The rising senior at Arizona State is ranked 10th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, and he had a stellar week in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Because of his stellar play, he’s not heading back to Tempe empty handed.
Ballester will receive a gold medal plus custody of the Havemeyer Trophy for one year. He’s also exempt into the next 10 U.S. Amateurs, but it’s unlikely he’ll play again since he’s almost done with his college career.
Perhaps the best benefits are the exemptions. Ballester has a spot in the field next year at the U.S. Open at Oakmont and the Open Championship at Royal Portrush. He also has a likely invitation to the Masters, where he’ll join his mentor and idol Sergio Garcia and fellow Spaniard (as well as former Sun Devil) Jon Rahm at Augusta National.
Being an amateur event, Ballester won’t receive money for his victory, but his elevated status as champion of the biggest amateur event in the world could lead to additional NIL deals or sponsorship opportunities.
Ballester is the first player from Spain to win the U.S. Amateur.
CHASKA, Minn. — Josele Ballester is like many Spanish golfers who have grown up idolizing the greats from their country.
On Sunday, Ballester did something none of those before him have been able to accomplish: win the U.S. Amateur.
Ballester, the rising senior at Arizona State, dominated throughout the day then held on late against Noah Kent to capture the Havemeyer Trophy at Hazeltine National Golf Club. Ballester led 4 up with six holes to play, but by the time he was on the 17th tee, his lead was down to 1. However, Ballester found a way to clinch his biggest victory yet, and it’s one that has given him a title no Spanish golfer has ever been able to achieve.
“I think I’m still not conscious of what just happened today,” Ballester said. “Super thankful to have the opportunity to live this moment. We have many great Spaniards, many great legends, and being able to add my name into that history, it’s pretty sweet.”
Jose Luis Ballester reacts to his putt on the 36th hole during the final match of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
He’s the fourth winner of the U.S. Amateur from Arizona State, joining Billy Mayfair (1987), Phil Mickelson (1990) and Jeff Quinney (2000).
Ballester’s journey to becoming a U.S. Amateur champion began long before he hoisted the trophy on the 18th green at Hazeltine on Sunday.
When Arizona State coach Matt Thurmond was recruiting the talented youngster, he and Washington coach Alan Murray were watching him when the latter quipped, “It’s just a man amongst boys. He’s just a big silverback gorilla, and all these are little cubs around him.”
It’s a phrase that has stuck with Ballester his entire career at Arizona State. Often overlooked on a talented roster, Ballester has always been the gorilla, an alpha who’s consistency shines through, even if the results didn’t show.
“He actually hasn’t won a college tournament,” Thurmond said, “yet he’s a three-time All-American. If it’s possible to be a top-10 amateur in the world and be under the radar, then he is.”
Ranked No. 10 in the world, Ballester, by ranking, was a heavy favorite against Kent, No. 560 and a rising sophomore at Iowa. However, the crowd at Hazeltine resembled the likes of one from the 2016 Ryder Cup at the same venue rather than a U.S. Amateur championship match.
Kent was a heavy, heavy fan favorite, and his following grew by the day. During the Round of 64, his family, girlfriend and a couple others were his only followers. On Sunday, more than 95 percent, if not more, of the crowd was pulling for Kent.
On Saturday night, after Ballester and Kent had secured their spots in the match, Kent remained at Hazeltine more than two hours after his semifinal victory celebrating his achievement, hanging out with friends and others on the clubhouse’s back patio.
Ballester retreated to his hotel, where he ate some sushi, played ping pong to get rid of his stress and had a phone call with one of his idols: Sergio Garcia.
The two texted throughout the week, but this conversation was more in-depth.
“The most important one was continue to be myself,” Ballester said of the advice Garcia shared. “That was key for today. And the other one was how to deal with the crowd, right? He’s been in that position multiple times, especially on this course, in the Ryder Cup 2016 playing against Phil, one of the best Ryder Cup matches ever. So he told me just stay patient in your game, and the best way to demonstrate to the other fans, it’s with your game.”
Ballester struggled to sleep Saturday night, waking up at 3:30 a.m. Sunday and not being able to fall back asleep. He got a workout in, headed to the course early, and at 6:30 a.m. as the sun rose over a fog-blanketed Hazeltine, Ballester was alone on the practice green, getting in some last-minute prep.
Jose Luis Ballester reacts after winning the final match of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
In the morning 18 holes, Ballester calmly took a 4-up lead into the break while Kent struggled with his game. Kent said he retreated to the locker room, where he had to reset.
“I sat in the shower for 20 minutes and kind of let all my thoughts come out, and then called Mr. (John) Harris for a while and called Brett McCabe, my sports psychologist, and called Claude (Harmon III) and kind of got some thoughts and opinions from them,” Kent said. “Mr. Harris just said be creative. So I got up there on the range. I was hitting slices. I was hitting soft shots. I was ripping them. I just wanted to have fun and give it a fight.”
And give it a fight Kent did.
The crowd, which quadrupled in size for the afternoon session, exploded on the first hole when Kent’s chip shot from beyond the hole slammed into the flag then dropped, shrinking his deficit right out of the gate. Ballester blasted a drive on the next hole, hit a brilliant wedge and got his 4-up lead back with a birdie, but Kent again responded, the crowd willing him to a birdie on the par-5 third.
“I knew it was going to be like that from yesterday,” Ballester said of the crowd. “Again, I kind of liked it a little bit. It’s true that, when the other guy is feeling it and he’s kind of grabbing that momentum and you see all the supporters that are going for him, it can be a little depressing. So it’s important to face it with a nice mindset, and I think I did.”
By the turn, Ballester’s lead was 2 up, but it quickly grew to 4 up with seven to go when he won Nos. 10-11. Both players missed birdie looks on the par-4 12th, and harnessing a 4 up lead with six to go, Ballester closed in on history.
But no champion is crowned without facing some adversity. Ballester’s started on the par-3 13th, when his tee shot drifted left and he made bogey.
3 up with five to play.
On the par-4 14th, both players missed the green, Ballester having the better lie from the fairway short than Kent did long. With a short game like Seve Ballesteros all week, it seemed as if Ballester would easily get it up and down.
He didn’t. Kent did. 2 up with four to play, and the pro-Kent crowd was raucous, doing anything it could to will a comeback.
Noah Kent plays his tee shot on the 15th hole during the final match of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
“It was awesome to have them here,” Kent said of the fans, admitting they fueled his late push.
On the par-5 15th, both players made birdie, with Ballester rolling in his putt and giving a strong fist pump as if he was his idol, Garcia, while yelling “Vamos!”
Come the 16th, Kent’s tee shot bounded through the fairway, but from a different tee than players had used all week, Ballester’s tee shot drifted right and got lucky to stay in bounds. He caught a putrid lie. His second shot barely came out, and it trickled into a penalty area, with fans cheering when the ball disappeared into the brush. He was able to find the ball and somehow hit it onto the green for his third, but with Kent having 15 feet for birdie, the lead was down to 1 with two holes to play.
The tees were moved forward on the par-3 17th, making it play closer to 145 yards. Kent’s shot landed on a ridge and rolled away from the front right hole location, and Ballester’s ball landed long and gave him a tricky downhiller.
“That pin, I’m not going to say anything, but it was pretty close to being illegal,” Ballester said. “It was super fast, couldn’t really touch the ball.
Again channeling his inner Sergio, Ballester gently lagged the ball to about 3 feet from the cup and confidently poured in the par putt, giving a subtle fist bump when it dropped. Kent also made par, and the duo marched between the thousands of fans scurrying up and along the 18th fairway.
On the 18th tee, Kent’s tee shot sailed long and into a fairway bunker, leaving the door open for what seemed like the first time in an hour for Ballester to be on offense. It was his chance to show he was a champion, and he capitalized.
Using his Jon Rahm-esque power off the tee, his drive found the center of the fairway, and then he perfectly placed his approach 20 feet from the hole. When Kent’s fairway bunker shot went long and left, Ballester and his caddie embraced walking up the 18th fairway.
“We just looked to each other and say, ‘OK, let’s enjoy this final walk,” Ballester did.
Jose Luis Ballester reacts after winning the final match of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
The same youngster that looked like a man amongst boys as a junior proved he was indeed an alpha on the biggest stage Sunday, even when everything was against him.
“The opportunities that are going to open up for him are amazing,” Thurmond said. “But the best part is, no matter what, he’s going to be an 80-year-old man on the southern coast of Spain, and they’re still going to be knowing him as the U.S. Amateur champion.”
Ballester channeled various elements of his Spanish idols in a victorious march around Hazeltine on Sunday.
Now, kids back in Spain will want to follow in the footsteps of the champion from Castellon de la Plana.
CHASKA, Minn. — One of Josele Ballester’s head covers has the initials CBA on it. It may seem insignificant to most, but it’s a driving force for Ballester every time he tees it up.
The initials stand for Celia Barquin Arozamena, a former Iowa State golfer who was killed Sept. 17, 2018, while playing golf alone at Coldwater Golf Links in Ames, Iowa. The 22-year-old won the Big 12 Championship earlier that year.
“I had a chance to play with her once, and I’m pretty close to the family she had in Spain because we are from the same area,” said Ballester, who turns 21 on Sunday and is a rising senior at Arizona State. “So it’s just in her honor. Those are her initials.”
Collin Richards, the homeless man who pleaded guilty to fatally stabbing Barquin Arozamena, has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
There’s no question who a majority of fans will be cheering for Sunday at Hazeltine National Golf Club.
CHASKA, Minn. — There’s no question who a majority of fans will be cheering for Sunday at Hazeltine National Golf Club.
Noah Kent, a 19-year-old rising sophomore at Iowa, has broken out as the darling of the 2024 U.S. Amateur. The 6-foot-5 bomber has plodded his way around Hazeltine six times this week and will do so twice more come Sunday, and playing close to where he plays his college golf, there’s going to be plenty of crowd support.
On Saturday during his 2-up semifinal victory against Jackson Buchanan, dozens of fans donning black and yellow paraded around the grounds, sprinting between fairways and doing whatever they could to give Kent support. A large portion of them were wearing yellow Caitlin Clark shirts, the former Iowa women’s basketball star who has become one of the faces of the sporting world in recent months.
Perhaps it’s fitting Kent goes to the same school Clark did. This week, he has been Clark Kent, the people’s Superman at Hazeltine.
“All the guys in the yellow Caitlin Clark shirts, so a couple uncles, and the rest of them are buddies that I know really well from Iowa,” Kent said.
Noah Kent celebrates with fans after winning his match during the semifinals of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
“Let’s go Hawks” chants have echoed down the fairways and gotten louder as the week has gone on. As Kent played down the 18th hole, what seemed like 1,000 fans encircled him and trapped the group on the green as the match concluded. Kent is powerful, and his presence demands attention, which he has gotten plenty of this week.
The American from Naples, Florida, is no doubt the fan favorite heading into Sunday. But every superhero has a villian, and Sunday, that’s Josele Ballester.
Ballester, who turns 21 on Sunday and is set to begin his senior year at Arizona State in the fall, topped fellow Spaniard Luis Masaveu 3 and 2 on Saturday to advance to the championship match. He will be the first player from Spain to ever play in the U.S. Amateur championship match.
And his cheering section on the ground is going to be much, much smaller.
“It’s even better for yourself. Not like the underdog, but feeling like nobody wants you to win, and you grab that roll,” Ballester said. “Guys, I’m going to show you what it’s all about.
Jose Luis Ballester plays his tee shot on the first hole during the semifinals of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
“So maybe if I can get on a roll early in the morning knowing that there are going to be more cheers for him than for me, maybe it can work.”
By world ranking, Ballester is a heavy favorite in Sunday’s 36-hole final. The Spaniard comes in at No. 10 in the world while Kent is 560th. But rankings don’t matter in match play, and Kent has been a machine this week.
Sunday is Kent vs. Ballester, but it’s also Superman vs. Lex Luthor. The fan favorite against the villain.
“I have a couple of friends, really, really close friends, so that’s enough,” Ballester said. “And all the guys back home I know are rooting for me.”
Come Sunday at Hazeltine, there’s bound to be a showdown for the big screen.
CHASKA, Minn. — Luis Masaveu may have to change his future plans.
The 21-year-old amateur from Spain planned to turn pro in October. However, on Friday he topped Brendan Valdes to advance to the 2024 U.S. Amateur semifinals, where he will face his good friend and fellow Spaniard Josele Ballester. A win would mean a chance at amateur lore: an opportunity to lift the Havemeyer Trophy on Sunday at Hazeltine National Golf Club as champion of the biggest amateur event in the world.
Forget Sunday. Just winning a semifinal match is more pressure than playing in the championship match. That’s because of what’s on the line.
The two players who win Saturday at Hazeltine will earn exemptions, one into the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont and a likely one into the 2025 Masters, provided they remain an amateur. It’s something all four semifinalists, no matter how much they are focused on winning this week, are thinking about in the back of their mind.
“If I win tomorrow, probably I won’t turn pro because obviously playing the Masters, it’s like different,” Masaveu said, “I mean, it’s a dream. You don’t know if you’re going to play there.”
The major exemptions are something on the mind of players all week long, but never more than Friday night into Saturday morning when the field is down to four.
Players have to sleep on the pressure of Saturday’s semifinals. Not only is there a chance for the biggest victory of their lives, but also a spot in two of golf’s biggest events at any level. Win on Saturday, and Sunday is a breeze.
Jose Luis Ballester plays his tee shot on the 16th hole during the quarterfinals of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Friday, Aug. 16, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
Sure, the biggest match of the week remains, but the best rewards from playing in the championship are already secured.
“I played this year a major, and it was amazing, but you never know if you’re going to play the Masters again in your life,” Masaveu said. “It’s a moment that you have to take it.”
Some players, like Masaveu, aren’t afraid to talk about what could come. Others, like Noah Kent and Josele Ballester, two of the other semifinalists, are all business.
“No,” Kent, a rising sophomore at Iowa said when asked if he would think ahead overnight. “Sit back, play college football, just take my mind off of it.”
Added Ballester: “Not really. Again, tomorrow is a new day, new match. Hopefully I can pull out my best game. If I don’t, I’ll try to fight as hard as I can.”
Last year’s runner-up is proof just making the championship match is a life-changing experience.
Nick Dunlap, who won the U.S. Amateur last year, has since hoisted a trophy two times on the PGA Tour, including becoming the first amateur in 33 years to win on Tour. But Neal Shipley, the runner-up at Cherry Hills put his exemptions to good use, too.
For Masaveu, Kent, Ballester and Jackson Buchanan, the other semifinalist, Friday night and Saturday morning are bound to be filled with thoughts, from the swing to their matchup to all of the random thoughts that fill someone’s head when they’re trying to pass time.
But whether they admit it or not, there’s a lot on the line come Saturday, and for the two who make it to Sunday, the championship match is bound to be a breeze for their emotions with what they’ve secured for next year, regardless of result.
“I’m more of a chill player and chill thinker, and I try not to get ahead of myself,” Buchanan said. “Obviously the heart rate is up, but I’m not thinking too far ahead.”
CHASKA, Minn. — Luke Clanton’s wild summer is over.
The top-ranked amateur in the world lost Thursday afternoon in a Round of 32 match at the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club. Clanton, who came into the week off playing 39 holes Sunday in the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship, lost 1 down to Jackson Buchanan, a rising senior at Illinois who’s ranked 17th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.
“It’s kind of hard to go against one of your good buddies out here,” Clanton said after his match. “No matter which way it would’ve went, it was awesome. Great match.”
Clanton led 1 up with four holes to play, but Buchanan birdied the par-5 15th to tie the match, and a wayward Clanton drive on the signature par-4 16th led to a bogey and a 1-up lead for Buchanan.
Then on 18, Buchanan’s approach missed right while Clanton gave himself a 20-footer for birdie. Buchanan hit a delicate chip shot to a couple feet, and Clanton’s birdie chance slid beneath the hole. Buchanan cleaned up for par, and he’s into the Round of 16, where he will face Tyler Mawhinney Thursday afternoon.
Jackson Buchanan plays his tee shot on the fifth hole during the round of 32 of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn. on Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
Mawhinney won the Canadian Amateur last week to earn his way into the field at the U.S. Amateur.
As for Clanton, his crazy summer has come to a close. After leading Florida State to a runner-up finish at the NCAA Championship in late May, he proceeded to make the cut in five of six PGA Tour events, recording top-five finishes in three of them, the first amateur to do so on Tour since Jack Nicklaus in 1961. He rose to No. 1 in the world, and he also earned 14 points in the PGA Tour University Accelerated ranking, meaning if he can earn six more, he’ll earn an automatic PGA Tour card.
But his biggest lesson this summer was that golf isn’t everything.
“I think I get a little bit too obsessed with it sometimes,” Clanton said. “I’ve got a great family, great girlfriend, great friends. Golf is just a game. You don’t have to be too hard on yourself all the time. But, you know, it was awesome, dude. This is like, what you train for to be in those positions. So it’s fun.”
As for what’s next, Clanton said he’s looking forward to getting back to Tallahassee and beginning his junior season with Florida State. Last year, Clanton finished as the top-ranked player in the NCAA golf rankings.
Now, he returns to college golf as the best amateur in the world with a whole lot of confidence to build on what has been an incredible 2024.
“I bet if we play this tournament 100 times, there’s zero percent chance I would be the medalist.”
CHASKA, Minn. — He’s buying gloves and balls from the pro shop. His wedges don’t match. He works in oil and natural gas full-time.
He’s also the first Mid-Amateur to win medalist honors in 11 years at the 2024 U.S. Amateur.
Meet Jimmy Ellis, the 39-year-old from Florida who punched his ticket into the U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National Golf Club via his victory earlier this summer at the Florida Amateur. That week, he shot 8-under 64 in the final round to win, which was the lowest round of his life.
On Tuesday at Chaska Town Course, the stroke play co-host, he shot 9-under 61 and left an eagle putt on the last hole a couple rotations short of a championship-tying 60.
“It’s just blind squirrel, honestly,” Ellis said. “I literally made everything today. I bet if we play this tournament 100 times, there’s zero percent chance I would be the medalist.”
Ellis had 10 birdies and one bogey Tuesday, finishing stroke play at 10 under, one shot ahead of Ethan Evans. Ellis will earn the top seed for match play, which begins Wednesday morning.
Jimmy Ellis shakes hands with competitors and their caddies after finishing the second round of stroke play on the 18th hole during the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Chaska Town Course in Chaska, Minn. on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
Ellis found his touch on the greens Tuesday, making everything he looked at. He said 10 footers felt easy in his second round, whereas 3 footers on Monday were nerve wracking.
He plays out of Atlantic Beach Country Club, often playing with 15-year-old Miles Russell, a young phenom who missed the match play cut.
Meanwhile, Ellis’ name is at the top of the leaderboard, a flabbergasting scene for someone who just wanted to sneak into match play and knock off a big name.
“Some of the names are so funny. I just assumed it would be Gordon Sargent, like, all of the names you hear on TV,” Ellis said. “It’s funny to see my name. I might not even win my club championship.”
While on the range during his championship preparations, Ellis noticed his recently re-shafted gap wedge was half an inch longer than his pitching wedge. So he took that out and inserted a 50-degree U-wedge he had in the bag, something he used often back home near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
He has also bought golf balls at both courses this week. His glove? It’s from Hazeltine because he needed a new one.
“What else you supposed to do?” Ellis said, joking how most players in the field get the essentials for free.
Jimmy Ellis lines up his putt on the 18th hole during the second round of stroke play of the 2024 U.S. Amateur at Chaska Town Course in Chaska, Minn. on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024. (Chris Keane/USGA)
Ellis played collegiately, starting at Florida Gulf Coast before transferring to Ohio, where he went and “had fun.” His golf game didn’t progress to the next level until COVID hit, and that’s when the trophies started to pile up.
This week is Ellis’ second start in the U.S. Amateur and second in three years, as he teed it up at Ridgewood Country Club in 2022.
Yet in a tournament where the best names in amateur golf are battling it out for the Havemeyer Trophy, no one was better than Ellis after two rounds of stroke play.
“This is the best round I’ve ever played, not even close,” Ellis said. “I’m old enough to be most of their dads. And yeah, they’re hitting it probably 40 yards past me. But I’m just going to play my game and see what happens.”
Since opening in July of 1998, Whistling Straits has dazzled players and fans.
Since opening in July of 1998, Whistling Straits has dazzled players and fans with its innovative architecture and sweeping Great Lakes views.
The course has hosted three PGA Championships — 2004 won by Vijay Singh, 2010 won by Martin Kaymer and 2015 won by Jason Day — and the 2021 Ryder Cup.
Not to be outdone by the PGA of America, the USGA has had a presence at the stunning Pete Dye-designed Straits track that sits perched on Lake Michigan as well, hosting the 2007 U.S. Senior Open. That year, Brad Bryant edged Ben Crenshaw to take the title.
The USGA announced on Tuesday that it intends to get a stronger foothold at the links course, with three more championships at the site through 2037.
The prestigious U.S. Amateur will find its way to Sheboygan, Wisconsin, in 2028, followed by the U.S. Junior Amateur in 2033 and the U.S. Girls’ Junior in 2037.
“The USGA is excited to reignite our commitment with Kohler, and look forward to a long and fulfilling relationship,” said Mark Hill, USGA managing director, Championships. “Whistling Straits is renowned for its performance on an international stage, and we know it will challenge and thoroughly impress the world’s best amateur players.”
On Golfweek’s Best list of the best 100 courses you can play, the Straits course sits in a tie for fourth in 2024 with Bandon Dunes’ Old Macdonald. The other courses in the top five are Pebble Beach, Pacific Dunes, and Pinehurst No. 2, marking very exclusive company.
And while the Senior Open was the only major USGA event on Whistling Straits’ resume, its sister course Blackwolf Run hosted the 1998 and 2012 U.S. Women’s Opens.
“We are pleased to partner with the USGA to bring these prestigious golf championships to Whistling Straits, building on our legacy of hosting memorable and record-breaking events,” said Dirk Willis, vice president – Golf, Landscape & Retail. “Amateur golf is the heart of the game, while junior golf helps fuel the next generation of passionate players, and it’s a great honor to host these elite men and women over the next 10 years. We look forward to showcasing their incredible talent in front of our proud Wisconsin golf fans and providing a world-class golf experiences for all involved.”
The addition of the major events follows in the vision of Herb Kohler Jr., who longed to make the course a national showpiece.
“That was our ambition right from the outset,” Kohler told Golfweek in a 2019 interview. He died in 2022. “We wanted tournaments, and we didn’t want the weekly tournaments, so the only possible thing was majors.”
As he had with the creation of Blackwolf Run, Kohler turned to architect Dye, whose quirkiness initially drew Kohler’s attention.
“This one particular chap, he was an odd duck, but he had two courses in particular that were of interest,” Kohler said. “One that had just been open to the public, it was the TPC at Sawgrass, the home course for the PGA Tour. And at least 20 different pros who had a chance to play it were extraordinarily upset, and they were making their feelings known to the local press. … It sort of fascinated me. What I liked about it was, he had this desire to get into the psyche of a pro and really befuddle him.”
Here’s a look at some of the best photos from the U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National.
CHASKA, Minn. — The best men’s amateurs are in Minnesota for the greatest amateur championship in the world.
The 2024 U.S. Amateur kicked off Monday at Hazeltine National Golf Club and Chaska Town Course. There were 312 players in the field for stroke play, but only 64 made match play, which kicked off Wednesday at Hazeltine, site of the 2016 and 2029 Ryder Cups.
Last year, Nick Dunlap defeated Neal Shipley 4 and 3 at Cherry Hills Country Club in Colorado to become only the second person ever to win a U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Amateur, joining Tiger Woods.
Here’s a look at some of the best photos from the U.S. Amateur at Hazeltine National.
Malixi is the second player ever to win the Women’s Amateur and Girls’ Junior in the same year.
TULSA, Okla. — Rianne Malixi doesn’t show much emotion, but there’s a fire within that burns strong enough to conquer any obstacle.
It didn’t used to be like that. Malixi, a 17-year-old from the Philippines, admits she used to be self-deprecating. When things weren’t going her way on the golf course, she wouldn’t make anything easier for herself.
But everything, as she says, is all about perspective. And in the past 22 days, her perspective, and that of those who follow amateur golf, knows she’s one of the best young players in the game.
Malixi topped Asterisk Talley 3 and 2 on Sunday to win the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur at Southern Hills Country Club in historic fashion. Malixi was patient, riding the waves of momentum all day until she reached the summit: a second USGA championship in the span of 22 days. Four straight birdies from Nos. 13-16 were the dagger in a two-day historic marathon.
“It feels so surreal right now,” Malixi said. “It’s just an honor.”
SHE DID IT… AGAIN! 🏆🏆
Just three weeks after winning the U.S. Girls’ Junior, Rianne Malixi is the U.S. Women’s Amateur champion! pic.twitter.com/pTM1tLJj2q
Three weeks ago and 1,350 miles away from Southern Hills, Malixi beat Talley, a 15-year-old from California who won the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball earlier this year, 8 and 7 in the championship match of the U.S. Girls’ Junior, a record margin of victory. On Sunday at the famed Perry Maxwell design, Malixi beat Talley again, this time in one of the oldest amateur championships in golf.
Malixi is the second player ever to win the U.S. Women’s Amateur and U.S. Girls’ Junior in the same year, joining Eun Jeong Seong in 2016. Her and Talley are also the first duo to meet up in the championship match of both events ever, let alone in the same year. She’s also the first player from the Philippines to win the U.S. Women’s Amateur.
Malixi, a Duke commit in the 2025 class, went 12-0 in USGA match play events this year. Talley went 15-2, but at least this year, Malixi proved her kryptonite.
“I love Asterisk,” said Malixi, who also roomed with Talley at the Junior Invitational earlier this year, an event Talley won and Malixi placed second. “Developing a relationship with her has just been so awesome. She’s just a great player and a great person, as well.”
Throughout the duration of their 36-hole championship match, Malixi and Talley had numerous conversations, even if it was just small talk. The first 18 holes were played Saturday afternoon because of rain and storms in the Tulsa area on Sunday morning, with Talley taking a 1 up lead into the overnight intermission.
On the first hole Sunday, Talley won with a par, taking a 2 up lead. But Malixi, as calm as she looked on the outside, remained positive on the inside, one of the changes her dad tried to implement when he noticed his daughter’s mental game wasn’t at a championship level.
Malixi won four straight holes, and after Talley made a 40-foot bomb for birdie on the par-4 seventh, Malixi responded with a 15-foot make of her own. She then won another hole and was 3 up with 10 holes to play.
Rianne Malixi reacts after winning the fifth hole during the final match of the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur at Southern Hills Country Club. (Kathryn Riley/USGA)
But in a match of runs, even extending to Saturday afternoon, Talley responded. She won three straight holes, and on the par-4 12th and the match tied, Talley had a short birdie putt to take a 1 up lead with five to play.
She made the stroke, a bit too firm, and the ball lipped out.
“I knew she was going to make it,” Malixi said. “It’s why I went for it and hit it four or five feet past the hole. Then I was surprised she missed it. Then I was like, ‘Oh, we have to make this putt.”
Talley left the door open. Malixi slammed it shut.
On the par-5 13th, Malixi blasted her tee shot. It rolled out roughly 75 yards after landing on a downslope and sprinting down the fairway. She went for the green in two, landing 30 feet beyond the flag. Talley had a birdie look but missed. Malixi’s eagle look didn’t quite reach the hole, but birdie was conceded.
“I feel like she just — she hit some good shots. I missed a short putt on 12. I just hit it too hard. Maybe just misread it a little bit,” Talley said. “And then she got on in two on 13. I couldn’t really help she made a birdie there. I missed another makable one on that hole. I feel like that’s what kind of switched her momentum, seeing me miss a short putt and her just having an easy birdie.”
On the par-3 14th hole, Malixi found the green and left herself 25 feet for birdie. Talley’s tee shot ended up in a bunker, and her sand shot rolled out just over the green. Her comeback attempt didn’t matter because Malixi made yet another birdie.
Rianne Mikhaela Malixi and Asterisk Talley hug after Rianne Mikhaela Malixi wins their match during the final match of the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla. on Sunday, Aug. 11, 2024. (Kathryn Riley/USGA)
Then on 15, the most difficult green at Southern Hills, Malixi again found the fairway then green. As Talley’s birdie attempts didn’t quite break enough, Malixi’s shot found the center of the cup again.
3 up with three to play, Malixi and Talley were both greenside in two on the par-5 16th, and Talley’s chip shot rolled out 4 feet past the hole. Malixi, a savant from the bunkers all week, hit her sandy to roughly the same distance below the hole.
Talley poured in her putt, but Malixi responded and did the same.
Four straight birdies, and a special hug with Talley, before the celebration began.
Rianne Malixi makes history! She wins the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur at Southern Hills, only 22 days after winning the U.S. Girls’ Junior. Only the second person to win both in the same year pic.twitter.com/P3rzURN4OG
“Honestly I just wanted to play good golf,” Malixi said of her goals this year. “That’s it. I wasn’t expecting to win (the) Australian Master of the Amateurs in January, and then won U.S. Girls last month and then this one. I was like so surprised. Even though I was playing good golf, I was just not expecting it.”
Three weeks ago in California, Malixi dominated at the U.S. Girls’ Junior, making 14 birdies over 28 holes in the final. This week, Southern Hills provided a test she hadn’t faced yet, and she still conquered the course in magisterial fashion, and now she’s on top of the amateur world.
“I’m thankful for my dad who kept on pushing me beyond my limits,” Malixi said. “Everything is just all about perspective, and I kind of realized that at the beginning of the year. Yeah, everything just went skyrocket.”
