Meet The 2006 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Quarterfinalists

Meghan Bolger of Oxford, Miss.

Currently the head women’s golf at University of Mississippi…Qualified for the 2005 Women’s Mid-Amateur but had to withdraw due to a team commitment…Qualified for the 2006 Women’s Mid-Amateur at Old

Waverly…Played college golf for Tulane University…Competed in three U.S. Women’s amateurs, but missed the match-play cut each time…Most memorable moment actually came in a 20-hole semifinal loss to 2005 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Morgan Pressel at the North and South Women’s Amateur at Pinehurst. Also lists Ole Miss making it to the NCAAs as a memorable moment…Owns three career holes-in-one. Her last ace came during match play at the Women’s Southern Amateur at the Country Club of North Carolina…Captured the Philadelphia Women’s Amateur seven years in a row (1999-2005)…Loves all sports and traveling…After first-round victory this week, went back to Oxford to watch her golf team practice…Defeated Lecia Alexander (5 and 3), Tara Joy-Connelly (3 and 2) and seven-time USGA champion Carol Semple Thompson (6 and 5) to reach quarterfinals…Grew up and attended high school in southern New Jersey…Father Michael Bolger is serving as her caddie this week…Born May 30, 1978 in Vorhees, N.J.

Laura Coble of Augusta, Ga.

In her ninth U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur…Matched 2005 performance by reaching the quarterfinals…Defeated Lea Anne Brown (19 holes), Tanna Lee Richard (3 and 2) and Martha Leach (3 and 2) to reach the quarterfinals…Competed in the 2001 U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles, but missed the cut...Also competed in the 1985 and 2005 U.S. Women’s Amateur…Became the head coach for the Augusta (Ga.) State women’s golf team this past August…Team had a tournament in Greenville, N.C., this past weekend, but the Augusta State men’s coach, Josh Gregory, took over for Coble so she could compete this week at Old Waverly…Lists playing in the 2001 U.S. Women’s Open, competing in two LPGA events and attending a Curtis Cup Match as her most memorable experiences…Has won the Georgia State Women’s Amateur five times…Won 2004 Georgia State Open…Won Georgia State Match Play seven times, including six in a row from 2000-05…Captured Georgia State Women’s Player of the Year honors from 1998-2005…Won Georgia State Golf Association’s Tommy Barnes Award in 2001 and ’05 for the overall player of the year…Enjoys reading, going to the beach, watching sports and cooking…Married to husband Rusty and has a daughter Katherine…Played two years at University of Georgia before transferring to Augusta College (now Augusta State) where she graduated in 1987…Born May 22, 1964 in Augusta, Ga.

Virginia Derby Grimes of Meridian, Miss.

Won the 1998 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur and was runner-up to Corey Weworski in the 2004 Women’s Mid-Amateur…Reached the semifinals in 2005…Three-time USA Curtis Cup team member (1998, 2000 and 2006)…All three of those teams were victorious over Great Britain and Ireland…Helped Alabama win the USGA Women’s State Team title in 1997…Has played in five U.S. Women’s Opens…Defeated Barbara Byrnes (7 and 5), Lisa Smego (4 and 3) and Rheba Mabie (4 and 2) to reach the quarterfinals…Was sidelined for 2½ years with a severe back injury…Underwent two back surgeries and a neck surgery in that time frame…Won the Women’s Southern Amateur in 1987 and ’96 and the South Atlantic Women’s Amateur (Sally) in 1998 and 2006…Reached the third round of match play at the 2005 Women’s Amateur…Inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2004 and into the “Tiger Trail” of Auburn in 2002…Auburn University’s annual women’s golf tournament was renamed The Derby in Grimes’ honor in 1998…Grimes competed for Auburn in the 1980s and graduated from the school in 1987…She also briefly assisted the women’s golf team at Auburn…Served briefly on the USGA Women’s Committee…Lists a 66 at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs as her lowest competitive score…Husband Ben is a physician…Born Oct. 17, 1963 in York, Ala.

Jill Hardy of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Competing in her first U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur as she just became eligible in May…Defeated Corrie Tayman (7 and 6), Joan Higgins (1 up) and Mina Hardin (20 holes) to reach the quarterfinals…Missed match-play cut at the 2005 U.S. Women’s Amateur…Competed on the Canadian National Team in 2005…Competed in softball and ice hockey before taking up golf at age 15…Most memorable experience was competing in the Canadian Women’s  Open, an LPGA Tour event…Lowest competitive score is a 69 at Manitoba Amateur in 2004…Won 1999 Manitoba Junior Amateur, and 2001 and 2004 Manitoba Amateur…Runner-up at 2000, ’02 and ’03 Manitoba Amateur…Plays golf left-handed…Named 2004 Manitoba Golfer of the Year…Top 10 in pharmacy class all four years at the University of Manitoba…Currently a pharmacist part-time at a cancer center and part-time at Safeway (grocery story chain)…Likes to play the piano and work out…Born May 20, 1981 in Winnipeg.

Marilyn Hardy of Houston, Texas

Competing in 17th U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, with best finish coming in the inaugural championship in 1987 at Southern Hills Country Club when she reached the semifinals…Competed in eight U.S. Women’s Amateurs, reaching the round of 16 once…Competed but missed the cut at the 1992 and 1994 U.S. Women’s Opens…Lists meeting Ben Hogan as most memorable moment in golf…Won Texas State Women’s Amateur in 1995 and ’97…Runner-up at 2006 Houston City Championship…Owns five career holes-in-one, three of which have come in competition…Played volleyball at UC Irvine and UC San Diego, and basketball at UC Irvine…Married to Jim Hardy, a noted golf instructor and golf course designer…Has a 9-year-old daughter Rachel…Loves to fly fish in Colorado with husband and daughter…Born Sept. 12, 1961 in Pasadena, Calif.

Mari Miezwa of Brooklyn Park, Minn.

Competing in second U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, having advanced to the round of 16 in 2005…Missed cut at the 2006 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links…Currently a golf shop assistant at Medina Golf and Country Club in Minnesota…Attended Colorado College and graduated in 2001…Lowest competitive score is 70 at 2006 Minnesota Women’s State Public Links in Grand Rapids, Minn., where she was runner-up…Says she loves eating ice cream and doing sudoku puzzles…Defeated Rhonda Ferguson (4 and 3), two-time USGA Senior Women’s Amateur champion Diane Lang (6 and 5) and Lynn Thompson (5 and 4) to reach quarterfinals…Born Aug. 20, 1979 in Minneapolis, Minn.

Ellen Port of St. Louis, Mo.

Three-time U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion (1995, ’96 and 2000), sharing the mark with most wins with Sarah Lebrun Ingram…Also a three-time stroke-play medalist at this championship…Runner-up in 2002 Women’s Mid-Amateur…Two-time USA Curtis Cup team member (1994 and ’96) and alternate for the 1996 USA Women’s World Amateur Team and 1998 USA Curtis Cup team…Only had been playing golf for 10 years when she won her first Women’s Mid-Amateur title…Semifinalist at the 2000 North and South Women’s Amateur…Six-time winner of the Missouri Women’s Amateur…Nine-time St. Louis Metropolitan champion…Won the 1994 Women’s Trans-National…Quarterfinalist at the 1991 and ’94 Women’s Mid-Amateur and the 1992 U.S. Women’s Amateur…Qualified for three U.S. Women’s Opens…Physical education teacher and coach…Husband Andy and two children, Drew and Katie…Advanced to the quarterfinals with wins over Donna Gonsalves (1 up), three-time USGA champion and 1980 USA Curtis Cupper Lori Planos (6 and 5) and Benedikte Byrnestad Grotvedt (4 and 3)…Born Sept. 21, 1961.

Thuhashini Selvaratnam of Sri Lanka

Competing in fifth U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur…Advanced to semifinals in 2004 and was quarterfinalist in 2005…Attended and played golf at Arizona State, and helped the Sun Devils to three NCAA Division I titles…Graduated ASU in 1999…Now the assistant golf coach at Xavier Prep High School in Phoenix…Lives in Tempe…Set a Guiness Book of World Record for becoming the youngest-ever (12) national champion when she won the 1989 Sri Lanka Open Amateur Championship…Lowest score is a 66 shot in Singapore and Sierra Vista, Ariz….Four-time Sri Lanka Amateur champion…Won Arizona Women’s Stroke Play four consecutive years (2000-2003) and the 2005 Arizona Women’s Match Play title…Won 2000 All-India Amateur Championship…Won 2000 Chinese Women’s Amateur…Won 1999 Hong Kong Women’s Amateur…Won 2000 Thailand Women’s Amateur…Won 2000 Philippine Women’s  Amateur…Sri Lanka Sportswoman of the Year in 1997…Honorable-mention NCAA All-American 1997-99…Arizona Women’s Player of the Year 2001-2005…Medalist at 2006 Women’s Trans-National…Advanced to quarterfinals with wins over Marci Zweifel (6 and 5), Suzi Spotleson (7 and 5) and Kelly Schaub (19 holes)…Born June 9, 1976 in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Compiled by USGA staff writer David Shefter.