Upsets abound at 123rd PNGA Women’s Amateur
Walla Walla, Wash. – There were several upsets in the rounds of 32 and 16 at the 123rd PNGA Women’s Amateur, being held this week at Wine Valley Golf Club in Walla Walla, Wash.
The rounds of 32 and 16 were contested this morning and afternoon, and were the first matches held after the first two days of stroke-play qualifying.
Probably the biggest upset occurred this morning when Anna Duerr, the No. 32 seed, defeated No. 1 seed and medalist Ava Schroeder in 21 holes. Duerr, a rising senior at Capital High School in Olympia, Wash., had control for most of the match, building a 2-up lead early on. Schroeder, a native of Twin Falls, Idaho who is a rising sophomore on the BYU women’s golf team, was able to tie the match by winning the par-5 18th hole, sending the contest to extra holes. But Duerr won the match with a par on the 21st hole.
Duerr then ran into a juggernaut in the afternoon’s round of 16. June Hsiao of Coquitlam, B.C. easily handled her, winning 5 and 4. Hsiao will be heading to Michigan in the fall, to start her freshman year playing on the women’s golf team at Grand Valley State University.
Also getting knocked out in the round of 32 was Gretchen Johnson of Portland, Ore. A quarterfinalist in last year’s championship, which helped her be named the 2024 PNGA Women’s Mid-Amateur Player of the Year, Johnson, the No. 8 seed, was defeated by No. 25 seed Inez Ng, 2 and 1. Ng is a rising senior at the University of North Carolina.
Grace Lee of Bellevue, Wash. defeated Taya Battistella of Bellingham, Wash., 4 and 2. Battistella, the No. 9 seed, won the BC Women’s Mid-Amateur last month. Lee, a rising senior on the Gonzaga University women’s golf team, won the Washington Women’s Amateur last month.
In the afternoon’s round of 16, Ng outlasted Lee in 19 holes. Also winning both her matches today was Kyra Ly of Portland, Ore., with the No. 3 seed defeating Regan Dusebery 2 and 1, and then defeating Lucia Morelli 6 and 5. Last month, Ly, a rising senior on the Oregon State University women’s golf team, won her second consecutive Oregon Women’s Amateur title.
Berkley Ledesma of University Place, Wash. is the highest seed to advance. The No. 26 seed, and sophomore at Eastern Washington University, won both her matches today.
Darae Chung of New Zealand, and a rising junior on the University of Oregon women’s golf team, also won her two matches today. Last month, Chung finished third in the Washington Women’s Amateur.
Also in the afternoon match, No. 15 seed Anika Varma of Rocklin, Calif. defeated No. 2 see Erin Lee of Langley, B.C. in 21 holes. Varma, a rising senior on the University of Oregon women’s golf team, had birdied the par-5 18th to win the hole and send the match to extra holes.
There are eight players remaining in the bracket. The quarterfinal and semifinal matches will be held Thursday, July 10. The matches are single elimination, with each match contested over 18 holes, with the exception of the final championship match, which will be played over 36 holes on Friday, July 11.
Championship Links:
The PNGA Women’s Amateur is considered a USGA Exemption Event, with this year’s champion earning an exemption into the 2025 U.S. Women’s Amateur, which will be held August 4-10 at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Bandon, Ore. This opportunity has led to an exceptionally strong field in this year’s PNGA Women’s Amateur.
The PNGA Women’s Amateur was previously held at Wine Valley Golf Club in 2013, when Jennifer Ha of Alberta, Canada, won the title. Wine Valley has also hosted the PNGA Men’s Amateur three times, in 2024, 2016, and 2012.
