Kirsty Hodgkins wins CGA match play title

Kirsty Hodgkins got her first big win of the summer on Thursday and her game is shaping up at just the right time.

Kirsty Hodgkins has been quietly playing really good golf all summer long. 

And now she has something to show for it. 

The top player on the CU women's golf team won the Colorado Golf Association Women's Match Play Championship on Thursday. 

Congrats to Kirsty Hodgkins on winning the 105st CGA Women’s Match Play Championship on the 33rd hole (No 15) with this birdie putt today. #GoBuffs pic.twitter.com/8mRQgR885u

— Colorado Buffaloes Women's Golf (@CUBuffsWGolf) July 16, 2020

She becomes only the second CU Buff to win the event while still active on the CU roster. She is the first one since Michelle Thomas in 1998.

"To be the first Buff to win this tournament in 22 years is quite special," Hodgkins told CUBuffs.com. 

And Hodgkins had to defeat a forever Buff to do it. She defeated Erin Houtsma in the final round at Saddlebrook Golf Club and head coach Anne Kelly was there to watch. 

"It was exciting and so much fun for me to come watch them," Kelly told CUBuffs.com. "I have so many great memories of Erin. She was a great player for us. And I'm so happy for Kirsty getting this win. She's been working really hard this summer. It's hard to see one of them win and one of them lose, but at least at Buff won."

Hodgkins ended up winning 4&3 but Houtsma made it close until Hodgkins birdied three out of her last four holes to seal it. 

She wasn't the only current Buff competing at the event. Junior Kelsey Webster also qualified before losing in the first round. 

Hodgkins will compete in the U.S. Women's Amateur during the first week of August. It's usually the biggest event of the season for college golfers outside of their usual college golf schedule. 

Due to the pandemic, the USGA released the names of the field for the event without doing their usual qualifying and Hodgkins was one of the 132 names in the field. 

It will be missing a lot of the top women's amateur talent due to the inability for some to travel. 

Hodgkins earned an extra year of eligibility after missing out on the spring season due to the pandemic. She is the star of the team and can take CU to new heights.