Asterisk Talley of Chowchilla, California, and Blake Brown of Cypress, Texas, lead after the second round of The PING Invitational. Talley leads the Girls Division at 5-under-par 139 while Brown leads the Boys Division at 4-under-par 140.
Talley jumped up nine spots on the leaderboard with the lowest round of the day, a 5-under-par 67. The California native made a birdie on the par-3 No. 4 before making four birdies in a row to make the turn with a 5-under-par 31. She made her only bogey of the day on the par-4 No. 12 but bounced back with a birdie on the par-4 No. 17. She leads the field by three strokes heading into the final round.
I had a really good mindset and a lot of putts were falling for me. I'm going to do everything the same tomorrow.
Talley is currently ranked No. 1 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings and is a two-time Rolex Junior All-American. The four-time AJGA Champion won the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley, finished eighth in the Augusta National Women's Amateur and captured the U.S. Women's Amateur Four-Ball title this year. Talley notched a huge point at the Curtis Cup this summer when she took down the No.1 female in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, Lottie Woad.
Behind Talley, Stanford commit Nikki Oh of Torrance, California, fired seven birdies to earn solo second. Oh finished the round with a 3-under-par 69 and a tournament total of 4-under-par 140. In a tie for third, LSU commit Ryleigh Knaub of Debary, Florida, and first round leader Gianna Clemente of Estero, Florida, end the second round at 2-under-par 142.
In the Boys Division, Byrd maintained his overnight lead after a 1-under-par 71. Byrd battled an up-and-down round after making five bogeys and a double-bogey. He offset his mistakes by making back-to-back birdies on the par-3 No. 13 and par-5 No. 14, an eagle on the par-5 No. 18 and three consecutive birdies to close out the round. The Clemson commit looks to earn his first Invitational win tomorrow.
It was a little more stressful today knowing I had the lead, so I was definitely playing with a little more pressure today. I only have two more AJGAs that I'm playing in so I am just trying to soak it all in.
Byrd tied for third place at the RLX Ralph Lauren Junior Classic and represented the U.S. at the Junior Presidents Cup in Canada. The two-time Rolex Junior All-American won his one and only AJGA event at the 2021 Matthew NeSmith Junior Championship.
In second place and one-stroke back, Blake Brown of Cypress, Texas, fired four birdies en route to a 1-under-par 71. Brown won the Ochsner Health / AJGA New Orleans Classic earlier this year. In a tie for third, Miles Russell of Jacksonville, Florida, Cole Stockard of Dalton, Georgia and Ronin Banerjee of Irvine, California, are all at 2-under-par 142.
The 18th PING Invitational showcases the best of the next generation of future college and professional stars. The tournament is hosted at The Saticoy Club. The venue change takes place after Karsten Creek undergoes renovations.
There are 26 Rolex Junior All-Americans and 64 AJGA champions in the field. In addition, there are 36 college commits and six countries represented.
Tournament History
The inaugural PING Invitational took place in 2006 and in the tournament’s 18-year history, has crowned many notable past champions. Jordan Spieth is the only two-time Boys Division champion, winning in 2008 and 2010. Other notable champions include PGA TOUR player Emiliano Grillo and college standouts – Stanford senior Michael Thorbjornsen and 2023 Walker Cup team member Ben James, a sophomore at the University of Virginia.
Rose Zhang, two-time Rolex Junior Player of the Year and LPGA Tour star, joined Spieth as the first two-time champion in the Girls Division with victories in 2018 and 2020. In 2021, Gianna Clemente of Estero, Florida, became the youngest champion at 13 years, 6 months, and 18 days old. Clemente successfully defended her title in 2022, winning by seven shots to join Spieth and Zhang. The 2026 grad will return to the event for a fourth year this October. Notable Girls Division champions also include: Nelly Korda, Alison Lee and Patty Tavatanakit.
Past champions are listed below:
2023 - Wheaton Ennis and Jasmine Koo
2022 - Jay Leng Jr and Gianna Clemente
2021 - Benjamin James and Gianna Clemente
2020 - Kelly Chinn and Rose Zhang
2019 - Event was canceled due to weather
2018 - Michael Thorbjornsen and Rose Zhang
2017 - Canon Claycomb and Lucy Li
2016 - Noah Norton and Paphangkorn Tavatanakit
2015 - Spencer Soosman and Nelly Korda
2014 - Donnie Trosper and Kaitlyn Papp
2013 - Brad Dalke and Megan Khang
2012 - Gavin Hall and Alison Lee
2011 - A.J. McInerney and Jaye Marie Green
2010 - Jordan Spieth and Kristen Park
2009 - Emiliano Grillo and Rachel Morris
2008 - Jordan Spieth and Victoria Tanco
2007 - Gregor Main and Vicky Hurst
2006 - Andrew Yun and Esther Choe
About PING
PING, a golf club manufacturer with the goal to help golfers play their best, has been an AJGA supporter since 1990 and began supporting the PING Phoenix Junior in 1991. The PING Invitational, one of the AJGA's top Invitationals held over Columbus Day weekend, began in 2006 at Karsten Creek. The PING Junior Solheim Cup, the all-girls match play biennial event, has received worldwide recognition and many participants are able to say they played for their country as a junior and professional.
An Official Partner since 2002, the golf club manufacturer sponsors PING College Golf Signing Day and became "The Official Bag of the AJGA" in 2009. In 2010, PING debuted golf bags for all AJGA champions. PING also became the AJGA's first Legacy Partner in 2020.
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