Amanda Gan will take on Georgia Garner-Dart in Sunday’s WA Women’s Amateur Championship final after both achieved impressive semi-final victories at Cottesloe GC today.
Top seed Gan (Royal Fremantle) overpowered Sophie Williams (Mount Lawley) 4&3 to reach her second state final, while Lake Karrinyup’s Garner-Dart matched that result in her clash with Taehee Woo (Royal Fremantle).
It makes for an intriguing match-up, with Gan’s power game a contrast to Garner-Dart’s metronomic accuracy from tee to green.
After struggling with the putter during her quarter-final win over Isabella Leniartek on Friday, Gan had a much better day on the greens in her match against Williams.
She shook off an early deficit to establish her authority on the match with a combination of big-hitting off the tee and a sure touch around the greens.
Despite a dogged attempt by Williams, Gan’s class ultimately told as she eased to a 4&3 victory to reach her second state final having won the championship in 2024.
Amanda Gan (right) enjoyed an excellent day on the greens in her 4&3 win over Sophie Williams
“My putting was heaps better today. I made all the putts I didn’t make yesterday!” she told GolfWA. “Yesterday wasn’t great, but I slept it off and I was way more confident over the putts today.”
Showing no signs of fatigue following a six-month ankle injury layoff, Gan feels good about her title chances but remains wary of the challenge Garner-Dart will offer.
“I do think playing in a final before is an advantage for me, but I know how steady Georgia is. She doesn’t make many mistakes, so I think it’ll be a pretty good match.”
For her part, 22-year-old Garner-Dart was delighted to reach her first state final having gone one better than her impressive run to the semi-finals in 2025.
The softly spoken Karrinyup member’s unerring accuracy was bolstered by a good day on the greens giving her the edge over rising star Woo, who impressed throughout her run to the semis.
Barely putting a foot wrong en route to a 4&3 win, Garner-Dart is now within touching distance of the biggest win of her career – something she hadn’t predicted at the start of the week.
Georgia Garner-Dart’s game is based around accuracy from tee to green
“I didn’t expect to get this far, so I’m really happy,” Garner-Dart told GolfWA. “My putting was really strong today and I didn’t make many mistakes, so I was pretty hard to play against.”
On paper Gan is the favourite to clinch the title, but Garner-Dart’s game is well suited to match play golf and she remains optimistic about her chances.
“I’m really looking forward to playing Amanda. She’s a great player and I’m sure she’ll make a lot of birdies. All I can do is play my game, keep it steady, hit fairways and greens and keep the pressure on.”
The 36-hole women’s final commences at 7.50am on Sunday morning. Spectators are most welcome.
View all the scores from the match play rounds here.
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