AJGA junior, Alice Ziyi Zhao of Irvine, California, won the 52nd Joanne Silverbelle Championship at Briarwood Country Club. Located in Sun City West, Arizona, Zhao won the 14 and under division as well as the overall championship. Zhao shot rounds of 70-69-69 for a three day total of 8-under-par 208. Gracie McGovern of Scottsdale, Arizona, finished two-shots back of Zhao at 6-under-par 210 for the event.
The field was stacked with many current and past AJGA players. Zhao's opening round of 2-under-par 70 included birdies on the par-4 No. 4 and the par-5 No. 17. She continued to remain bogey-free through her second round, where she made three birdies en route to a 3-under-par 69. During her final round, Zhao fired three birdies on the front nine to take control of the leaderboard. She made her first and only bogey of the tournament on the par-4 No. 12, but capped off her dominant performance with a birdie on the par-4 No. 18. Zhao joins 2019 Rolex Junior Player of the Year, Yealimi Noh of Concord, California and four-time Rolex Junior All-American, Angel Yin of Arcadia, California, on the tournament's champions list.
Zhao is no stranger to the winner's circle. She is a four-time AJGA champion and a two-time Rolex Junior All-American. In the 2022 season, Zhao won back-to-back events at the Jim Click Automotive / HSL Properties Champion ship presented by the Tucson Conquistadores and the KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior All-Star Invitational. She also was the runner-up at the Polo Golf Junior Classic and the Rolex Tournament of Champions. At just thirteen years old, Zhao is currently ranked No. 10 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings.