really stressful because her putting today was really good,” said Li, a sophomore at Northwestern. “…She made a lot of long putts.”
Li felt like the pressure was coming from Trombetta all day but in the end, Li’s final-round 70 was enough to net her the win at 9 under for 54 holes. Trombetta, a senior at Michigan, parred the final hole and finished one back after her closing 68, the best score of any competitor in the final round.
Scores: Golfweek Purdue Amateur
“It was pretty good because I feel like this course is good for me to play,” Li said of her win. “It’s not that long and it provides me a lot of chance. My irons are on the way back, it provides me a lot of birdie putts. My putting wasn’t so good today but it was good yesterday, which I made three putts. Also the day before. I felt like I like my performance this week.”
Li, the 2018 Hong Kong Junior Open champion, felt like the week at Purdue brought her confidence back ahead of the upcoming college season. It showed her where her weaknesses were and where she can devote more work to her game.
Behind Trombetta, Daniela Ballesteros was third at 5 under.