Nasujak: Katona wins Ontario women's match play championship

Tilbury’s Hailey Katona ousted two Ontario Golf Hall of Fame members en route to winning the Ontario women’s match play championship.

Hailey Katona of Tilbury, Ont., chips on to the 15th green during the third round of the Ontario junior girls' golf championship at Maple City Country Club in Chatham, Ont., on Wednesday, July 11, 2018. Mark Malone/Chatham Daily News/Postmedia Network

There’s an old adage that to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best.

Well, Tilbury’s Hailey Katona knocked off two Ontario Golf Hall of Fame members en route to winning the Ontario women’s match play championship.

Katona, 19, won four matches over two days to capture the title Friday at Taboo Muskoka Resort & Golf in Gravenhurst.

She won the final 6&4 over Ottawa’s Ashley Lafontaine, who has qualified for the United States Golf Association junior girls’ championship.

Her day began with a 4&3 semifinal win over Sadie Dewinton-Davies of Wales.

“I knew that I had to play well this morning if I wanted to get into the final match, and I did just that,” Katona said in a statement after winning her first Golf Ontario championship. “I didn’t get too far ahead of myself, I just stayed in the moment. Sadie is a great player and I knew that I needed to make birdies.

“In the final round, Ashley was amazing as well and during the last few holes, the rain started coming down harder on us, so that made it a little bit tougher.”

Katona started her first tournament at Taboo Muskoka by beating Etobicoke’s Terrill Samuel 5&4 in the round of 16 on Thursday. Then she defeated another legend, Thornhill’s Judith Kyrinis, 3&2 in a quarter-final.

Samuel and Kyrinis are Ontario Golf Hall of Fame members who have combined to win more than a dozen Ontario titles and 10 Canadian championships. Kyrinis also beat Samuel in the final match of the 2017 USGA senior women’s amateur championship.

“They are amazing people and unbelievable players, so kind and just amazing women overall,” Katona said. “I’m so honoured that I was able to play with them and meet them.”

Katona, a Tilbury Golf Club member, began her college career this past season at Georgia Southern University. She played in two tournaments and posted a pair of top-25 results in the fall. She was also named to the dean’s list in the spring.

She has transferred to Mercer University, another NCAA Division I school in Georgia.

The Tilbury District High School graduate won the 2018 OFSAA championship and played three years with Team Ontario.

Katona is scheduled to play in the Alberta ladies amateur championship July 13-15 in Edmonton. Her calendar this summer also includes the Ontario and Canadian women’s amateur championships.