Ashleen Kaur eagled her final hole to beat Katie Li and Alice Ziyi Zhao for her second AJGA title
15-year-old Indian origin Ashleen Kaur from Texas shot 15-under 204 to win the 15th edition of the ANNIKA invitational by a stroke over Katie Li and Alice Ziyi Zhao at Eagle Creek Golf Club in Orlando, Florida.
Kaur, Li, and Zhao staged a memorable back nine duel that wasn’t settled until the par 5 18th hole, which Kaur dramatically eagled to earn a one-stroke victory.
Ashleen Kaur eagled the 18th to win the 15th edition of the #ANNIKAInvUSA by one stroke! ⛳️ pic.twitter.com/OHyu3LEbuJ
— ANNIKA Foundation (@ANNIKA_Fdn) January 17, 2023
The ANNIKA Invitational was the first event founded by Annika in the Foundation’s series of global events and annually brings together 72 of the top players from around the world and attracts 50+ college coaches who are seeking their next wave of talent. The 2023 championship included players from 20 states and 19 countries, 30 of which were Rolex Junior All-Americans.
Zhao, a 13-year-old who earned co-medalist honours at last summer’s U.S. Women’s Amateur at Chambers Bay, took a one-shot lead into the final round and increased her lead to two at the turn after a run of three consecutive birdies on holes 6-8.
But with three holes remaining, Kaur found herself tied for the lead with four-time Rolex Junior All-American Li at 14-under while Zhao had fallen one back. Zhao regained a share of the lead with a birdie on 16 but when she and Kaur both made bogeys on the 17th, it was Li who stood on the 18th tee box with a one-stroke lead.
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But Kaur took advantage of her length to reach the 489-yard 18th in two before draining her 40-foot eagle putt to cap off a final round of 69 and claim an improbable one-shot win. Zhao birdied the final hole to tie Li, who could only manage a par, for second place.
Kaur’s 54-hole score of 14-under 204 also established a new tournament scoring record by three strokes
This is Kaur’s first invitational win and second AJGA win. She also took home the 2022 C.T. Pan Junior Championship in her hometown of Houston and is committed to playing college golf at Baylor University in Texas.
Credits:-
Photo – AJGA