Lauren Stephenson called her coach, Tim Cooke, after a missed cut in Hawaii last April and explained that she’d been struggling on the greens. When asked what side she’d been missing it on, Stephenson said everywhere – short, long, left, right.
Her coach’s advice: Go buy a new putter. It’s time to look at something different.
As luck would have it, there was big supply of putters to choose from at the home of her host family for the week at the HUGEL-AIR PREMIA LA Open. Scotty Leonard, a caddie at Wilshire, connected Stephenson with Peter Mack, who happened to have 20 putters sitting around his putting mat.
Stephenson, a former Alabama standout who set an NCAA scoring record in 2018 (69.76) that was eclipsed by Rachel Heck last month, fell hard for the Scotty Cameron Phantom X Putter and asked Mack if she could cut it down and put it in the bag. He gifted it to her.
Stephenson tied for 12th that week and took a share of seventh the next.
During Thursday’s opening round of the Meijer LPGA Classic, Stephenson said it felt like the ball had a magnet to the hole.
Lauren Stephenson putts on the ninth green during the first round of the U.S. Women’s Open golf tournament at The Olympic Club. Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
“It was like I couldn’t miss,” said Stephenson, who opened with a 30 on the back side (her front) and had 27 putts en route to an opening 65.
“I felt like before that was the only piece missing,” she continued. “I just couldn’t get the ball in the hole fast enough. With this new putter I found a new confidence, I guess. Super comfortable on the greens, had no three-putts today, so felt like I was rolling it good.”
Stephenson shares the early lead at the Meijer with Charley Hull, Leona Maguire and Nasa Hataoka. Hull eagled two holes coming in to finish her round, draining a 40-footer on the 14th and a 15-footer on the 18th.
“It’s nice to be in some warm weather in shorts and T-shirt,” said Hull. “I get a bit stiff when it’s cold, especially with the fog the last two weeks. It’s nice to be out and playing especially with fans. It feels a bit more like normal life now.”
Min Lee, who finished runner-up to Matilda Castren last week at the Mediheal, sits one back at 6 under.
