EVANS, Ga. — The first two rounds of the Augusta National Women's Amateur are now complete. What started with 72 players (really 71, there was one pre-tournament withdrawal) has now been cut to 32.
At the beginning of the week we shared the players we're watching heading into the competition—let's check in on how they did and meet the players who will play Augusta National on Saturday.
Lottie Woad, Pos: T-1 (-9)
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Defending champ Lottie Woad was as steady as they come. While Megha Ganne was running away with the lead on Wednesday, setting a new tournament record with an opening round 63, Woad remained calm and played her golf. Easy, methodical, smooth.
She shot a opening round 67 to sit just two back of Ganne. Watching Woad on the range, it's amazing to see her so chilled. She takes time in between shots and just has this very easy look to her.
"I knew it was going to be pretty packed like it usually is. Pretty much anyone could go out and shoot a good score," Woad said after the first round. "Just trying to really focus on my own game and stick to the plan really, not change too much."
That was apparent. Woad backed up her 67 with a 2-under 70, placing her in a prime position for defending her title tied at first with Kiara Romero (More on Romero in a minute).
Jasmine Koo, Pos: T-9 (-4)
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World No. 2 Jasmine Koo had to grind on day two after a slow-yet-decent opening 71. The 19-year-old played in the same group alongside Woad, so it was easy for the two top-ranked players to keep tabs on one another.
Koo fired a 69 to get to 4-under for the tournament. She has some work to do if she wants a shot at the trophy but she's made the weekend—which is an accomplishment within itself for the USC freshman. Last year, in her ANWA debut, she finished fourth after a final-round 70 that included eagles on holes 8 and 15.
Anything is possible.
Mirabel Ting, Pos: Missed Cut (E)
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It was a tough day one for Mirabel Ting, the top-ranked collegiate player in the country, firing a 4-over opening round of 76. She bounced back with a 4-under (signing off on a 68) but it wasn't enough to get her into the final round.
It was a treat to follow Ting around Champions Retreat, being witness of undulations of her game on full display. She's a heck a player and the FSU junior is no doubt a player to have on your radar.
Asterisk Talley, Pos: T-6 (-7)
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Talley had one of the best rounds of the day on Thursday, firing a 6-under 66. The 16-year-old had an impressive run of four birdies on the difficult back nine at Champions Retreat—catching some much needed momentum for the weekend.
"Going into this round I knew I had to fire some scores today because, before I came into today, I was sitting like close to the cut line," Talley said Thursday. "So I knew I had to play some good golf to make the cut. I started off pretty steady on the front nine, and then I caught some fire on the back."
Talley, who recently joined team TaylorMade, will look to gain an edge on Saturday by tapping the same local caddie she used at Augusta in 2024.
Anna Davis, Pos: T-17 (-2)
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The 2022 Champion will see the weekend for the first time since she won the event three years ago. Davis fired a 69-73, placing her inside the top-20 heading in the weekend.
The 19-year-old Auburn golfer has some ground to make up, but given her familiarity with Augusta National, she has the ability to make some magic happen. In the 2022 final found she won with a final-round-69 that included birdies on hole Nos. 2, 9, 12 and 13.
Gianna Clemente, Pos: T-17 (-2)
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The other youngster (17) we had our eyes on at the beginning of the week, Gianna Clemente, also made the cut with two solid opening rounds of 70 and 72. Last year she was in the final pairing with Lottie Woad, this year she'll have less eyes on her, which may end up working in her favor.
Rachel Heck, Pos: Missed Cut (+4)
Despite missing the cut, Rachel Heck had a heck of a time. The 23-year-old said that she has played only one round of golf since she helped Stanford capture the 2024 National Title (that was nearly a year ago).
Her storyline was a fun one to watch this week. It's clear that Heck is comfortably in her new era post-golf (she even had to take PTO from work just to play in the ANWA)—and she was a joy to watch.
Megha Ganne, T-3 (-8)
It was all eyes on Megha Ganne after her impressive 63 during round one. She struggled a bit during Thursday's second round, making two bogeys early on. But she kicked things into gear on the back nine getting back to even for the day.
Ganne ground out only three birdies for the day, with a big one coming on the 18th. She sank a long birdie putt on her 36th hole which will hopefully give her some momentum into the weekend.
Ganne sits just one shot off the lead.
Kiara Romero, T-1 (-9)
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While most were paying attention to Woad and Ganne, University of Oregon sophomore Kiara Romero stormed up the leaderboard. Going 67, 68—Romero is tied in leading the championship.
After her round she said that she's looking forward to what Saturday has to offer.
"I'm definitely going to enjoy the moment being there, but just going to try to do my best to take notes of the course and see where are the good spots and create a good game plan for Saturday," Romero said.
It's bunched at the top—and the ANWA final round is shaping out to be a real doozy—don't miss it.
Saturday, April 5
10AM-Noon: Live From the Augusta National Women’s Amateur (Golf Channel/NBC Sports App)
Noon-3:30PM: Final round (NBC/Peacock)
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