Tag: Rose Zhang

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US Masters 2024: The Augusta National Women’s Amateur

Rose Zhang won the Augusta National Women's Amateur in 2023. Meanwhile she became a LPGA Champion. (Source: Getty)
Rose Zhang won the Augusta National Women's Amateur in 2023. Meanwhile she became a LPGA Champion. (Source: Getty)

Since 2019, Augusta National has hosted the Augusta National Women’s Amateur every year before the US Masters. 72 amateur players take part in the event and compete in a 54-hole stroke play. After two rounds, there is a cut and the 30 best players and tied players are allowed to play the final round on the legendary Augusta National course.

US Masters 2024: Das Augusta National Women’s Amateur

The Augusta National Women’s Amateur (ANWA) was held for the first time in 2019. The aim of the organizers is to further increase interest in women’s golf and also to enable some female players the dream of playing on the legendary course of the golf club. The first edition was won by the then leader of the amateur world rankings, Jennifer Kupcho. Three years later, the 16-year-old Anna Davis was crowned the winner and in 2023 the current LPGA Tour player Rose Zhang took her career to the next level with a victory in Augusta. After her win at Augusta National Zhang quickly turned professional on the LPGA Tour. Since then the just 20 year old has made five top 10 finishes on Tour, three of them at major tournaments.

The first 36 holes will be played at the Champions Retreat Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, on April 3 and 4. An official practice on the Augusta National Course will take place on April 5, followed by the final round on April 6, where the best players will compete for victory. Qualification for the tournament is based on various criteria, including the current champions of various national and international amateur tournaments as well as the top performers of the past year according to the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking. In addition, special invitations are awarded by the ANWA committee. A variety of opportunities await the winner of the ANWA 2024, provided she remains an amateur player. In addition to participating in the next five editions of the ANWA, she will receive invitations to some of the most prestigious women’s golf tournaments in the world, including the U.S. Women’s Open, the Women’s Open, the Chevron Championship and the Evian Championship.

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Amateur Tours

Rose Zhang sets new record as the world’s leading amateur golfer

Rose Zhang (USA) set a new record for most weeks spent on top of the Womens Amateur Golf Ranking. (Credit: R&A)

Rose Zhang of the United States of America today broke the record for the total number of weeks as the number one golfer in the women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR).

Zhang has now spent 136 weeks as the world’s leading women’s amateur golfer, surpassing the record total of 135 weeks set by Leona Maguire of Ireland in 2018.

The 19-year-old ascended to the number one position in WAGR for the first time in September 2020 and has gone on to beat Lydia Ko’s record of 130 consecutive weeks by remaining at the top of the ranking ever since.

Rose Zhang: “It’s an unbelievable honour”

“It’s an unbelievable honour and a testament to a lot of hard work not just by me but by my team as well. Passing names like Lydia and Leona on any list is incredible; they’ve both gone on to have such impressive professional careers and are great role models in golf. I’m grateful for all the support I’ve received and look forward to continuing to pursue my dreams in this game.”

“I want to congratulate Rose on this amazing achievement,” said Leona Maguire. “It takes so much hard work and determination to become the world’s number one amateur golfer and to consistently hold that position for a record-breaking number of weeks shows just how good a golfer Rose really is. She is a future star of the game.”

Zhang was awarded the Mark H McCormack Medal in 2020, 2021 and 2022 as the world’s leading women’s amateur golfer, joining Maguire and Ko as the only three-time recipients of the accolade.

Notable wins in this time include the recently held Augusta National Women’s Amateur, the 2022 NCAA Championship and US Women’s Amateur two years ago. Last year, she also won the Smyth Salver as the leading amateur at the AIG Women’s Open at Muirfield, finished T-11 at the Chevron Championship in 2020 and qualified for the 2019 US Women’s Open as a 16-year-old.


Professor Steve Otto, Chief Technology Officer at The R&A, said, “We would like to congratulate Rose on this record-breaking achievement at the highest level of women’s amateur golf, as well as her recent success at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. She has consistently delivered outstanding results for some time now and continues to show why she is so highly regarded in the sport. We look forward to seeing her compete in the AIG Women’s Open once more at Walton Heath this year.”

“Rose continues to build upon an exceptional amateur career, and all of us at the USGA would like to congratulate her on this incredible record-breaking achievement,” said John Bodenhamer, USGA chief championships officer. “She has become a role model to so many young girls around the world and has consistently performed at the highest levels. We know this is only the start of what will be a long and impactful career in the game.”
(Press Release by R&A)