With the additions of three alternates into the field, a record-setting number of current AJGA members are competing at the U.S. Womens Open, July 5-8. With 14 AJGA members competing among the top female golfers in the world at Blackwolf Run in Kohler, Wis., the AJGA girls have surpassed the previous record of 13 set in 2009.
Among the recently added alternates:
At age 13, Angel Yin of Arcadia, Calif., will compete as the youngest player in the field. Currently ranked No. 29 in the Polo Golf Rankings, Yin has finished in the top 20 three times this year at the Thunderbird International Junior, Under Armour® / Gary Woodland Championship, and Winn Grips Heather Farr Classic hosted by Longbow Golf Club. In 2010, Yin became the second-youngest winner of the California Womens Amateur Championship.
Alison Lee of Valencia, Calif., will appear in her third U.S. Womens Open, having played in both 2009 and 2010. The rising senior won the ANNIKA Invitational in January and placed fourth at the Rolex Girls Junior Championship in June. The four-time first-team Rolex Junior All-American has recorded five career AJGA victories, competed as a member of the PING Junior Solheim Cup U.S. team in 2009 and 2011, and participated in the 2011 Wyndham Cup.
Not long after her victory at the U.S. Womens Amateur Public Links, Kyung Kim of Chandler, Ariz., will compete in her second U.S. Womens Open. The four-time Rolex Junior All-American has recorded 17 top-10 AJGA finishes, including first-place finishes at the 2010 PING Phoenix Junior, 2009 Lessings AJGA Classic, and 2008 Winn Grips Heather Farr Classic hosted by Longbow Golf Club.
UPDATED BIOS:
Shannon Aubert of Reunion, Fla., currently No. 3 in the Polo Golf Rankings, will make her U.S. Womens Open debut this year. Aubert has finished top-20 in all five of her appearances this season, finishing first at the Kathy Whitworth Invitational in March. The two-time first-team Rolex Junior All-American boasts a record that includes 20 top-10 AJGA finishes, most notably a second-place finish at the 2012 ANNIKA Invitational and third place at the 2011 PING Invitational.
Coverage: http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2012-07-02/sports/os-hs-samantha-marks-us-womens-open-20120702_1_circle-christian-lpga-shannon-aubert
Elisabeth Bernabe of Anaheim Hills, Calif., will see how she stacks up at Blackwolf Run as well. The rising senior, ranked No. 71 in the Polo Golf Rankings, has recorded seven top-10 finishes in AJGA tournaments, most notably a second place at the 2011 Randy Wise Junior Open and a T10 at this years Rolex Girls Junior Championship
This year marks the return of Jaye Marie Green of Boca Raton, Fla., who made her U.S. Womens Open debut in 2010. Currently No. 2 in the Polo Golf Rankings, Green has compiled four wins, including the 2012 Rolex Tournament of Champions, the 2011 PING Invitational and the 2010 Polo Golf Junior Classic. She led the United States to a victory at the 2011 PING Junior Solheim Cup with a 2-0-1 record.
Moriya Jutanugarn of Bangkok, Thailand, earned her place in the field by finishing runner-up at the 2011 U.S. Women's Amateur. It is her second year at the Open after claiming low-amateur honors at the 2011 Women's Open. Jutanugarn has recorded seven top-10 AJGA finishes, including a first-place finish at the 2011 Winn Grips Heather Farr Classic hosted by Longbow Golf Club.
Megan Khang of Rockland, Mass., will appear in her first U.S. Womens Open. She has played in the last three U.S. Girls Junior Championships and finished in the top 15 at the 2011 Junior PGA Championship. Khang comes off a win at the Connecticut Womens Open in May.
A 2011 Rolex Junior All-American, Samantha Marks of Maitland, Fla., has compiled eight top-10 finishes in her AJGA career. In 2011, she won the Deutsche Bank Partners for Charity Junior Shoot Out, finished in third at the AJGA Woodward Video Junior at The Greenbrier, and tied for fourth at the Under Armour® / Vicky Hurst Championship. The recent high school graduate will head to UNC Chapel Hill this fall to continue her golf career.
Two-time AJGA victor and 2011 Rolex Junior All-American Rinko Mitsunaga of Roswell, Ga., also played her way into the Open. Ranked No. 60 in the Polo Golf Rankings, the 15-year-old has already compiled nine top-10 junior golf finishes, including two AJGA wins.
Hannah OSullivan of Cupertino, Calif., is just 14 years old but has already broken the top 100 in the Polo Golf Rankings. OSullivan won her very first AJGA event, the 2010 Convention and Visitors Bureau Junior Open. Since then, she has compiled eight top-15 finishes, including a recent second place finish at the ClubCorp Mission Hills Desert Junior. This will be her first appearance at the Women's Open.
Coverage: http://golfweek.com/news/2012/jun/05/junior-notes-osullivan-qualifies-womens-open/
Annie Park of Levittown, N.Y., will also play in her first U.S. Womens Open. The Southern California verbal commit has secured three AJGA titles and has finished in the top-20 in all of her appearances this season, most recently finishing tied for 12th at the Rolex Tournament of Champions. The three-time Rolex Junior All-American was the first girl to win the Nassau High School boys golf tournament and is currently ranked No. 17 in the Polo Golf Rankings.
Emma Talley of Princeton, Ky., will make her second straight appearance at the U.S. Womens Open. The four-time Rolex Junior All-American boasts a record that includes 10 wins, which is tied for the eighth-most in AJGA history. Her victory at the 2011 AJGA Girls Championship set the AJGA girls record for most consecutive wins at four. Talley recently graduated high school and will attend the University of Alabama to continue her golf career at the collegiate level.
Also making the trip to Wisconsin is Lindsey Weaver of Scottsdale, Ariz., who recently picked up her eighth career AJGA win at the PING Phoenix Junior at ASU Karsten, her second victory of 2012 (she also won the Winn Grips Heather Farr Classic hosted by Longbow Golf Club). In addition, Weaver has compiled 12 top-five junior golf finishes in her career. She will begin college at Notre Dame this fall after competing against two of her teammates, Becca Huffer and Ashley Armstrong at the U.S. Womens Open.
Coverage: http://www.und.com/sports/w-golf/spec-rel/060612aaa.html