Angela Zhang of Bellevue, Washington, won her fourth AJGA title of the year and first invitational win. The 13-year-old capped off an already impressive year with a 6-under-par 210 in her first Ping An Bank Junior All-Star Invitational.
It feels amazing to get my fourth AJGA win and first invitational title. This is a very special win.
Zhang started her round with two pars before making a bogey on the par-3 No. 3. She followed it up with two birdies in a row on Nos. 4 and 5. Zhang made another bogey on the par-3 No. 7 to make the turn at even-par 36. She started the back nine on the par-5 No. 5. Zhang finished her round with three bogeys to finish the round with a 2-over-par 74. She finished the tournament at 6-under-par 210, three shots clear of the runner-up.
At No. 29 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings, Zhang was looking to finish strong after an incredible year. She won three AJGA events this summer, with her first win at the AJGA Junior at Palouse Ridge. The class of 2027 grad earned Rolex Junior All-American honors this year as well as AJGA Junior All-Star team recognition.
I had a good lead going into today. I just tried to play steady and make pars and hope that would be enough.
Anna Huang of (Canada) Coto De Caza, California, earned runner-up honors after a tournament score of 3-under-par 213. Donina Zhou of Trabuco Canyon, California, and Irene Kim of Woodstock, Maryland, both tied for third at 1-under-par 215. Kim had the girls low final round of the day with a 6-under-par 66. Chutimon Rujiranan of Chonburi, Thailand, rounded out the top-five girls at even-par 216.
In the Boys Division, Eric Zhao of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, jumped up from behind to capture his first AJGA win. The class of 2025 junior tied the low final round of the day with a 6-under-par 66.
It's amazing to get this win. It just relieves so much stress. Knowing that I've been a champion before, for future tournaments I'll be so much more confident which will increase my chances to be a champion again.
Zhao made birdie on his first two holes of the day and followed that up with two more back-to-back birdies on Nos. 6 and 7. He made his only bogey of the day on the par-4 No. 8. Zhao made the turn at 3-under-par 33. He made two more birdies on Nos. 10 and 11 before entering a five-hole par streak. Zhao birdied the par-3 No. 17 for his seventh and final birdie of the day to finish the tournament at 10-under-par 206.
This event marks Zhao's first AJGA win. His best finish came at the 2022 Randy Wise Junior Open, where he was the runner-up. The class of 2025 grad earned a spot on the 2022 Junior All-Star Team.
First and second round leader Zhengqian Li of (China) Melbourne, Australia, earned runner-up honors after a 2-over-par 74. He finished the tournament at 4-under-par 212. Finley Bartlett of Cincinnati, Ohio, earned third place with a 3-under-par 213. Jeff Seong of Tacoma, Washington, jumped up three spots on the leaderboard to finish the tournament at 1-under-par 215. Bradford Lacefield of Versailles, Kentucky, Brayden Miller of Goshen, Indiana, Davis Wotnosky of Wake Forest, North Carolina, Talan Harrison of Kannapolis, North Carolina, and Michael Riebe of Encinitas, California, ended in a five-way tie for fifth place at even-par 216.