1995 U.S. Women's Open Winner and Scores
The U.S. Women's Open was played for the 50th time in 1995, and it was won for the first time by Annika Sorenstam. But Sorenstam, who had never before won on the LPGA Tour, had to come from five strokes back in the final round to get the win.
Winner: Annika Sorenstam, 278
Where it was played: The Broadmoor (East Course) in Colorado Springs, Colorado
Tournament dates: July 13-16, 1995
Leader after first round: Jill Briles-Hinton, 66
Leaders after second round: Jill Briles-Hinton, Jean Bartholomew, Pat Bradley, Dawn Coe-Jones, Dale Eggeling, Tammie Green, Leta Lindley and Annika Sorenstam, 138
Leader after third round: Meg Mallon, 205
What Happened in the 1995 U.S. Women's Open
Annika Sorenstam was the LPGA Tour's Rookie of the Year in 1994, but she earned that honor without posting any LPGA victories. The 1995 U.S. Women's Open was her coming-out party — her very first LPGA Tour win, the first of her eventual 72 LPGA wins, the first of her three USWO victories, and the first of her career 10 major championship titles.Sorenstam went on to win two more times in 1995, finishing the year as the LPGA's leader in scoring average and earnings. And she won the first of her eight career LPGA Player of the Year awards.
Sorenstam opened the 1995 U.S. Women's Open with a round of 67. Following a second-round 71, she was one of eight golfers tied for the lead at 138. In the third round, Meg Mallon, the 1991 U.S. Women's Open winner, scored 66 to take the lead. Sorenstam, with a 72, fell to fourth, five strokes behind Mallon.
But Mallon made a triple bogey on No. 4 in the final round, opening the door for others. Sorenstam capitalized with a 68 that included birdies on holes 9, 10 and 11. Chasing her first win, Sorenstam was a little shaky down the stretch with bogeys on Nos. 15 and 16. But she held on to beat runner-up Mallon by one stroke.
Sorenstam's win after starting the day five strokes behind tied the tournament record for final-round comeback by a winner. Mallon did go on to win another USWO, however, in 2004.
Two former champs, Betsy King and Pat Bradley, tied for third place. For King, this was her final Top 10 finish in a U.S. Women's Open.
Sandra Palmer, the 1975 USWO champ, missed the cut in her final appearance. Future winner Cristie Kerr missed the cut in her first appearance. Another future major winner making her USWO debut was Grace Park, who tied for 63rd.
1995 U.S. Women's Open Final Scores
| Annika Sorenstam | 67-71-72-68—278 |
| Meg Mallon | 70-69-66-74—279 |
| Betsy King | 72-69-72-67—280 |
| Pat Bradley | 67-71-72-70—280 |
| Leta Lindley | 70-68-74-69—281 |
| Rosie Jones | 69-70-70-72—281 |
| Tammie Green | 68-70-75-69—282 |
| Dawn Coe-Jones | 68-70-74-70—282 |
| Julie Piers | 68-71-68-75—282 |
| Marianne Morris | 73-73-70-67—283 |
| Patty Sheehan | 70-73-71-69—283 |
| Val Skinner | 68-72-72-71—283 |
| Dottie Pepper | 73-70-69-72—284 |
| Kris Tschetter | 68-74-69-73—284 |
| Kelly Robbins | 74-68-68-74—284 |
| Christa Johnson | 71-70-74-70—285 |
| Jill Briles-Hinton | 66-72-74-73—285 |
| Tania Abitbol | 67-72-72-74—285 |
| Dale Eggeling | 70-68-73-74—285 |
| Michele Redman | 70-75-71-70—286 |
| Liselotte Neumann | 70-71-75-71—287 |
| Ayako Okamoto | 70-73-71-73—287 |
| Alice Ritzman | 75-69-69-74—287 |
| Carolyn Hill | 74-73-70-71—288 |
| Joan Pitcock | 72-73-72-71—288 |
| Laura Davies | 72-73-69-74—288 |
| Mary Beth Zimmerman | 72-72-68-76—288 |
| Amy Fruhwirth | 75-72-72-70—289 |
| Brandie Burton | 72-74-73-70—289 |
| Nancy Lopez | 72-73-74-70—289 |
| Mayumi Hirase | 70-74-73-72—289 |
| Colleen Walker | 69-73-75-72—289 |
| Pamela Wright | 72-73-71-73—289 |
| Debbi Koyama | 74-68-73-74—289 |
| Jean Bartholomew | 67-71-77-74—289 |
| Gail Graham | 71-72-71-75—289 |
| Suzanne Strudwick | 75-70-73-72—290 |
| Juli Inkster | 72-73-72-73—290 |
| Hollis Stacy | 69-72-75-74—290 |
| Helen Alfredsson | 69-75-78-69—291 |
| Judy Dickinson | 75-70-74-72—291 |
| Michelle McGann | 73-72-74-72—291 |
| Alicia Dibos | 73-72-73-73—291 |
| Carin Hjalmarsson | 70-71-77-73—291 |
| Jane Geddes | 71-75-68-77—291 |
| Katie Haley | 73-71-73-75—292 |
| Laurel Kean | 69-75-76-73—293 |
| Missie McGeorge | 75-71-73-74—293 |
| Pat Hurst | 69-71-78-75—293 |
| Alison Nicholas | 72-71-72-78—293 |
| Sherri Turner | 74-73-75-72—294 |
| Jan Stephenson | 73-75-73-73—294 |
| a-Sarah LeBrun | 71-70-79-74—294 |
| Kathryn Imrie | 76-71-73-75—295 |
| Erika Hayashida | 70-72-78-75—295 |
| Vicki Goetze-Ackerman | 77-69-73-76—295 |
| Kristi Albers | 75-73-73-75—296 |
| a-Wendy Ward | 72-73-76-75—296 |
| Laurie Rinker | 70-75-76-75—296 |
| Martha Nause | 72-74-74-76—296 |
| a-Kellee Booth | 74-73-72-77—296 |
| Karen Noble | 70-75-73-78—296 |
| a-Grace Park | 69-78-78-72—297 |
| Amy Alcott | 72-74-77-74—297 |
| Elaine Crosby | 74-73-75-75—297 |
| Amy Benz | 71-75-76-75—297 |
| Maggie Will | 72-74-75-76—297 |
| Lenore Rittenhouse | 72-75-72-78—297 |
| Michelle Estill | 74-71-73-79—297 |
| Shelly Rule | 75-73-77-73—298 |
| Stephanie Brecht | 74-73-74-77—298 |
| Caroline Keggi | 71-76-73-78—298 |
| Barb Mucha | 73-74-75-77—299 |
| Anna Acker-Macosko | 73-70-79-77—299 |
| Margaret Platt-Klaus | 73-75-78-77—303 |
| Alison Munt | 71-76-80-79—306 |
Previous and next:
1994 U.S. Women's Open - 1996 U.S. Women's Open
Sources:
Associated Press. "Sorenstam survives the Open," Spokane Spokesman-Review, July 17, 1995, https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=kmJWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=vPEDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1575%2C4840404
Garrity, John. "A major breakthrough: Little-known Swede Annika Sorenstam made the Women's Open her first pro victory in the U.S.," Sports Illustrated, https://web.archive.org/web/20160914060220/https://www.si.com/vault/1995/07/24/204946/a-major-breakthrough-little-known-swede-annika-sorenstam-made-the-womens-open-her-first-pro-victory-in-the-us
LPGA.com. U.S. Women's Open, Past Winners, https://www.lpga.com/tournaments/us-womens-open/results?filters=1995
United States Golf Association. U.S. Women's Open Records, https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/media/online-media-center/usga-records/u-s--women-s-open-records.html
