Back-to-back rounds of 1-over-par 73 on Wednesday in the St. Louis area were enough to qualify Emma Talley for the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open golf tournament.
Talley finished at 2-over 146 to claim one of two qualifying spots that were up for grabs in U.S. Women’s Open qualifying at Old Hickory Golf Club in St. Peters.
A 52-player field was set to begin play Wednesday morning to earn a spot at the 76th U.S. Women’s Open, which will be played June 3-6 at The Olympic Club in San Francisco. However, the rainy weather conditions led to several no shows and withdrawals during the tournament.
Talley, the former Caldwell County standout and four-time All-American at the University of Alabama, has had big moments in the St. Louis area before. Talley scored the winning point for the United States at the 2014 Curtis Cup played at Saint Louis Country Club.
With only two spots available on Wednesday, Talley had to make up some ground late to earn the U.S. Women’s Open berth. After carding a 3-over 39 on the front nine in her second round, Talley came back to birdie Nos. 12 and 14 while shooting a 2-under 34 on the back nine.
Maja Stark of Stillwater, Okla., claimed medalist honors at 2-under par.
One player was just one shot behind Talley at 3-over while two others were at 4-over.
