Midland's Kimberly Dinh rolls into finals of U.S. Women's Mid-Am Championship

Michigan just might be claiming a third United States Golf Association champion in the last three years.

Kimberly Dinh, a 31-year-old from Midland, advanced to the finals of the U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur Championship with two match-play victories Wednesday at Stonewall in Elverson, Pennsylvania. Dinh will play Kelsey Chugg, the tournament's champion in 2017, in Thursday's championship match. Chugg, 32, is from Salt Lake City.

Dinh, on Wednesday, beat Alexandra Austin of Burke, Virginia, 3 and 2, in the quarterfinals. Dinh won the first two holes, and never trailed in the match. Then, in the afternoon semifinal, she rallied to beat Gretchen Johnson of Portland, Oregon, 4 and 3.

Making the finals earned Dinh a spot in the 2024 U.S. Women's Amateur. Winning the championship Thursday would earn Dinh a spot in the 2024 U.S. Women's Open.

“I really want to play in the U.S. Open,” said Dinh, who has dominated so far, with none of her five matches reaching the 17th hole. “That's probably one of the last things left on my bucket list in terms of competitive golf that I really want to get checked off.” 

Dinh is a two-time winner of the Michigan Women's Mid-Amateur (mid-amateur means 25 and older), and won the 2021 Michigan Women's Amateur. This summer, she competed in her first LPGA Tour event, the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational in Midland. Dinh is a senior research specialist at Dow.

Thursday's match starts at 9 a.m., and Dinh, who played collegiately at Wisconsin, will is sure to have many friendly faces in the crowd, including her fiancee and her parents.

She will attempt to join Canton's James Piot (2021 U.S. Amateur) and Western Michigan women's golf coach Kim Moore (2022 U.S. Adaptive Open) as recent USGA champions from Michigan.

Standing in Dinh's way is Chugg, in the finals of this tournament for the third time. The two actually met in a Round of 32 match in 2021, with Dinh winning, 2-up. 

"Just to have an opportunity to be in the final again is amazing," said Chugg, who had two 1-up wins Wednesday, over Taryn Walker of Prospect, Kentucky, and Jackie Rogowicz of Yardley, Pennsylvania. 

tpaul@detroitnews.com

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