Brianna Navarrosa of San Diego, California, continues to pace the field at the Buick Shanshan Feng AJGA Girls Invitational after carding a 1-under-par 71 in the second round to reach 4-under-par 140 for the tournament.
Hosted by LPGA Tour player Shanshan Feng, the Buick Shanshan Feng AJGA Girls Invitational features players from all over the world, including 11 from mainland China. Feng has been a longtime proponent of growing women's golf in her home country and partnering with Buick and the AJGA to host a tournament allows some of China's finest players the chance to play on an international stage.
Navarrosa entered the day with a three-stroke lead and quickly added to it with a birdie on the par-3 No. 4. That marked her second-consecutive round with a birdie on that hole. Despite making consecutive bogeys on Nos. 6 and 7 the University of Southern California verbal commit regrouped at the turn.
After making par on Nos. 10 and 11 Navarrosa came to the par-4 No. 12, which she bogeyed in the first round. This time she made a birdie and got back to even-par on the day. After five-consecutive pars the two-time Rolex Junior All-American finished her round with a birdie on No. 18 to break par for the second day in a row. Navarrosa remains the only player in the field to post an under-par round and leads the tournament by eight strokes entering the final round.
“It was a battle with the wind today,” Navarrosa said. “I had some key shots that helped my round but I lost some on the tough greens. I’m excited to go out there tomorrow and try and finish the job.”
Camille Boyd of Shanghai, China, sits in second at 4-over-par 148. She entered the day in third but used an up-and-down 3-over-par 75 in tough conditions to move up a spot on the leaderboard. Boyd has carded six birdies to this point in the tournament. The University of Washington verbal commit won the 2018 AJGA Kansas Junior at Buffalo Dunes.
Alexa Pano of Lakeworth, Florida, and Lauren Gomez of San Diego, California, are T3 at 5-over-par 149. Pano posted a 1-over-par 73 in the second round, which matched the second-lowest round of the day. Gomez carded a 2-over-par 74 that included a birdie.
Siyan Chen of (China) Howey-In-The-Hills, Florida, is in fifth at 7-over-par 151.
One of only six all-girls invitationals on the AJGA schedule, the Buick Shanshan Feng AJGA Girls Invitational is one of the few tournaments that features the opportunity for the Champion to earn an exemption into a professional event. The 2019 champion will earn an exemption into the Symetra Tour's 2019 IOA Championship being held in Beaumont, California.
About the AJGA
The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls, ages 12-19) of more than 6,900 members from 50 states and 60 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.
TaylorMade and adidas are the AJGA’s National Sponsors, supporting the AJGA for more than 25 years. TaylorMade has served as the Official Ball of the AJGA since 2016. adidas has been the Official Apparel and Footwear of the AJGA since 2017. Rolex, in its fourth decade of AJGA sponsorship, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 900 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods, Paula Creamer, Ariya Jutanugarn, Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Brittany Lincicome, Anna Nordqvist, Inbee Park and Lexi Thompson.