Wannamoisett’s Roberta Hunt leads the field at Kirkbrae.

Journal / Bob Breidenbach

LINCOLN –– If this is all a dream, Roberta Hunt hopes she never wakes up. The last five days have been truly special for her.

“Last weekend I had three of the best days of my life,” the schoolteacher from North Attleboro said. “And it keeps getting better. I hope it doesn’t stop.”

Last Friday, Hunt thoroughly enjoyed watching one of her sons, Bobby, get married. Then, on Saturday and Sunday, she competed in the women’s club championship at Wannamoisett –– and won the title.

Yesterday, competing for one of the rare times in recent years in the R.I. Women’s Golf Association Amateur Championship, Hunt recorded a 3-over-par 77 at Kirkbrae to win medalist honors. She capped a 2-under 35 on the back nine by rolling in a 25-foot birdie putt on the final hole, drawing rousing applause from a large group watching from the clubhouse patio, which overlooks the final green.

Hunt waved to acknowledge the applause and broke into a big smile, a smile that stayed in place as she signed her scorecard and then accepted constant congratulations through lunch.

“I’m very happy,” Hunt said. “This all has been so wonderful. And today I played good golf.”

Hunt’s score was three strokes better than anyone else in the 60-player field. Two of the favorites, former champion Lisa McGill of Misquamicut and frequent contender Kibbe Reilly of Agawam Hunt tied for second at 80. It took a score of 87 to qualify for the championship division.

It is an event that figured to be wide-open and it looks very much that way, although not exactly the way organizers planned it. It is the first time that the RIWGA, formed in 1914, has opened its championship to all players.

The RIWGA is made up of only private clubs. Association officers twice in the last two years have moved to open membership to everyone, but the proposal has been voted down. What was decided, instead, was to form a Tournament Players Club, one that would be opened to anyone who wanted to compete. Only five players who otherwise would not be eligible signed up to play.

“We’re a little disappointed,” said Lori DiPersio, the association president. “We had hoped to get more players. But I guess we’ve got to start somewhere.”

Hunt is not new, she just feels that way. She long has been one of the state’s best, going back to her days as Roberta Asquith, when she was one of the best young players in the state.

Hunt cut back dramatically on her play as she married, raised a family and put together a career as a school teacher. In recent years, she has competed in team events in both RIWGA and Ocean State Women’s Golf Association competition. But she has not played in the Amateur. With her son’s wedding, she wasn’t planning on playing this week, either. But friends helped talk her into it.

“It’s close to home and I felt I needed the competition,” Hunt said. “Qualifying for the USGA Seniors is in two weeks.”

Hunt has qualified for the national event in each of the last three years, competing in New York, Georgia and Oregon. She has loved the experience every time. She will go to New Hampshire to attempt to qualify again this year for the event, which will be played in Tulsa, Okla. She got into the competitive feel yesterday.

“I didn’t start great. I was a little nervous,” she said. “But I’m very happy with the way I played the back nine. Two-under! I love it.”

The event at Kirkbrae is wide-open since a number of top players are not competing. Valerie Blinn, last year’s champion, has turned pro. Katherine Murphy, one of the top college stars, is sidelined with a shoulder injury. Allie Caffrey, another of the collegians, is concentrating on her veterinary studies. High school stars Juliet Vongphoumy and Samantha Morrell, clearly two of the best in Rhode Island, are not allowed to take part because rules dictate players must be at least 18.

McGill (2005) and Debbie Cyronak (2002) are the only former champions in the field. Cyronak will meet Hunt in today’s first round. Match play begins today and runs through Saturday’s final.

pkenyon@projo.com