Katie Rakel (left) and Ashley Duff shake hands after Rakel won the 86th Greater Cincinnati Women's Amateur Invitational Championship on Friday. (Ernest Coleman photo) | ZOOM |

        This playoff thing seems to be growing on Katie Rakel. The 22-year-old University of Cincinnati senior kept her composure this time around and won the 86th Greater Cincinnati Women's Amateur Invitational Championship over Ashley Duff on the second playoff hole Friday.

        In last year's final, Rakel found herself even with Melissa Beck after 19 holes, but poor putting on the first playoff hole cost Rakel the championship.

        “I was just thinking I don't want it to be like last year,” Rakel said of playing the sudden-death playoff holes this year at Royal Oak Country Club.

        Rakel made sure it wasn't like last year when her approach shot to the 20th hole found the edge of the green, while Duff left her shot just outside a bunker. Rakel's ensuing putt left her 3 feet short of the cup, and Duff's chip gave her an 8-foot putt to halve the hole.

        Duff missed, pulling the ball to the right, and Rakel tapped in for her second Met championship. She won in 2000 as well, and said she didn't think she had it won this time until she saw the ball drop in the cup.

        “Not with my nerves going the way they were,” Rakel said. “I can miss those kinds of putts anytime.”

        Rakel and Duff missed several putts that could have given either competitor control of the match-play final. Rakel took the early lead, going 3-up after seven holes. Duff got back to two down on the next hole, but neither player capitalized on the other's mistakes for the next five holes.

        “I didn't play well at all,” said Duff, a 19-year-old sophomore at Kent State. “I had some good shots, but I should have made a bunch of putts.”

        Duff finally got back into the match when Rakel missed a short putt to halve the 14th hole, leaving her lead at just 1-up. And it appeared Duff would pull even on No. 15 when she drove the ball within 170 yards of the pin before Rakel hit a tree with her shot. But a sloppy approach shot and bad putting allowed Rakel to regroup and push the lead back to 2-up.

        “I hit a great drive on 15, but it was all downhill from there,” Duff said. “Another missed opportunity.”

        But it was Rakel who slipped up on the next two holes, failing to get out of bunker on No. 16 and driving behind a tree on No. 17. Duff made her putts this time and the two were even going to No. 18.

        “Probably on 17 was the point where I realized that if I lose this hole, I have to work for (the championship),” Rakel said. “Until then, I was kind of able to just play as well as she was because I had the lead.”

        Both players hit impressive approach shots to the 18th green. Duff left herself with an 8-foot putt for the win, but she pushed it right.

        Duff and Rakel began the first playoff hole at No. 1, which both players parred with 5-foot putts.

        Friday was the first time Duff trailed against three match-play competitors throughout the tournament, which was played on her home course. She said it was her worst match-play performance of the week.

        “At the end, I had confidence because she never got up on me,” Rakel said. “It's always harder to come back when you get down early.”

        Both are entered in next week's Ohio Women's Amateur Tournament at The Country Club in Pepper Pike near Cleveland.

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