In her native Philippines, Rianne Malixi prepared for USGA championship season with 36 holes of match play in one day against a local pro, three to four times a week—because at the U.S. Girls’ Junior championship and U.S. Women’s Amateur, that’s what decides a winner.
How much did that preparation pay off? The 17-year-old won both events in the span of three weeks, finishing off the double Sunday with a 3 and 2 win over 15-year-old Asterisk Talley in the 124th Women’s Amateur.
The 36-hole finale at Southern Hills in Tulsa was full of momentum swings, with both players owning 3 up leads during the day. The match was tied through 30 holes, but from there Talley would not win another hole.
Malixi went up 1 with a birdie at the par-5 13th hole (the 31st), then dropped a stunning birdie at the par-3 14th hole with a putt that was supposed to be a lag after Talley hit her tee shot in a bunker and then blasted out well past the hole.
“I told myself I just wanted to lag it—I don’t want to leave it short, I don’t want to hammer it,” Malixi said. “I completely hammered it.”
It hammered into the flagstick and fell in.
COMING IN HOT! 🥵
— USGA (@USGA) August 11, 2024
Rianne Malixi gives it a ton of pace... and finds the flag and the bottom of the cup!
She's now 2 up with 4 to go. pic.twitter.com/zxZMC0E8Jk
Malixi birdied the next hole for three in a row and a 3-up lead, and the match ended on the next hole.
The Duke commit became the second player to win both championships in the same year, matching South Korean Eun Jeong Seong in 2016. She also defeated Talley in the U.S. Girls’ Junior last month, 8 and 7, at El Caballero Country Club in Tarzana, Calif., one year after finishing runner-up.
“It is remarkable, I’m beyond honored to be a two-time USGA champ, it hasn’t sunk in yet,” she said. “I’m still celebrating from last month’s win.”
Malixi is also the fourth woman to win two USGA championships in the same year, joining Jennifer Song (2009) and Pearl Sinn (1988), who both won the U.S. Amateur and Women’s Amateur Public Links.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Rianne Malixi, Age 17, Pulls Off Rare USGA Double With U.S. Women’s Amateur Win.
