Maddie Smith Sinks Decisive Birdie Putt On 18, Joins Lauren Connor To Edge Out Six-Time Defending Champions
By Aidan McLaughlin
SHARON, Massachusetts (June 16, 2026) – With World Cup hype buzzing around Gillette — or what we’re temporarily calling Boston Stadium — another kind of cup was decided just seven miles down the road Tuesday.
At The Cape Club of Sharon, U.S. National Development Program teammates Maddie Smith (Mount Pleasant Golf Club) and Lauren Connor (Springfield Country Club) shot a combined 3-under-par 69, with Smith making birdie on the 18th, for a historic victory in the 97th Massachusetts Women’s Four-Ball Championship for the Townshend Cup.
In the process, they ended the six-year reign of Shannon Johnson and Megan Buck, of Thorny Lea Golf Club, who have won this event together every year since it was elevated to a championship in 2020.
In the process, Smith and Connor also added a fitting chapter to their own Team Massachusetts connection. After participating in a USNDP Team Massachusetts match in New York, Team Admin and Mass Golf Manager of Championships Jamie Haufler recommended that they play together.
“It was a great way of forming [a team],” Smith said. “We were in the van on the way home from Hudson National, and we had a great time there. People in the van were talking about how they were playing, and Lauren and I were both like, ‘do you have someone to play with?’ And then Coach Jamie was like, ‘you guys totally should play.’ And then we signed up, and we’re here.”
Smith would start the round on the right foot, chipping in close and making the birdie putt on the par-5 first hole. From there Conner would do her part, making birdie on the par-3 7th and par-4 9th to move ahead of Johnson & Buck by two strokes.
“I think it went pretty well. When I’d have a bad hole, Maddie would have a good one, so I think that worked out well,” Connor said.
“I think we tried to keep it pretty lighthearted,” Maddie added.
As they made their way to the inward nine, Conner would be a steady presence, carding multiple pars for the squad, none more important than on the 17th to keep them tied headed to the 18th tee.
Buck and Johnson, who were paired with this year’s winners, would make it no easy task as they finished 2-under 70 with birdies on Nos. 1, 12, and 13. Johnson and Buck each had birdie putts on the 18th but couldn’t get their bids to fall to equalize.
In the Tournament division, Betsy Masse and Teri Burtoft (Renaissance) would be victorious again this summer, shooting a 3-over 75 highlighted by Masse’s two back-nine birdies on the 10th and 18th holes.
The duo also won the Curtis Bowl Tournament at Blissful Meadows last month.
Watch: Women’s Four-Ball Final Video
About Cape Club of Sharon
The Cape Club of Sharon, formerly Spring Valley Country Club, was designed by Geoffrey Cornish in 1959 and completed in 1961. More recently, in 2006, the club underwent a massive renovation led by renowned course architect Craig Schreiner. Finally, in June of 2016, Spring Valley joined The Cape Club family and was renamed The Cape Club of Sharon on January 1, 2017.
As for the golf, the par-72 course has hosted the Massachusetts Open three times (1969, 1978, 1989), as well as the NEPGA Massachusetts Chapter Championship, and the Senior Fourball Championship. Wide panoramic fairways with well-placed bunkering make the course equally as challenging to its impressive views, making it a challenge for the area’s most skilled golfers.
The Cape Club of Sharon has hosted several championship events over the years. (David Colt)
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