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AUGUSTA, Ga. — Bryson DeChambeau says he told Asterisk Talley there’s more to golf.  

He said that she could sign autographs and that she could inspire.

He said she had an opportunity to show who she was. 

And that was DeChambeau’s message to Talley on Saturday afternoon after she struggled during the Augusta National Women’s Amateur’s final round. The two-time men’s U.S. Open winner had come out to support one of the world’s best women’s amateurs, who he’d known for a while and was the ANWA leader through two days. But disaster hit. Talley bogeyed the 11th hole. She dumped two shots in the water on 12 and made a quadruple bogey. She signed for a three-over 75 and tied for fourth. 

Afterward, DeChambeau met with her. Tuesday, two days before he was to start in the Masters, he talked a bit about what he told her. 

What happened, he said, wouldn’t define Talley. 

“Yeah, again, knowing her and seeing her practice around me quite a bit when she was younger,” DeChambeau said, “I felt like it was a great opportunity to come out and support her, knowing where she was and that she was playing very well. Also, if she won, there to support her. If she lost, there to help her.

“I felt like it was an opportunity that I could show her a different side of golf. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and the losses can be really difficult. But it’s just not what defines you. That was the message I gave her. This is not going to define you. If anything, this is going to almost give you an opportunity to show who you truly are.”

DeChambeau said he tried to give Talley some perspective after he had a similar result last year. At the 2025 Masters, he led after two holes into the tournament’s final round, then played four-over golf after that and tied for fifth. 

“It’s more important to show who you truly are in the losses than the wins,” DeChambeau said Tuesday. “If you have the ability to inspire kids around you — I essentially said look at all the people out there waiting for you to sign autographs. If you can go out there and sign those autographs, it’s more impactful than even winning the tournament sometimes. I know that from experience.

“Albeit, it’s great to win and we all want to win, there’s more to the game. Don’t let this define you because you’re going to have an unbelievable career. This is the start of something special.

“Those are the words I gave her. There was more that I said that I won’t talk about obviously, but that was the gist of it. I felt it was the right time to do it. Again, it’s not like I’m — I mean, I was focused on just helping her out. I didn’t want anything from it other than to help her out.” 

During a post-round interview on Saturday, Talley said DeChambeau told her to keep her head high. 

“He said he’s been in my position before, and he knows how it feels, especially here,” he said. “He said you’re a great player. It doesn’t really matter.” 

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The post In moments after Maria Jose Marin’s emphatic ANWA win, 1 scene told the story appeared first on Golf.

Maria Jose Marin’s only Augusta National error came long after she pulled away from the best field in women’s amateur golf on Saturday.

The Arkansas star, who won the NCAA individual title last summer, tapped in a two-inch par putt on the 18th hole to cement her Augusta National Women’s Amateur title and immediately ran to find her family. There’s no running at Augusta National, but in Marin’s case, they’ll make an exception after she went 65-69 at Champions Retreat and capped it off with a 68 at Augusta National to beat Stanford’s Andrea Revuelta by four.

“When that last putt sank in, I just thought to myself, well, I made it,” Marin said after her win. “All of my hard work has paid off, and I’m just extremely proud of myself.”

Marin and her parents had discussed the night before that, if she won, they would be right off the 18th green so that she could embrace them after her moment of glory. Maria Jose Marin ran and immediately embraced her father, mother, and 10-year-old brother with the Augusta National crowd still serenading its newest champion.

Her father, who caddied for her at last year’s ANWA, stepped off the bag so that his daughter could find someone to help her navigate the pressure that comes with trying to become a champion at this place. It was a selfless decision that was a catalyst for the historic moment that Maria Jose Marin conjured on Saturday.

“He said, you need someone that knows. I love you with all my heart, but you need someone that knows how to handle a tournament of this level. I think it was one of the most beautiful decisions that he could have ever made because he was totally selfless. He was like, I know that you need someone else, but I’m going to be there supporting you.”

But Maria Jose Marin’s emotional coronation didn’t end there. In fact, it was just the start.

Because Maria Jose Marin didn’t get to the winner’s circle at Augusta National by herself. She has an entire extended family trying to will her to the place where her dreams reside. And they were all there at Augusta National to usher her into history.

After celebrating with her parents, Marin made her way up the rope line and was mobbed by Arkansas coach Shauna Taylor, her teammates Reagan Zibilski and Sara Brentcheneff and Arkansas alum and ANWA runner-up Maria Fassi.

“Walking up 18, I pictured it in my mind,” Marin said in Butler Cabin. “What was the moment going to be like? Having Maria there, she inspired me so, so much. When she played with Jennifer Kupcho [at the 2019 ANWA], that was truly inspiring for me. And to get it done in front of them, it’s great.”

“It’s everything I dreamed of.”

Marin started the day one shot back of 17-year-old Asterisk Talley. She birdied the par-5 second but gave it right back with a bogey at the third. Marin closed the front nine with birdies at 5, 7 and 9, but Talley was showing no signs of flinching behind her.

Marin parred 10 and 11 to stay one behind Talley and then arrived at the par-3 12th facing a defining shot. “Golden Bell” has doomed numerous would-be champions over the years. It’s a place where dreams go to die if you don’t have the proper club and a committed stroke.

Marin checked the wind and sent her ball into the Amen Corner air. But her shot hung in the air and landed short of the green, starting back to trickle towards Rae’s Creek. There have been countless moments in Masters history where a shot just like Marin’s ends up in a watery grave. But Marin’s ball somehow stopped rolling and hung up on the ridge. She went on to save par, and when Talley made a quadruple-bogey 7 at the 12th behind her, she suddenly had a three-shot lead.

“When my ball stayed there — I think it’s a miracle that my ball stayed there,” Marin said. “I just kind of have to make par and walk away out of here because this just happens once.

“The ball staying on that ridge on 12. I’ve never seen a ball stay there, and I think it was just God holding the ball there, like, don’t move. This is happening for something.”

A birdie at the 13th gave her a four-shot lead, and once she birdied the par-3 16th, all that was left was for Maria Jose Marin to walk to her destiny and become the first Colombian champion in Augusta National history.

It was a win that she will carry with her for the rest of her life, and one that she hopes inspires the next generation of Latin American girls to draw themselves into the stars.

“I can just say dream big,” Marin said. “Never give up on your dreams. I would never, ever think that I was going to be right here right now, but it’s just because of all of my hard work and my perseverance and the love that I have for the game.”

That’s the rare gift of the ANWA. It’s a championship that allows the top women’s amateurs in the game to dream of something that, until 2019, wasn’t a possibility, and puts them in a position to boost the next generation on their shoulders — that a win for you can be a win for someone else down the line.

And in Maria Jose Marin’s case, an Augusta National victory can be one for all who helped you get to the place your heart always wanted.

“Just extremely proud of myself and all of the hard work and the ability that I had out there to overcome all the pressure because winning in this place,” Marin said. “I don’t think there’s ever going to be a feeling to describe it. It’s just magical.

“This is the temple of golf, and just getting this win, it’s amazing for me.”

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The post Asterisk Talley’s emotional ANWA collapse ended with message from Bryson DeChambeau appeared first on Golf.

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By the time Asterisk Talley reached the 18th hole at Augusta National on Saturday, her story had already been written and the tears were starting to well in her eyes.

The 17-year-old star amateur started the day with a one-shot lead at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur after posting back-to-back bogey-free rounds at Champions Retreat. Through the first nine holes on Saturday, Talley seemed up to the moment. She birdied Nos. 1, 3 and 4 before making the turn in 3-under 33. With nine holes left, Talley’s lead remained slim. But she hadn’t made a bogey at the ANWA since the sixth hole of last year’s final round and had never made a bogey on the back nine at Augusta in her first two trips around the famed course.

Everything seemed to be lined up for Asterisk Talley, whose first name means “Little Star,” to claim one of the biggest prizes in amateur golf.

Then, everything came unraveled.

Talley made a bogey at the par-4 11th to drop into a tie with Maria Jose Marin, and then, on Augusta’s shortest hole, the par-3 12th, Talley’s tournament chances evaporated. She hit her tee shot over the green and into the bushes. It luckily bounced out of the shrubs and into the back bunker. But Talley said the sand was hard, which kept her from getting a lot of spin on her second shot. She made contact, and the ball raced across the green and into Rae’s Creek. She elected to drop back in the bunker and play the same shot, but she once again ran it through the putting surface and into the water. She made a quadruple bogey 7, and her tournament chase was effectively over. She came home in 42 to shoot a final round 3-over 75 and finish six shots back of Marin.

After Talley tapped in for a closing par, the emotions of an opportunity lost came flooding out.

“I’m just a little emotional,” a teary-eyed Talley said after the round. “Not only because I didn’t get it done today, but also just everyone is so supportive. It’s hard when they have to watch that and see you not do well or not accomplish what you wanted. I still played fine today, even though that one hole just kind of got me. Other than that, it doesn’t define me as a golfer. I know what kind of player I am.”

As Talley left the course, Bryson DeChambeau gave her a hug and offered words of encouragement. DeChambeau’s Augusta National demons are well-documented. He was the low amateur in 2016, but then struggled to solve the Masters riddle for years, including an 80 and back-to-back missed cuts in 2022 and 2023. Last year, DeChambeau started the final round two shots back of Rory McIlroy and took the lead after the second hole. But the two-time U.S. Open champion quickly faded, and a double bogey at No. 11 and a bogey at 12 sealed his Masters fate.

“He said keep my head high,” Talley said of DeChambeau. “He said he’s been in my position before, and he knows how it feels, especially here. He said you’re a great player. It doesn’t really matter.”

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LPGA legend Annika Sorenstam also embraced Talley after a trying round.

“She said you’re the best,” Talley said. “She said you’re the best player out here. Just don’t let this get to your head. Don’t let it beat you up. You’re still such a good golfer.

“It’s great just coming from her, especially. She was the best player ever. Her telling me I’m the best player out here is pretty special. Again, it goes back to the support I have out here. It’s really nice to just have those people behind me and to have those kind of moments out here, especially when something like that happens.”

A mis-club at the 12th and a poor decision on the drop doomed Talley’s ANWA hopes. But as the Stanford commit made her way home on the back nine at Augusta National, her tournament hopes in tatters, she steadied herself and walked forward with purpose, hoping that her golf could still erase what had just happened. A birdie at the par-5 13th allowed her to exhale, but Talley was unable to conjure up closing magic.

The damage had long been done by the time she hit her tee shot on No. 16 in the water. But Asterisk Talley, while emotional and disappointed, got something out of a closing walk with the shattered pieces of her ANWA dream.

“I kept fighting,” Talley said. “I was able to still keep my head in the right place, even after that little meltdown there. Still just kind of kept my head high heading into the last few holes. It just didn’t work out, but that’s okay.”

Of all those who offered Talley support and shelter after her round ended, it was unsurprisingly Talley’s parents whose message gave her what she needed after watching her ANWA hopes get washed away.

“They just told me that they love me,” Talley said. “It didn’t define me as a player that that happened out there. It’s hard not to get emotional. There’s so much support out here. Sorry. I think it’s harder when there’s support out here watching you do that, but it’s great they’re still with me right now. I’m really happy that they’re here.”

Talley has won big tournaments and had several near-misses. But this scar will be one that she’ll carry. It’s the kind that Augusta National has a reputation for giving the world’s best — one Asterisk Talley will have an opportunity to heal next year when she returns.

But for now, all that remains is the thought of what could’ve been and the painful sting of the dreams that didn’t materialize on Saturday at Augusta National.

“No, definitely not,” Talley said when asked if she had ever hurt like this after a loss. “It just wasn’t my day today. But it’s okay.”

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Asterisk Talley joined an infamous list on Saturday at Augusta National, but not the one she wanted.

The 17-year-old Talley made the turn at Augusta National holding the final-round lead in the 2026 Augusta National Women’s Amateur. After making a par at the 10th, Talley had not made a bogey at the ANWA since the sixth of the final round last year and was in prime position to handle the back-nine pressure at Augusta and leave with a prestigious amateur title. But Talley dropped a shot at the par-4 11th and then arrived at the famous par-3 12th tied for the lead with Maria Jose Marin. The 12th hole at Augusta National has claimed many victims and doomed many title runs. Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka, Tony Finau and Francesco Molinari are among the names who have failed the final-round exam at the 12th hole.

Talley surveyed the wind and pulled her club. But the eddy effect at the 12th did what it does, and Talley’s tee shot sailed long and landed in the bushes. However, Talley got a good break as the ball bounced back down into the bunker, leaving her a tricky shot to get up and down and stay in a tie for first place. But her bunker shot came out hot and raced across the green and down into Rae’s Creek.

Talley surveyed her options after her ball met its watery demise. She had two choices: drop on the other side of the creek or play the exact same shot she just played from the bunker. The 17-year-old chose the second option, but the result was the same as her second attempt at the bunker shot sped across the green and into the creek. Talley elected to drop on the other side of the creek after her second water ball, and wound up making a lengthy putt for a quadruple bogey 7, which dropped her from 13 under to 9 under and five shots behind Marin.

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Rory McIlroy, the 2025 Masters champion, was on site at Augusta National and joined the broadcast to discuss how Talley should regroup after an Augusta National meltdown, something McIlroy is familiar with.

“Anything can happen on this golf course is what I would tell her,” McIlroy told NBC’s Cara Banks. “Two par 5s coming up in 13 and 15, with a pin on the left at 16, the water is in play. A lot can happen. Obviously she needs to bounce back on 13 and hopefully make a birdie but it’s certainly not over around this place. I know that better than anyone. Hopefully she regroups and it’ll be an exciting last few holes.”

Talley bounced back with a birdie at the 13th, but then made bogey at 15 and dumped her tee shot on No. 16 in the water. But her ANWA hopes had already long been dashed by the shortest hole on the golf course — and she won’t be the last victim claimed by “Golden Bell.”

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The post How the 2025 ANWA helped Rory McIlroy achieve Masters dreams appeared first on Golf.

Rory McIlroy tried everything imaginable to prepare himself to win the Masters. He arrived early and late. Played a lot of practice rounds and none. He played the Par 3 contest and didn’t. He even tried hypnosis.

The results never materialized.

Last year, before his magical win at Augusta National, Rory McIlroy watched the final round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. He wasn’t necessarily watching it as a tool to help him finally win the green jacket, but it wound up paying dividends one week later as he battled Justin Rose while the sun set over the 2025 Masters.

McIlroy’s final round in 2025 started as a duel with Bryson DeChambeau, but became a battle with his own demons on the back nine. McIlroy held a five-shot lead at one point, but a double bogey on the par-5 13th brought the chasers back into the picture, with Rose becoming his chief competitor after the Englishman polished off a final-round 66 with a 20-foot birdie at the 18th. When McIlroy bogeyed the final hole, it set up a playoff with Rose.

Both players split the fairway on the first playoff hole. Rose then hit a piercing iron that nearly landed in the hole. The ball bounced next to the cup and stopped on top of the ridge running through the 18th green. McIlroy responded by sticking his approach shot to four feet. When he arrived at the green, McIlroy looked at his ball and found something familiar: He had already seen this putt one week before when ANWA winner Carla Bernat Escuder polished off her winning moment at Augusta National.

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McIlroy detailed this moment in the recently released “Every Hole of the 2025 Masters” video, which Augusta National released on Friday.

“So even before Justin hit his putt, I marked my ball and, I watched a lot of the final round of the ANWA,” McIlroy said. “You know, the Spanish girl that ended up winning, she had a very similar putt to win. I remember watching it and it didn’t really do a whole lot. If anything, it might have moved a touch to the right. So it felt like I had seen that putt before. Once Justin’s putt didn’t go in, all you can do is try to stay in the moment as much as you can. I put my ball down, I go through my routine and I just said to myself that it’s inside left and make a good stroke.”

Bernat Escuder arrived at the 18th hole at Augusta National with a one-shot lead over Asterisk Talley. Bernat Escuder started the day one shot behind Lottie Woad and Kiara Romero, but quickly grabbed the lead and held a four-shot lead on the back nine at one point. But that lead shrank to one over the then-16-year-old Talley when Bernat Escuder made her second bogey of the day at the par-4 17th. She needed a par on the 18th hole to avoid going to a playoff, as McIlroy would one week later.

Bernat Escuder hit a big drive down the 18th and then eventually left herself a four-foot, downhill putt to get in the house at 12-under and clinch the trophy. She calmly rolled it in to become the fifth Spaniard to win at Augusta National, joining Seve Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal, Sergio Garcia and Jon Rahm.

“It’s hard to describe with words, but I was just so happy and relieved that I made the putt because I saw on a scoreboard there was one girl that was just one shot behind me,” Bernat Escuder said after her win of the putt on 18. “So I was like, you need to make this. So yeah, happy.”

Seven days later, McIlroy arrived at the 18th needing a par to avoid a playoff with Rose. But his approach shot landed in the bunker, and he missed the par putt to delay his historic moment.

But after two immaculate swings in the playoff, McIlroy was left with just a four-foot, downhill putt to beat Rose and vanquish his Augusta National demons. He had seen Bernat Escuder pour a similar putt in the heart one week earlier, and lined his winning putt up confident that he knew the line to his dreams.

“I think you dream of these things,” McIlroy said in the Masters’ new video. “You never really know how it’s going to hit you or how it’s going to feel. I feel so lucky. Not a lot of people get to experience that in life.”

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The post What you get for winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur appeared first on Golf.

The post What you get for winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur appeared first on Golf.

While there’s no Green Jacket for winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, there are plenty of other perks.

Last year’s winner, Carla Bernat Escuder, got the chance to play in four of the LPGA’s five major championships after her breakthrough victory over Asterisk Talley. Her best finish was a tie for 58th at Royal Porthcawl at the AIG Women’s Open Championship.

The win also catapulted Escuder to a great start to her professional career, which she began after her major exemptions ran out. She made the cut in her first LPGA professional start at the CPKC Women’s Open last August and is now fighting for full-time status on the Epson Tour, where she ranks 14th early in the season-long “Race for the Card.”

Previous ANWA winners after also used the victory to jump-start their professional careers. Both Rose Zhang (2023) and Lottie Woad (2024) won in their debuts as professionals on the LPGA Tour. Meanwhile, inaugural champion Jennifer Kupchao remains the only former ANWA champ to earn a major victory, doing so at the 2022 ANA Inspiration.

Here’s a list of all the tournaments the 2026 champion will gain entry into:

-The next five Augusta National Women’s Amateurs (2027-2031)
-The 2026 U.S. Women’s Open
-The 2026 AIG Women’s Open
-The 2026 Chevron Championship
-The 2026 Evian Championship
-Any USGA, R&A and PGA of America amateur championships for which she is eligible (i.e. the U.S. Women’s Amateur and R&A Women’s Amateur)

All of these exemptions remain conditional on the champion remaining an amateur.

In addition, the champion also receives the Augusta National Women’s Amateur trophy, which was designed by Tiffany and Co. and is made from sterling silver.

Lastly, the champion also receives valuable World Amateur Golf Ranking points and LPGA LEAP points. The LPGA’s LEAP program was announced last year and is similar to the PGA Tour University program, which awards college players points to help them earn PGA Tour membership upon graduation.

The winner earns two LPGA LEAP points. Last year, while Woad was unable to defend her title, she earned her LPGA membership by way of the LEAP program.

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The post After viral slow-play video at ANWA, Bailey Shoemaker responds appeared first on Golf.

On Wednesday at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, Bailey Shoemaker went viral. The ANWA’s Golf Channel broadcast showed the USC junior as she stood over her approach shot at the 8th hole at Champions Retreat and struggled to pull the trigger, starting her backswing several times but balking pre-impact.

The video played into a specific type of frustration that golfers — and golf-watchers — feel about the sport. Here, in one 75-second clip, was a perfect encapsulation of the way young golfers play slow and disrespect the game — and the way tournaments fail to rein it in. This is nothing new; recreational golf is plagued by slow play, tournament golf even more so, and pros who take a long time over the ball continually catch viewers’ ire.

Shoemaker didn’t dispute what the video showed. But she also knows there’s more to the story.

Speaking to GOLF’s Claire Rogers on site, Shoemaker explained that her struggle to take the club away traces back to an arm injury she dealt with last year that required playing through pain and numbness before she elected to have surgery. She has struggled to align communication between her brain and body since returning to competitive play.

“I’ve been battling injury for over a year now, and so, I mean, I’ve got some things bugging me. But, I mean, when you have nerve surgery, you aren’t in control,” Shoemaker said. “Like, it doesn’t matter what my brain says or does — you think I want to do it intentionally? Of course not.”

Shoemaker lamented the limits of a single clip.

“It was better today. And, I mean, that was the worst one yesterday, of course it went viral,” she said. “And I mean, you clearly don’t see the rest of the round. You don’t see me at home working out five hours a day, going to rehab, waking up before practice to go to rehab. You don’t see what’s behind the scenes.”

Shoemaker’s bid to make the cut fell short after a second consecutive 73; her two-round total of 146 was three shots too many. Shoemaker finished runner-up at this event in 2024 and will be disappointed not to play a competitive final round at Augusta National, although she will play there Friday during the event’s in-between day. In the meantime, she’s hoping to keep her focus on the big picture.

“I put a lot of faith in USC and my coaches and trainers and whatnot, and I mean, they got me to here, where I am today,” she said. “I know I keep saying it, and I sound like a broken record, but like a year ago, I didn’t know if I’d be playing golf anymore. This was like, a pretty substantial injury, given it was my nerve. And I’m happy to have motor function over my hand.

“I thought I was going to like, lose my hand, basically, y’know? So that’s pretty scary to think about. So, I mean, to have control over my body is nice, for once. And just being out here playing is good.”

Rogers also asked whether Shoemaker had been affected by the attention after her first round. Of course she had — how could anyone not be? — but did her best to channel that into determination.

“If anything it was fuel. I mean, my dad has trained me right, to use that as fuel to ignite me a little bit. But I didn’t play too much mind to it. I mean, I’m happy where I am, and I’m making leaps and bounds in my health, and that’s all I really care about.”

Shoemaker found a clear silver lining — “I’m playing Augusta National tomorrow” — even if it was a trying week.

You can watch her comments below.

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Asterisk Talley says it was pretty cool. 

She’d been asked for her thoughts after finishing as the only player to go bogey free through two rounds at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur — but her response could’ve also worked for a couple other questions. Her play overall at Champions Retreat, where she topped the leaderboard? Pretty cool. Her mindset heading into Saturday’s final round at the tournament’s namesake? Pretty cool. 

And all that’s, well, pretty cool. 

Below is a look at the leaderboard, a record set, surprising players who missed the cut, highlights, quotes and schedule for Friday and Saturday. 

Augusta National Women’s Amateur Round 2 leaderboard (and a record set)

Talley, after shooting a six-under 66 during Wednesday’s first round, fired a 67 during Thursday’s second round, and she leads by one shot over Meja Ortengren and Maria Jose Marin.  

Talley, a 17-year-old who’s committed to Stanford University, birdied her first three holes, parred the next 10, birdied 14 and 15 and parred out from there. Combining her play on Wednesday and at last year’s ANWA — where she finished runner-up — Talley has gone bogey free for a tournament-record 48 straight holes.

Here is the ANWA top 10 after two rounds:

1, Asterisk Talley, 11-under (66-67)
T2, Meja Ortengren, 10-under (67-67)
T2, Maria Jose Marin, 10-under (65-69)
T4, Andrea Revuelta, 6-under (66-72)
T4, Avery Weed, 6-under (68-70)
T6, Lauren Kim, 5-under (68-71)
T6, Soomin Oh 5-under (65-74)
T6, Arianna Lau, 5-under (68-71)
T6, Gyubeen Kim, 5-under (69-70)
T6, Amelie Zalsman, 5-under (67-72)
T6, Chloe Kovelesky, 5-under (69-70)
T6, Raegan Denton, 5-under (67-72)
T6, Vanessa Borovilos, 5-under (66-73)  

3 surprising players who missed the cut at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur 

–Megha Ganne: Last year’s U.S. Women’s Amateur winner shot rounds of 77 and 74.

–Eila Galitsky: The world’s eighth-ranked amateur shot 74 and 70. 

–Rianne Malixi: The 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur winner shot rounds of 73 and 71. 

Highlights of the day  

Below are a few, courtesy of the ANWA X feed: 

Quotes of the day   

“That’s pretty cool.”

–Talley, when asked about going without a bogey over the first two rounds 

“No fights, no fights.”

–Ortengren, when asked if she got into any when she revealed she’s also played hockey 

“It has been my best friend, which I don’t say usually.” 

–Marin, on her putter 

Quote from Bailey Shoemaker   

Below, Bailey Shoemaker talks with GOLF’s Claire Rogers after her pre-shot routine on Wednesday went viral. 

Schedule 

On Friday, participants will play a practice round at Augusta National.

On Saturday, the third and final round starts. NBC will have coverage starting at noon ET. 

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When Lottie Woad’s birdie try at the majestic par-3 16th slipped past the edge of the hole, it felt like her chances of winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur slipped with it.

Bailey Shoemaker was already comfy in the clubhouse, after all, at 7 under par. She’d just finished off a tournament-record 6-under 66 — the first bogey-free round in ANWA final-round history — to charge into the lead. And although Woad, the 20-year-old sophomore from Florida State, had begun the day with a two-shot lead, her round had stalled. A bogey at the par-5 13th officially transformed her from hunted to hunter, from chased to chaser.

No worries, Woad told herself. Think big picture. How good was this?

“If I’d been told before this week that I’d be two back with four to play, I would have been like, ‘yeah, perfect, that sounds great,’ she said. “To be in the mix on the back nine at Augusta is something that everyone dreams about. So I was trying to really embrace it.”

She made a crucial par save at the par-4 14th to kick things off. She had to lay up at the par-5 15th, but hit her approach to 15 feet and made birdie to get to 6 under. And she hit the perfect tee shot at No. 16, hitting a high draw that settled some 12 feet below the hole, setting up a lead-tying birdie putt.

But when that putt missed, the runway was suddenly short. Only the par-4 17th and 18th remained. She’d need at least one birdie to force a playoff.

With Shoemaker hitting balls on the driving range, prepping for the potential of extra holes, Woad striped a tee shot down the left-center fairway. She dialed up the perfect club from 105 yards, leaving herself less than 15 feet for birdie. And then she dripped in a left-to-right putt, delivering a subtle fist pump before the ball had even reached the cup.

Augusta’s 18th tee shot is famously testing but here, too, she split the fairway with driver. And as she played up towards the clubhouse and into the biggest gallery of the day, crowding ’round the 18th green, Woad took dead aim. She stared intently as her ball landed just left of the hole and settled some 15 feet past.

“I was honestly thinking about making birdie rather than par for the playoff,” Woad said. The front left pin beckoned, she said, particularly with a backstop behind.

The thought of not three-putting crossed her mind. That would be unfortunate. But she replaced that with better, more active thoughts. She made her stroke. The birdie putt swooped left, then back right, and then directly into the center.

“It was a bit of a double-breaker,” she said. “And luckily it broke back right at the end.”

For Woad, who’s from Farnham, England, the victory changes everything. She knew she could compete here — she entered the week as the No. 4-ranked amateur in the world and last year, in her debut performance at the ANWA, she finished 13th — but this is Augusta. There’s nothing quite like it.

“It’s pretty cool,” she said in her post-round press conference, trying to process in real-time. “I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet. I finished my round not that long ago, so I’m still kind of getting back in the moment here.

“Yeah, it’s just really cool to be standing in the same place as the Masters champions have stood and just following in their footsteps a little bit.”

That’s the beauty of this event being played on the most famous stage in golf; we have context for the shots these women execute under pressure down the stretch. We can appreciate their specifics. From the practice area, Shoemaker said she appreciated the level she brought out of her competitor.

“Good for her,” she said, disappointed but impressed. “Especially under pressure, knowing she had to do it, that’s amazing. That’s awesome. I think super clutch.”

And for Woad, who grew up watching the Masters, it gave her context for what she’d just accomplished, too. The best, most certain answer of her winner’s press conference came when she was asked what she’d learned about herself.

“That I’m never out of it,” she said with certainty. “When it was tough out there, I hung in there. That’s going to give me a lot of confidence.”

The bogey at 13 tested that confidence. It tested her ability to accept the bad. She passed that test.

“Mistakes are bound to happen around this course,” she said. “It just wasn’t a good time for me to make one, but I did, and it happens. I just stayed relatively calm and knew that I could get some back.”

What a thrilling realization to have about yourself. That you’re never out of it. That you’re at your best when things get tough. That you can come back.

It must feel even better knowing that you just did.

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The post Rose Zhang jumps into pole position at Augusta National Women’s Amateur appeared first on Golf.

The post Rose Zhang jumps into pole position at Augusta National Women’s Amateur appeared first on Golf.

Rose Zhang has just about done it all. Nine collegiate wins. The 2020 U.S. Women’s Amateur. NCAA individual and team titles. She’s bagged a T11 finish at a major championship. We could continue, but that might get boring. 

For now, we’ve got the ANWA, which is the crown jewel of women’s amateur golf still missing from her resume. The Augusta National Women’s Amateur kicked off Wednesday at Champions Retreat in Evans, Ga., and you can go ahead and wage an educated guess at who’s atop the leaderboard. 

Zhang began on the 10th hole and traipsed through her first nine in just 33. She then cruised around the front nine in the same score. Not a bogey on the card, a smooth 66, out ahead of everyone. “I can’t really expect anything more out of my game today,” she said afterward.

Zhang leads by one over Andrea Lignell, who is two clear of third place. 

Newbies to the Rose Zhang Tour should know that she’s kind of been doing this all year long. Zhang entered the week having won five times during this collegiate season in just six tournaments. She’s lost to just 11 golfers. And all the while taking 21 credits in the classroom. 

Is it a heater if the person on the heater doesn’t call it a heater? She says she’s been too busy with school that “these past couple weeks haven’t felt like hot stretches.” 

But Zhang is admittedly nonchalant about basically everything. When asked on Wednesday for the toughest spot she found herself in on the course, she paused and said, “I can’t really recall,” which is the kind of golfing freedom we can all yearn for some day. (Eventually she bequeathed that hitting her approach on 8, albeit long and on the green, was indeed a spot of slight discomfort.)

Life is busy but life is clearly good for the 19-year-old from Irvine, Calif. She’s the rare breed of college golf superstar who already has an apparel sponsor (Adidas) and an equipment deal (Callaway). You’d think there might be some extra pressure on the No. 1 amateur in the world, who has never quite played her best at Augusta National, but she just laughs her way through most questions from the press. Wednesday afternoon saw her admitting it’s good her caddie-father has finally mellowed out alongside her. It makes for a better dynamic. Assuming she’ll take her hot streak and first-round lead into contention, the question had to be asked: will Dad be caddying all weekend, even at Augusta National?

“Potentially… we’ll see. We might go for an Augusta caddie,” she said with a knowing smile. “Should I make the cut.” 

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