In the tradition of Abby Spector and Alexa Rancourt before her, Emily Bouchard is young, proven, and a prohibitive favorite to walk off with another state golf championship this week.

Bouchard, 23, of Saco, won the inaugural Maine Women’s Amateur a year ago at Augusta Country Club in Manchester. She’s aiming for back-to-back titles when the 54-hole championship begins Monday at Brunswick Golf Club.

And if you trace it back just a little bit farther, Bouchard essentially is seeking a three-peat.

She won the final Women’s Maine State Golf Association title by eight shots in 2011 before taming ACC with a final-round 71 and serving up a matching eight-stroke win in the newly consolidated Maine Women’s Amateur.

The WMSGA and its counterpart, the Southern Maine Women’s Golf Association, merged their traditional midsummer tournament to create one, all-state showcase prior to the 2012 season.

With that partnership came much more of a big-tournament feeling. Seventy-nine players from Houlton to Sanford will tee it up in the amateur, which continues Tuesday and Wednesday at Brunswick, a storied track in its 116th year.

Players will tee off in ascending order of handicap Monday. The lead pairing of Bouchard and Lori Frost of Bangor Municipal begin play at 8 a.m., with the final group leaving the clubhouse at 12:20 p.m.

Among the players fully capable of interrupting Bouchard’s championship run are two locals — Leslie Guenther of Norway and Kristin Kannegieser of Minot.

Each has won a share of the state honors in the past.

Kannegieser was a two-time WMSGA champion, breaking through at Natanis in Vassalboro in 2007 before picking up a second title at Bath in 2010.

Guenther, who topped the 2011 SMWGA field, settled for second in the inaugural women’s amateur. She was a threat to put her name into the history book a year ago, leading after 36 holes before Bouchard completed her amazing rally from what was once an 11-shot deficit.

Not entered in this year’s tournament is one of the state’s all-time greats, Pennie Cummings of Wayne. Cummings, a six-time WMSGA champion out of Springbrook Golf Club in Leeds, finished third in 2012.

Among the other top players in the field are past SMWGA champion Laurie Hyndman, Monica Austin, Mary Brandes and Kathi O’Grady, all representing The Woodlands; Brunswick members Barbara Rondeau and Margaret Brann; Liz Wiltshire of Natanis; Ruth Colucci of Biddeford-Saco and Micki Meggison of Sable Oaks in South Portland.

Other tri-county competitors include Melissa Johnson and Neila Nelke of Martindale; Briana Morris of Norway CC; Debbie Murphy of Springbrook; Leesa Smith of Poland Spring; and the Turner Highlands quartet of Prudence Hornberger, Heidi Haylock, Bambi Stevens and Karen Richardson.

koakes@sunjournal.com

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