EVANS, Ga. (AP) — California teen Asterisk Talley birdied her opening three holes on her way to a 5-under 67 on Thursday, finishing two rounds at Champions Retreat without a bogey to take a one-shot lead into the final round on golf's brightest stage at the Augusta National Women's Amateur.
The final round Saturday is at Augusta National, the first public look at the course ahead of next week's Masters, and it's an arena the 17-year-old Talley knows well.
She made a late charge a year ago and shot 68 to finish one shot behind Carla Bernat of Spain.
“I think just always have the highest expectations for myself possible,” said Talley, who in 2024 became the first player to be runner-up at three USGA championships. “I think if you don’t set the bar high, then you’re never going to really succeed to your full expectation. So just trying to go out there and win every week and hopefully getting a good score out there and playing my best golf.”
Talley, the first player to go bogey-free over 36 holes at Champions Retreat since the ANWA began in 2019, was at 11-under 133.
She was on the LPGA Tour last week, tying for 29th in the Ford Championship in Phoenix.
“Just playing against such good players, it kind of ups your game a little bit. I think that’s kind of good preparation coming into this week,” Talley said.
She led by one shot Stanford sophomore Meja Örtengren of Sweden, the No. 5 player in women's amateur golf who rolled in an 80-foot eagle putt from off the green at the par-5 third hole and posted a 67. Also at 134 was Arkansas junior Maria Jose Marin of Colombia, who made birdie on her last hole for a 69.
Avery Weed of Mississippi State (70) and Stanford sophomore Andrea Revuelta of Spain (72) were five shots behind in a tie for fourth. Revuelta is the No. 3 player in the women's amateur ranking.
The cut to the top 30 players and ties was at 1-under 133, a high-pressure moment to get a chance to compete at Augusta National on Saturday. All the players in the ANWA will be at Augusta National on Friday for a practice round.
Among those who missed the cut were U.S. Women's Amateur champion Megha Ganne, one of five Stanford players in the field this week. She opened with a 77 and never got on track in the second round with a 74.
Elia Galitsky of Thailand, the 19-year-old who has finished in the top 10 her previous two appearances in the ANWA, birdied three straight holes only to make par on her par-5 closing hole for a 70 to miss the cut by one shot.
Örtengren has reached the final round two of the last four years. She closed with a 76 a year ago at Augusta National to tie for 14th.
“I think I’ve learned that you need to have a lot of patience out there and be disciplined with your approaches,” the Swede said. “It can get away from you quite easily if you hit bad shots into the greens, but also you can get a lot of opportunities if you hit the right spots at Augusta. So I think that will be the most important thing, staying disciplined from the fairway and also knowing where the right and bad spots are.”
Marin, the NCAA champion last year, made birdie on all four par 5s at Champions Retreat to leave her in prime position to add what already has become the most prestigious amateur event in women's golf.
Marin reached the final round each of her first two years, and was devastated to miss the cut a year ago. Now she's back to the home of the Masters with a chance to win.
“It means the world to me, just the fact of playing Augusta National,” Marin said. “It’s amazing. It’s incredible, and it’s just an opportunity that we all get thanks to this amazing tournament. Yeah, just going to enjoy it a lot, enjoy the walk with my family, with my friends, and all of the people that are watching me back in Colombia.”
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Amateur golfer Asterisk Talley hits at tee shot at the second hole during the final round of the LPGA Ford Championship golf tournament, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Chandler, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
