*Talley Wins The U.S. Women's Amateur

Here’s the thing with match play. There are “vagaries” and “buzzsaws” and other oddball ways you can lose. But the great ones? Over the course of multiple events? They amass records when taken into account from the dreaded 30,000-foot level, can only be described as “ridiculous.”

Asterisk Talley is only 17 and yet, in breaking through with her biggest win to date—the U.S. Women’s Amateur in an 8&6 margin over Japan’s Anna Iwanaga—cemented her legacy as a player of otherworldly talent with absurd upside.

The top-ranked junior in the world entered U.S. Women’s Amateur week as the No. 8 amateur (WAGR) and dusted most of her opponents (except a brilliant 14-year-old upstart…more on her in a moment). Like other USGA championship greats—yep, I’m going to drop Jones, Nicklaus and Woods here, so deal with it—Talley’s style of play will suit her well in both stroke and match play. She has that matter-of-fact intangibility that suggests she isn’t fully invested and also still acts surprised you’re surprised she dominated an opponent playing sensational golf.

With the win at The Honors Course, Talley’s match play record in USGA Championships moved to 24-6, and she’s now 11-2 in the U.S. Women’s Amateur. (She won the 2024 U.S. Women’s Four-ball with Sarah Lim).

Talley’s victory came after disappointing runner-up finishes at the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur and U.S. Girls’ Junior. Throw in her crushing 2026 Augusta National Women’s Amateur defeat, and she could have begun to wonder when her steady, ho-hum style might be a defect instead of a perk. But the 2027 Stanford commit from Chowchilla, California is already a two-time Curtis Cup team member with a 5-3-1 record in those matches while appearing to already have the wisdom of a 47-year-old.

“Sometimes you can overthink a little bit or get a little stressed,” she said not long after leaving Iwanaga in the dust. “I think just staying calm and knowing it was the right timing throughout the whole thing really kept us calm and good.”

A Californian unaccustomed to daily and repeated afternoon storms, Talley was referring to the five straight days of weather delays that made a mess of things in Tennessee. The Honors handled the rains beautifully but architecturally seemed strangely lifeless for a Pete Dye course once touted as among his very best, if not greatest work. Talley didn’t care.

With dad Jim on the bag, she started out Sunday’s final understandably flat due to a weird schedule that had her finishing up the semis on Sunday morning. Tied through 10 holes, Talley warmed up with five birdie-winning holes on five of the next nine holes to open a 4UP lead that she would not relinquish.

“When you only have to play against one player and you’re playing the same conditions the whole time you don’t really have to worry about anyone else,” Talley said of her match play prowess. “I think it’s better to stay in the moment.”

Talley needed only 108 holes to get through six rounds of match play (144 total holes), tying her for the fifth-fewest holes needed in championship history.

The efficient win will exempt Talley into the 2027 U.S. Women’s Open Presented by Ally at Inverness, the 2027 Augusta National Women’s Amateur, the 2027 Chevron Championship, Amundi Evian Championship. and the AIG Women’s Open. Iwanaga also will get an invite to Toledo for the USWO.

“I didn’t know that I’m exempted to the U.S. Women’s Open next year, so I’m quite excited to hear that,” she said while incredibly gracious in defeat. “I’d like to see and play with those high-level athletes. Looking forward to it.”

One other performance of note: quarterfinalist Maggie Ma of Irvine. The 14-year-old junior entered the California State Women’s Amateur at El Macero CC with the goal of making the match play portion. She did that and then won the prestigious title to earn a spot in her first USGA event at The Honors Course. The youngest player in the field has won four AJGA events but had the shot of the week, holing out from the 18th’s greenside bunker against Clairey Lin to force extra holes in the round of 16 and a quarterfinal match against Talley.

The shot:

In the semi-final, Talley was 3UP by the 15th hole, then Ma won three consecutive holes to tie the match on the 18th and force more golf at the 10th tee. But Talley birdied the first hole to secure a semifinal berth for the second time in her career while sending Ma home after an incredible showing.

Final highlights:

Former Wake Forest great Michael Brennan captured his second PGA Tour title at the Wyndham Championship by three over Beau Hossler. More importantly, the win vaulted him into the PGA Tour Playoffs 2027 Masters!

Sure, the playoff ramifications made for absolutely scintillating television, but Brennan’s mom, Shannon, summed up what the win at classy but too-short-for-today’s-jocks Sedgefield meant.