BOWLING GREEN, Florida - Brynn Kort of Henderson, Nevada, Asterisk Talley of Chowchilla, California, Olivia Duan of Cupertino, California, and Mi Li of (China) Kissimmee, Florida, lead the AJGA Girls Invitational by three strokes after the first round. They each shot an 18-hole score of 5-under-par 68.
Streamsong Resort is the only location in the world where players can experience three distinct golf courses designed by these legendary architects—Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, Tom Doak, and Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner. Streamsong Red (Coore-Crenshaw), Streamsong Blue (Doak) and Streamsong Black (Hanse-Wagner) are three of the most highly acclaimed and widely pursued golf courses in the game today. Revered by golfers as a bucket-list destination, Streamsong Resort rivals the greatest golf venues in the world. The Black Course, home of this year's event, was named No. 25 in Golfweek's "Top 100 Courses You Can Play" list.
The 2023 event includes 45 juniors inside the top-100 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings. Of the 72 player field, 16 girls are Rolex Junior All-Americans. Representatives from seven foreign countries and eight Floridians are competing in the field. There are also 23 players that have committed verbally to play college golf.
Kort started her round on the par-5 No. 12 and made her first birdie on the par-4 No. 14. She made seven pars before making back-to-back birdies on Nos. 4 and 5. She closed out the rest of the round with two more birdies - on the par-3 No. 7 and the par-5 No. 10.
I didn't make any bogies and had zero three putts, so that was probably the biggest thing. I kept the ball in good position and gave myself a lot of good birdie opportunities.
Kort is currently ranked No. 56 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings. The Rolex Junior All-American won the 2022 Justin Thomas Junior Championship.
Talley also started on No. 12. She quickly made two back-to-back birdies on Nos. 13 and 14. She made a streak of pars before making her third birdie on the par-5 No. 4. The 2027 junior made a final push up the leaderboard after making back-to-back birdies on Nos. 10 and 11.
I didn't make any bogeys today so I did not make many mistakes. I try to hit the middle of the (greens) on every hole here.
Talley is a Rolex Junior All-American and played for the West Team at this year's Wyndham Cup. She will be represented the USA at the 2023 PING Junior Solheim Cup in a few weeks. Currently ranked at No. 7 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings, she has won three times this summer. She earned wins at the Se Ri Pak Desert Junior, Rolex Girls Junior Championship and the C.T. Pan Foundation Championship.
Duan started with a par on No. 12, her first hole. She made a birdie on No. 14 but made a bogey on the par-3 No. 15. She bounced back with birdies on the par-5 No. 18 and the par-4 No. 3. Duan made another bogey on the par-5 No. 4 but recovered with two back-to-back birdies on Nos. 6 and 7. She saved the highlight for the par-4 No. 9, where she holed out for an eagle.
Duan is a Rolex Junior All-American and is verbally committed to Princeton University. Currently ranked at No. 50 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings, she previously won the 2022 AJGA Junior at Dupont presented by Weatherman.
Li played in the same pairing as Duan. She made her first birdie on No. 14 and followed it up with three pars. She made birdies on Nos. 18 and 2 but made her first and only birdie on No. 4. Li made a birdie on the par-3 No. 5. She made four pars before making a ending her round with back-to-back birdies to earn a share of the lead.
Li won the 2021 AJGA Junior Championship presented by the Spinnaker Foundation and is currently ranked No. 52 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings.
Two juniors round out the top-5 after a solid 18 holes of play. Elise Lee of Irvine, California, and Kylie Chong of Torrance, California, both turned in scores of 4-under-par 66.
Second-round tee times will run from 8-10:20 a.m. off Nos. 1 and 12 on Sunday, September 3.