After the 2020 event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball returns in 2021 and will be played in Chambers Bay in University Place, Washington.
Qualifying is complete at 29 sites around the country. Highlights include:
April 5
The final U.S. Women's Four-Ball Qualifier was held at The Canyon Club at Four Hills in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The qualifier turned into an intrasquad match of University of New Mexico teammates, with the top three teams comprised of Lobo team golfers. Chloe Lauer (France) and Myah McDonald (Kaneohe, Hawaii) took the lone qualifying spot with a 5-under 67.
April 1
University of North Texas teammates Katie Finley (Ardmore, Okla.) and Lauren Cox (Orange, Texas) shot a 3-under 67 at Dornick Hills G&CC in Ardmore, Okla. to clear the field by three shots. Kansas Women's Amateur champion Kate Tilma (Wichita, Kan.) teamed with Kate Strickland (Lincoln, Neb.) to take the other qualifying spot with a 70.
February 23
The lone U.S. Women's Four-Ball Qualifier in Mexico was held at Club de Golf Bellavista in Mexico City. A pair of high schoolers, junior Paola Fernanda Alonso Baeza and senior Lauren Daiana Olivares Leon, took the only qualifying spot with a 5-under 67. Olivares Leon shot a 68 on her own ball, which beat every other team score in the field.
November 16
The most competitive qualifier of the year took place at El Niguel Country Club in Laguna Niguel, Calif., as 38 teams played for 5 qualifying spots. Three teams -- Vanessa Ho & Karen Tsuru, Katherine Muzi & Crystal Wang, and Briana Chacon & Alexa Melton -- tied for medalist honors with rounds of 7-under 65.
Three teams played off for the remaining two spots after rounds of 66. Anna Davis and Lucy Yuan -- who bogeyed their final hole in regulation to fall into the playoff -- advanced to the championship, as did Joan Soewondo and Toni Sottile.
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The tandem of Madelyn Gamble and Hannah Harrison are among four teams on their way to the 2021 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship.
Gamble, the 2019 Junior Tour of Northern California Girls’ Player of the Year, and Harrison were medalist in an 18-hole qualifier held Monday at Green Valley CC after the two posted a score of 8-under 64. Finishing as runner-up and also advancing to the championship proper was the team of Kelly Wilson and Clare Sorensen at 65.
The other two teams advancing were Mika Jin and Katherine Zhu and Kaylyn Noh and Elizabeth Scholtes, who both finished T-3 at 67.
November 12
Maria Fernanda Martinez (University of Oklahoma / Veracruz, Mexico) and Maria Jose Martinez (University of Houston / Alvarado, Mexico) shot a 7-under 65 at Magnolia Creek GC in League City, Texas, to top the field by one shot. The other qualifying spot went to Sarah Beqaj (SMU / Toronto, Canada) and Britta Snyder (Baylor / Ames, Iowa) with a 66.
November 9
November 2
University of San Francisco commit Riana Mission (Las Vegas, Nev.) and 14-year-old Yana Wilson (Henderson, Nev.) shot a 6-under 65 at Las Vegas National GC and then won a playoff to advance to the national championship. Last year, Mission qualified with a different partner, then getting through a three-team playoff.
October 26
Jordan Fischer and Chloe Kovelesky earned medalist honors by three shots, firing a 7-under 64 at Vero Beach (Fla.) Country Club. The teams of Kim Benedict / Kelli Pry and Lauren Clark / Kaitlyn Schroeder also qualified with rounds of 67.
October 25
University of Virginia commits Megan Propeck (Leawood, Kan.) and Amanda Sambach (Charlotte, N.C.) shot a 68 at Blythewood, Country Club in Columbia, S.C., to take the lone qualifying spot by a single shot.
October 22
At the Georgia Women's Amateur this summer, Sara Im won the title, beating Thienna Huynh in a seven-hole playoff. At the Country Club of Roswall (Ga.), the two teamed up to qualify for the U.S. Women's Four-Ball, shooting a 7-under 64 to clear the field field by two shots. Loralie Cowart and Ava Merrill took the other spot with a 66.
October 13
2019 Maryland Junior champion and Yale commit Sophie Simon (Potomac, Md.) teamed up with reigning Massachusetts Junior champion and University of Virginia commit Rebecca Skoler to shoot a 5-under 67 at the Country Club of Petersburg (Va.) and take the lone qualifying spot.
October 12
Michigan State teammates Yurika Tanida & Sydney Naro beat the field by three shots at Edgewood Country Club in Commerce Township, Mich., firing an 8-under 63 that featured five straight birdies to start the back nine.
October 9
Jensen Castle and Marissa Wenzler shot a 4-under 68 at Lexington (Ky.) Country Club to take the lone qualifying spot. Both Castle and Wenzler play collegiately for the Kentucky Wildcats and will go to Texas with some recent USGA championship experience under their belts. Each player competed in the U.S. Women’s Amateur two months ago in Maryland. Now, they will get to compete on the national stage together as teammates.
October 8
A pair of U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur champions will be heading back to the U.S. Women's Four-Ball. Julia-Potter Bobb (2013, 2016) and Kelsey Chugg (2017) shot a 4-under 68 at Ravinia Green Country Club to take medalist honors by one shot over Bradley University teammates Taylor Ledwein and Megan Welch, who also qualified with a 69.
Potter-Bobb and Chugg made match play at last year's championship. Ledwein and Welch are the reigning Minnesota Women's Four Ball champions.
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Tulane teammates Jennifer Rosenberg of Laurel Hollow, NY and Carlota Palacios of Vitoria, Spain posted a seven-under 64 to punch their ticket to the 6th U.S. Women’s Four-Ball Championship.
“We are super happy,” Rosenberg said. “Today, we complimented each other really well.”
Enduring a slower season, due to COVID-19, this duo is thankful for the chance to compete.
“We’re looking forward to the competition,” Palacios said. “We love the challenge, and we are ready to play alongside amazing golfers.”
October 6
Youth was served at Victory Links Golf Club in Blaine, Minn., as the only team to advance had a combined age of just 25 years.
13-year-old Avery Zweig (McKinney, Texas) and 12-year-old Gianna Clemente (Warren, Ohio) posted a 7-under 64 to tie for the low score. With only one spot available, the pair went to a playoff, and advanced after the first playoff hole.
Last year Clemente became the third-youngest player ever to qualify for the U.S. Women's Amateur, after Zweig accomplished the same feat the year before.
October 3
Samantha Vodry (Little Elm, Texas) and Sarah Kahn (Windermere, Fla.) finished with a 5-under-par 67 to take the single spot available at Monroe (N.C.) Country Club. Vodry and Kahn, teammates at High Point University who also qualified last year, carded six birdies on the day and earned medalist honors by one shot.
October 1
Three teams shot 1-under 71 at Fiddler's Elbow Country Club in Bedminster, N.J. and played off for the two available spots. Yale University teammates Ami Gianchandani (Watchung, N.J.) and Kaitlyn Lee (Scarsdale, N.Y.) took the first spot on the first playoff hole, but it took four holes before Alexis Hios (Rye, N.Y.) and Noelle Martz (Clark, N.J.) took the other spot.
The two teams different route to get to the playoff. Gianchandani and Lee were looking good to qualify outright but bogeyed the par-3 17th hole, while Hios and Martz had to birdie the final two holes.
September 30
Lauryn Nguyen (Seattle, Wash.) and Suzie Tran (Poulsbo, Wash.) shot 8-under par 64 to earn medalist honors at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash.
Nguyen, 16, and Tran, 14, played in the final group, and birdied three of the last four holes to vault to the top of the leaderboard. Last month, Nguyen won the Washington State Junior Girls’ Championship.
The other two sides to advance from this qualifier are sisters Alexa and Momo Udom, both of Portland, Ore., and Montgomery Ferreira of Tacoma, Wash. and Lily McCauley of Olympia, Wash. Both sides shot 7-under 65, one shot back of Nguyen and Tran.
September 29
In July, Kaitlyn Lees and Samantha Yao found out their collegiate golf program at Dartmouth College would be discontinued.
Tuesday at Waynesborough Country Club in Paoli, Pa., the duo was more than motivated by that disappointing news. Playing in their team’s honor, Lees and Yao fired a 4-under 67 to earn medalist honors by two shots.
A playoff decided the second and final qualifying spot. Two teams finished at 2-under par 69 in regulation. Oihana Etxezarreta (Spain) dropped a 20-foot birdie on the second playoff hole to advance alongside teammate Anna Kittelson (Boise, Id.).
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Columbia University first-year Anne Walsh (The Country Club) and Brown University first-year student Gabrielle Shieh (Nashawtuc CC) shot 5-under 67 on Tuesday at Scituate (Mass.) Country Club to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball for the second time in three years. Boston College teammates Angel Lin (Canada) & Bibilani Liu (Cupertino, California) also shot a 67 to round out the qualifiers and best the rest of the field by two strokes.
“For us it’s exciting to go back to a great tournament and try to make it further than last time,” Walsh said. “Gabby and I work together well. I’m strong off the tee, and she’s strong around the greens so we matched well in that regard.”
Unlike Shieh and Walsh, Lin and Liu surged on the back nine. Wearing matching maroon BC uniforms, the pair made four birdies down the stretch to snag the other qualifying spot.
Liu, who led Boston College in scoring average the past to seasons, is now a senior with the Eagles. She made birdie on holes 10-12 to move the pair up the leaderboard. Lin, a first-year student at BC, started her round with a birdie and made another on the 14th to move the pair to 5-under. Before college, Lin was a member of the Canadian National Development team and represented Team British Columbia at the National Women’s Amateur Championship in 2019.
September 28
Brooke Biermann (Wildwood, Mo.) and Julia Misemer (Overland Park, Kan.) parred the second hole of a three-way playoff to deny a pair of USGA champions, Ellen Port and Lara Tennant, and take the lone qualifying spot at Crown Pointe Golf Club in Farmington, Mo.
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At Red Apple Country Club in Heber Springs, Ark., the team of Bailey Dunstan (Little Rock, Ark.) and Kelley Topiwala (Matthews, N.C.) beat the field by three shots, shooting a 65 to earn the only qualifying spot.
September 24
A pair of New Jersey high schoolers beat the field by four shots at Timberlin Golf Club in Berlin, Conn. Stanford commit Megha Ganne and Katie Li shot 6-under 66 to take the only quaifying spot.
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Leila Raines (L) and Valentina Rossi
Michigan State freshmen teammates Leila Raines (Galena, Ohio) and Valentina Rossi (Argentina)shot a 9-under 62 at Portage Country Club in Akron, Ohio, to earn medalist honors by two shots over Jenn David (Hudson, Ohio) and Jessica Hahn (Canton, Ohio), who took the other qualifying spot.
September 23
29 teams played for three qualifying spots at Texas Rangers Golf Club in Arlington Texas. Kyle Fraser (Fort Worth, Texas), a former college lacrosse player at Stanford, teamed with former TCU golf Camry Tardy (Arlington, Texas) to shoot 9-under 63 and beat the field by a shot. SMU teammates Ashley Chow (Canada) and Katie James (Pittsburgh, Pa.) took the second spot with a 64.
High school juniors Savannah Barber (Fort Worth, Texas) and Alexa Saldana (Mexico) pulled off an epic comeback to take the third and final spot, making birdies on each of the final five holes to shoot 66, then beating two other teams in a playoff.
September 22
- Arizona Golf Assocation photo
The teams of Meghan Royal & Anika Varma and Sydney Bryan & Grace Summerhays punched their tickets to the U.S. Women’s Four-Ball Championship, advancing out of a qualifier at Longbow Golf Club in Mesa, Ariz.
Both 16-year-old girls hailing from California, Royal and Varma combined to card a 10-under 62 and clear the field by four shots for medalist honors.
“We complimented each other a lot, we kind of just had one of us make par and the other just go for it and play aggressive and see if we could make birdie,” said Royal, a junior at Carlsbad High School, to the Arizona Golf Association.
“We played according to each other, which helped us a lot just because we knew when a person was confident and wasn’t,” Varma said.
Bryan and Summerhays birdied four of their last six holes to finish with a 6-under 66, and advance to a five-for-one sudden death playoff. A birdie on the first playoff hole proved to be the deciding moment the team picked up the second and final qualifying spot.
“We got off to a kind of a slow start, but once we made the turn, we kind of just built off each other’s enthusiasm,” said the 17-year-old Bryan, a UNLV commit. “It was kind of insane, the back nine. We made ridiculous putts. I think we are a little shocked.”
“Our adrenaline was definitely going on the last couple of holes,” said the 16-year-old Summerhays, who will play in her third USGA Championship. “It was not looking too good on the front nine so we are more in shock. We’re excited.”
September 21
The first team to qualify into the championship was a pair of University of Colorado teammates, Hailey Schalk (Erie, Colo.) and Alisha Lau (Canada). It was the third straight year that Schalk has qualified, but the first with new partner Lau after qualifying twice with Chalotte Hillary. Like everyone else who qualified, Schalk had to endure the disappointment of the 2020 championship being cancelled by COVID-19.
“It was horrible,” Schalk told the Colorado Golf Association. “Everything was getting canceled and I was like, ‘OK, this one is so far away from now, we’ll definitely play by then. Then (it was canceled too) and we couldn’t go. And I knew that would probably be my last year (teaming) with Charlotte too, so that was even more sad. But at least we qualified this year.”
“This is my favorite tournament that I’ve played in. It’s good to qualify with a teammate now. A different partner (is) kind of fun. I’m excited. I love this tournament.”
If Schalk and Lau had not birdied three of the final four holes to take the lone qualifying spot, the story of perhaps the entire qualifying season would have been their Colorado teammate Issy Simpson. Simpson was forced to play alone when her partner Kirsty Hodgkins was forced to withdraw from the qualifier the day before the tournament, and she shot 69 on her own ball to nearly qualify the team on her own.
What's next
Qualifying continues through April 5, 2021, with the championship taking place April 24-28, 2021 at Maridoe Golf Club in Carrollton, Texas.
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