AUBURN — Stephanie Rodrigue hopes improvement in her mental game will be the key heading into the Maine State Golf Association’s Maine Junior Championship at Val Halla, which begins Tuesday.

The soon-to-be senior at Lewiston High School is trying not to get her emotions the better of her when she’s out on the course.

The mental game may be the thing that puts Rodrigue over the hump next week. She’s been close in previous attempts at the Maine Junior, but to date has yet to win the final MSGA major before players turn their focus to the high school season.

“I’ve been much better with that this year than any other year,” Rodrigue said after the first round of the Maine Women’s Amateur at Martindale last week. “I know it’s a game and I am playing for fun, but I am enjoying myself and having fun, just playing my game. I just want to go low.”

In 2016 she finished fifth, while in 2015 she fired back-to-back 80s and was just one shot back of champion Lauren Schonewolf of Cape Elizabeth.

Nine months ago, at the MPA state girls’ individual tourney, her emotions got her out of focus midway through the opening nine at Natanis’ Arrowhead course after her second shot on the par-5 15th hole (her sixth hole of the day) clipped a tree limb. She ended up making bogey on the hole, but couldn’t let go of the second shot.

She finished in a tie for 11th. The rest of her group — Erin Holmes of Greely and Bailey Plourde of Lincoln Academy — ended up co-champions, while Jordan Laplume of Thornton Academy placed second.

“I had played a lot of golf before then, and maybe (I was) a little bit golfed out, per se,” Rodrigue said. “States to me is another day of golf, just like (the Women’s Amateur), it’s another day.”

On Monday, she found herself in a similar situation on No. 12 at Martindale, when her tee shot leaked a little left and settled into an uneven lie in the rough. She didn’t let the shot get to her. Instead of pulling a miracle shot, she took her medicine and advanced the ball back into the fairway. She still ended up making bogey, but had a far different state of mind thereafter.

She and many of the other top junior golfers in Maine played in the Women’s Amateur as a tune up event for the Junior Championships, though many of those junior players also fared well in the overall championship chase.

“I do want to shoot a good score the next two day just to pump me up for next week to keep me rolling,” Rodrigue said.

She finished the Women’s Amateur with a three-day total of 250. She followed her opening 82 with an 85 and an 83.

For the longest time, girls like Rodrigue didn’t play in the Women’s Amateur.

“I was just saying to Barbara (Freeman, Southern Maine Women’s Golf Executive Director), it’s wonderful we have these young girls that hit beautiful balls and great shots, it’s encouraging,” Kannegieser said. “I played in the era where Abby Spector was our only junior. I kind of felt bad, it was Abby and a bunch of older women. It’s fun to see all these girls…they are good.”

On the junior circuit this summer Rodrigue has had one first place finish at Brunswick Golf Club, three second-place finishes and a third-place finish. Her low round was in the the first tournament of the summer at Belgrade Lakes, where she shot a 77, one shot behind Plourde.

Rodrigue is still trying to improve on her consistency.

“I am not to familiar with (Val Halla),” Rodrigue said. “I have played a couple of good rounds there, I have also had a couple of bad (rounds). We will see what happens, I just want to play a consistent round. I haven’t had a consistent round. I really haven’t had a consistent round this year. I am just looking forward to a consistent round.”

nfournier@sunjournal.com

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