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SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA | You can’t teach what she has. Magnetism, charisma, polish, authenticity. Those who watched Megha Ganne’s breakout performance at the U.S. Women’s Open may have witnessed the birth of a superstar, a player with the tools to succeed at Stanford where she is committed to play in fall 2023, and the instincts and personality to elevate herself and the women’s game to new heights.
The smile hits you like a bank of floodlights. Her eyes never leave you when she speaks. Her skill might be rolling 10-footers into the center of the hole like they’re tap-ins, but her gift is the connection she has with everyone, groups large and small, one-on-one or with a gallery that nudged near 1,000.
On Thursday, she was an amateur atop a leaderboard, the first to do so in a U.S. Women’s Open since Jane Park in 2006. It was a nice story that everyone assumed would fade. Amateurs making noise in the early rounds are as ubiquitous at opens as high rough and tucked pins. But then Ganne (above) shot even-par 71 on Friday to take the lead late into the afternoon. Suddenly, the story transcended sports. It was one of the lead items in the Times of India, where Ganne’s parents were born and raised before immigrating to New Jersey in the 1990s. CNN, ABC, The Irish Times, the BBC, The Boston Globe and countless others all picked it up.
The governor of New Jersey tweeted out good luck wishes and, after Megha commented that she was worried about calculus homework due on Monday, her teacher sent out a tweet telling her not to worry about it.
For many, this was a kid appearing out of nowhere to compete with the best in the world, the female golf version of Roy Hobbs in The Natural. That wasn’t exactly the case. Ganne advanced to the semifinals of the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur when she was only 15 and qualified to play in the U.S. Women’s Open at Country Club of Charleston that same year. She is well known in junior and amateur circles, ranked No. 3 in the AJGA rankings. Still, few expected what they found when Ganne played her way into the final group on Sunday.
The dream ended early on the last day when Ganne started with a double and then a bogey. But on Saturday afternoon, her gallery was twice the size of the one following Lexi Thompson. By the time she made the turn in that third round, chants of “GAN-A, GAN-A” echoed through the cypresses. The high school junior loved it. On the sixth hole on Saturday, when she appeared to make a mess of things, leaving herself a 10-footer for bogey, she calmly rolled the putt right into the middle of the hole to the roar of a gallery that was clearly on her side. Without missing a beat, she put her hand to her ear like Rory McIlroy in the Ryder Cup, the kind of playful interaction you would expect from a 10-year veteran and five-time winner, not a teenager with another year of high school awaiting.
“She has always loved the spotlight,” said Ganne’s mother, Sudha, an endocrinologist in private practice. “From the time she was young, she loved drama. She auditioned for a (school) play and tried out for the part of Alice in 'Alice in Wonderland.' But the drama teacher said, ‘I think you would be much better as the Queen of Hearts.’ She threw herself into that role. She really lived it. That’s always been her way.”
Sudha and her husband, Hari, surely hope the heft of the moment and the attention it brings won’t ruin her, as it has for so many teen sensations. But if Ganne has anything working in her favor, it’s that her family is grounded, centered and – so far – has done everything right.
“They are the real deal,” Ganne’s coach Katie Rudolph said of Sudha and Hari, an IT entrepreneur. “If you’re looking for model golf parents, people who do it right, look no further than the Gannes. They keep it in perspective and are always supportive, no matter what.”
Megha will need that support in the future. One week of attention is cool. A year of it can get old and tiresome.
But for now, golf fans should continue to enjoy the moment and return the smile of the game’s newest star.
“I've always imagined myself engaging with the fans like that just because when I was younger and watching events, I knew I would love it when I would see the pros just even look at the crowd or smile or do anything like that,” Ganne said. “I really wanted to embody that. I got a chance, which was nice.”
Steve Eubanks