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SARATOGA SPRINGS — Kelsey Chugg's amateur golf career in the state of Utah has been tested, and occasionally bested, since the Salt Lake City director of golf won her first Utah women's state amateur title in 2012.
But if she wasn't there already, the former Weber State standout cemented her status as one of the greats in Utah golf history Saturday afternoon.
Chugg held off rising star Ali Mulhall with a 30-foot putt to set up a tap-in par on the 18th hole, clinching her sixth women's state amateur title Saturday with a 1-up victory at TalonsCove Golf Club.
With the win in the 118th Utah Golf Association women's state amateur, Chugg is tied for the second-most women's amateur championships in state history with Florence Halloran, Helen Hofmann Bertagnole, Mary Lou Baker and Marcia Thayne— and just two behind all-time record holder Beverly Nelson, who won eight from 1955-79.
"That's insane," said Chugg, a historian of Utah golf herself. "I feel like I've been playing for a long time now; I'm getting old. But it's pretty cool.
"I was feeling really good about my game coming into this week. I just played really steady, and I'm so excited."
Chugg won her first state amateur title at Logan Golf and Country Club in 2012, and has now won championships at six different courses while improving to 38-7 all-time in state amateur match play.
But Saturday felt a little different for Chugg.
"I was just dealing with some personal stuff this year, and my grandma was sick," Chugg explained. "I had a lot on my plate. Nothing's guaranteed. … It was really good to see my game stay in good shape. I had a lot of thoughts in my mind after being runner-up at the state am last year, and it was great to play really steady."
Still, Mulhall — the 18-year-old Black Desert athlete who will head to LPGA Tour qualifying school in a month — didn't make it easy.
In a match where only five holes were conceded, Chugg pulled 2 up through four holes early before Mulhall rallied with a par on the par-3 sixth hole.
The status quo remained for the next nine holes until the former Nevada prep champion squared the match with a 21-footer on the par-4 16th that helped send her to the 18th tee box for just the second time in five matches since Thursday.
"I knew I needed to hit another two good holes to have a shot to win or tie," Mulhall recalled of No. 16. "But I was just happy to get back to even."
Chugg set herself up on 18 with a putt from the fringe just over 30 feet from the pin, and tapped in for par that forced Mulhall to make a 20-footer to match.
But the teenager's par putt fell inches off the high side of the cup to lift Chugg to all-time title No. 6 and into the territory of former golfers like some of her golf idols like Baker.
"It's amazing to be up there with names like that. They were so dominant in their era," said Chugg, who will leave next week for the U.S. women's amateur championship Aug. 5-11 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. "When I first started playing UGA events, we had a limited field and smaller. Everything has grown. It's been amazing to see the depth of the fields now, and the talent of these younger players.
"It's fun for me," Chugg added. "It keeps my game sharp — and I'm not ancient yet. But it's really fun for me to compete against these great players."
Mulhall said she plans on heading to qualifying school next month in Palm Springs, California, but she won't declare pro status unless she makes it past the first two rounds.
She's also registered for the Utah women's open Aug. 5-6 at Timpanogos Golf Club in Provo and the Utah women's stroke-play championship Aug. 13-14 at Mountain Dell.
"I got to play a lot with amazing players," Mulhall said. "I learned how to play match play, and how to push my shots. I thank my dad for that; he helped me a lot."
