Local Amateur Is Biggest Crowd Pleaser At Island Resort Championship

Local amateur invitee Carley Saint-Onge got a glimpse of the future this week with her spot in the LPGA Futures Tour\’s Island Resort Championship. And golf fans in this Upper Peninsula town also got a chance to see a rising future talent in the teen who attracted the largest gallery of anyone in the field.

After she rolled in a three-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to finish with an even-par 72, the gallery of a couple hundred fans clapped, whooped and called her a \’good Yooper,\’ meaning, one of their own from the U.P.

\”It felt really good walking up to that last putt and being able to end with a bang,\” said Saint-Onge, 18, of Marquette, Mich. \”I\’m happy about being here and putting myself in position to be out here, and I\’m happy that I came back today with a better round.\”

Saint-Onge will start her freshman season on the women\’s golf team at Michigan State University this fall. And even though she missed the tournament\’s 36-hole cut, she was able to fight back from her wind-blown and nervous first-round score of 87 to today\’s 72.

\”The pros were really nice to me and very helpful this week,\” added Saint-Onge. \”I played with [two-time tournament winner] Lisa Ferrero in the first round and she came up to me between the first and second hole and told me just to stay calm. This was a great experience and I think my tournaments to come in college golf will be a lot less stressful after this.\”