Asterisk Talley enjoyed the time of her young life last week at the U.S. Women’s Open, but now it’s back to reality.
And that begins with school.
Talley, a 15-year-old high school freshman from Chowchilla, California, tied for 44th in her major-championship debut at Lancaster (Pennsylvania) Country Club, sharing low-amateur honors on Sunday with fellow Americans Megan Schofill and Catherine Park.
Among the 22 amateurs who qualified, only four made the 36-hole cut.
Now, Talley faces a challenge that she considers every bit as demanding as tournament pressure: a big backlog of schoolwork.
“I’m not ready,” Talley said after signing for a 3-over-par 73 for a 12-over 292 total. “I'm dreading it already. I wasn’t even thinking about that. But it’s going to be hard.”
Whatever cramming might await Talley, she proved that she has been a quick study on the golf course.
Talley, the youngest player in the field, had the time of her life in Lancaster, signing autographs and soaking up the atmosphere of her first major championship, even fending off requests from boys in the gallery who were asking for her phone number.
“I imagined it being like super fun, but it was even better than I thought,” Talley said. “Even with a bad round in there, I still had the time of my life yesterday and today, and it was still such a fun week.”
Talley won her first USGA title at the recent U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball. She attracted plenty of early attention after rounds of 70 and 71 left her tied for fifth at 1-over with, among others, Schofill. Talley, the nation’s fourth-ranked junior girl and a member of the new U.S. national development team, was No. 83 in the WAGR.
Schofill, 22, the reigning U.S. Women’s Amateur champion and a recent Auburn alumna from Monticello, Florida, applauded the turnout in Lancaster and added that she intends to turn pro in the fall.
“The crowds were great here,” said Schofill, who ranks 16th in the WAGR. “Everyone just really excited to be able to watch women’s golf. I think just really excited to see us play and that’s just all you want for the game.”
Park, a 20-year-old Southern Cal junior from Irvine, California, slipped down the leaderboard with a final-round 78.
“Today was a bit rough, but it’s the U.S. Open,” Park said. “It’s going to get you. It’s just something you’ve got to fight through. It was a great experience, so nothing I’ll ever trade for.”
Park won three times last season for the women of Troy, including a record-setting 15-under-par score to claim the Pac-12 Conference title, eclipsing former teammate Rose Zhang’s 2023 scoring mark. Park entered the week at No. 12 in the WAGR.
France’s Adela Cernousek, the recent NCAA champion from Texas A&M, shot 69 in the first and third rounds but couldn’t maintain the momentum and tied for 67th. The 20-year-old Cernousek was No. 15 in the WAGR.
Among the amateurs who failed to advance to weekend play: American Latanna Stone, the 2023 U.S. Amateur runner-up; Sweden’s Ingrid Lindblad, the recent Annika Award winner and WAGR No. 1 and Stone’s teammate at Louisiana State; and England’s Lottie Woad, the recent Augusta National Women’s Amateur champion.
France’s Catherine Lacoste remains the only amateur to win the U.S. Women’s Open, in 1967.
For Talley, her play in Lancaster – aside from a third-round 78 that ended her longshot hopes – represents a key moment in what is certain to be the first of many days on women’s golf’s biggest stages.
“It’s going to give me a lot of confidence going forward,” she said, “knowing that I made the cut really easily and that without the bad round yesterday I could have really been in contention.”
Steve Harmon