BRADENTON, Fla. – Vidhi Lakhawala of Kendall Park, New Jersey, stayed steady in the final round of The Nelly Invitational presented by Chevron, finishing at 1-under-par 215. She carded two birdies and one bogey, with the rest pars, climbing six spots on the leaderboard to secure the victory.
Lakhawala opened the tournament with a 3-under-par 69, sharing the first-round lead with future Wake Forest teammate Amelie Zalsman of St.Petersburg, Florida. She faced more challenges in the second round, carding a 3-over-par 75.
In the final round, Lakhawala held steady, including a stretch of 10 consecutive pars from No. 9 through No. 18. It remained a tight race to the finish, with several players close behind at even par.
“I came into the round without any expectations. I knew my game was in a good spot, and I didn’t really worry about where I stood. It feels really good to walk away with an invitational win and an LPGA exemption.”
This marks Lakhawala’s third AJGA victory. Her first came at the 2022 Windham Mountain Resort Junior All-Star, followed by her second at the 2025 Will Lowery Junior Championship. After finishing T11 at The Nelly Invitational presented by Chevron last year, Lakhawala returned to claim the title this year, showing significant growth on one of the AJGA’s biggest stages. She also closed out her 2025 season with a third-place finish at The Ninja Invitational hosted by Janet Xiyu Lin.
This likely marks her final AJGA Invitational appearance, unless she opts to compete in the Wyndham Cup in July. With the win, Lakhawala also secured an exemption into the 2027 Chevron Championship, which will be her LPGA debut.
Zoe Cusack of Potomac, Maryland, and Grace Carter of Jupiter, Florida, finished just behind Lakhawala, tying for second at even-par 216. This marks Cusack’s final and best AJGA Invitational finish as she prepares to play collegiate golf at the University of Virginia this fall.
Carter, just 15 years old, already has an invitational victory to her name, and this runner-up finish stands as her next best result. She held the lead after the second round at 4-under-par, while Cusack surged on the final day to earn low-round honors for the event.
Defending champion Shauna Liu of Maple, Ontario, Canada, and first-round leader Amelie Zalsman of Jupiter, Florida, tied for fourth at 1-over-par 217
The following players round out the top-10:
T6. Nobelle Park of Oakville, Ontario, Canada, 2-over-par, 218
T6. Ann-Sophie Bourgault of Gatineau, Quebec, Canada, 2-over-par, 218
T6. Jude Lee of Walnut, California, 2-over-par, 218
T6. Raegan Denton of Fulham Gardens, Australia, 2-over-par, 218
10. Iris Lee of Orlando, Florida 3-over-par, 219
The Nelly Invitational presented by Chevron brings the top-ranked junior golfers in the world to compete at The Concession Golf Club for a 54-hole, stroke-play tournament. The 2026 event includes 12 of the top 25 girls of the Rolex AJGA Rankings.
Representatives from 10 foreign countries and 13 U.S. states are set to compete in the all-girls event. There are also 25 players who have committed verbally or with a National Letter of Intent to play college golf. The field consists of 45 past AJGA champions and 28 Rolex Junior All-Americans.
Nelly Korda, a standout LPGA player Tour player, AJGA alumna and Team TaylorMade athlete, will serve the tournament host for the second time. Korda joined the LPGA Tour in 2017 and has had 13 career victories, with five so far in 2024, including two majors at the 2021 KPMG Women's PGA Championship and the 2024 Chevron Championship.
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