By John RittenhouseWhen the time came for Paula Lammert to sign up for the Women’s Club Tournament, she made a partial commitment.She did place her team on the registration sheet, but she also scribbled down "maybe" behind her signature.The 1998 club champion’s hesitation to commit stemmed from another commitment — to a family vacation at Lake Darling near Alexandria.After receiving a phone call from some friends who were prodding her to come back and play in the 54th version of the tournament, Lammert decided to cut her vacation short."I almost didn’t come back," she went on record to say."I didn’t play golf for a week and a half because we were on vacation at a lake cabin near Alexandria. Then I got a call from some golfing buddies on Friday and decided to come back. I returned home about 10:30 Friday night."The way things played out in the championship flight Saturday, Lammert’s decision to play in the tournament was rewarded beyond her expectations.After making a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to break a deadlock with Melissa Kopp, Lammert etched her name into the LCC annals as the 2006 club champion.While it was a spectacular birdie (it was Lammert’s only birdie of the tournament) that settled the issue, the champion admitted it wasn’t a great day of golf for anyone.The course was softened by rain early in the morning round, and a consistent southeasterly wind impeded all of the players in the afternoon.The conditions made for tough play on the course, which was reflected in scores registered by the entries."We all struggled," Lammert offered.Kopp, the club champion in 2003 and 2004, withstood the conditions the best during the opening round.Kopp made par three times during a 44-stroke effort that gave her a one-shot advantage over Lammert, who made par twice to help register a 45.Defending champion Kim Bennett and Sara Oldre were three shots behind Kopp at the turn with 47s, but they slipped out of contention by carding respective 48- and 49-stroke efforts during the second round.The title chase turned into a two-player race between Kopp and Lammert in the second round, and Lammert didn’t waste any time in improving her position in the field.After reaching the 10th green in two shots, Lammert completed the hole with two putts to make par.Kopp, who had trouble keeping her tee shots from fading into the right rough the entire second round, had her second shot on the 10th hole knocked to the ground when it struck a three branch in the right rough. The tough break led to Kopp taking a bogey, which left her tied with Lammert on the leader board.Lammert reached the par-5 11th green with three shots and made another two-putt par. The effort was good enough to give Lammert her first lead of the day when Kopp bogeyed the hole.A bogey on the par-4 13th hole was good enough to give Lammert a two-shot lead.Kopp reached the same green in three shots, but she needed three putts to complete the hole after missing a four-foot attempt for bogey.The difference remained at two strokes until play at the par-3 16th hole was complete.Lammert struck a low iron shot into the wind, and it came to rest 15 feet away from the pin on the right fringe of the green, where she proceeded to make par two putts later.Kopp lifted her tee shot up in the air, and the wind knocked the ball down short of the green. Her second shot rolled well past the pin, setting up a two-putt bogey that left Lammert sporting a three-shot advantage.With a three-shot cushion with two holes remaining, Lammert wanted to implement a play-it-safe philosophy. She did, but it didn’t work."The strategy was to stay out of trouble," she said. "I just wanted to hit the ball well and stay in the fairway."Lammert’s drive on the 17th hole found the right rough, but she chipped out of the rough onto the fairway near the 200-yard marker with her second shot. She then proceeded to hit two shots that dribbled through the rough on the left side of the fairway that led to the leader taking a double-bogey seven.Kopp also found the right rough from the 17th tee box, but she hit a remarkable second shot, which came to rest on the right fringe of the green. Two putts later, Kopp had a birdie and pulled even with Lammert.Both players hammered excellent drives into the fairway on the suddenly-important 18th hole.From inside the 100-yard marker, Lammert lifted an iron shot onto the right side of the green, leaving her a 20-foot downhill attempt for birdie.Kopp, who hit her second shot after Lammert, seemed to be in better position when her approach shot left her facing a four-foot uphill putt for birdie.Lammert, however, stunned the gallery when she steered her 20-foot putt into the center of the cup. The spectators became even more shocked when Kopp’s four-footer missed the mark."Making that putt was a dream come true," Lammert said after the tournament."I’ve probably made two 20-foot birdie putts all year, and that was one of them. It was 20-feet away, but it was pretty straight. It was the best putt I made all day, and I saved it for the key hole. If I would have missed that putt, I can almost guarantee you Melissa would have made her putt."Final scores of the championship flight: Lammert 45-42-87, Kopp 44-44-88, Lisa Dinger 50-45-95, Bennett 47-48-95, Oldre 47-49-96, Marlene Kopp 48-49 97.