If, a week from today, the 90th Masters Tournament proves as dramatic as the Girls 7-9 division of the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals on Sunday, golf fans are in for a treat.
After tying for first place in their division after completion of the three skills categories, 9-year-olds Patricia Kittivat and Riley Huang moved on to a putting playoff to decide the winner.
Kittivat, of Schaumburg, Ill., went first, playing just enough right-to-left break to sink the 15-footer on the 18th green at Augusta National. Up stepped Huang, from Palo Alto, Calif., who proceeded to roll in her putt.
Each player then had a second attempt at the same putt, from the right side of the green to a front-left hole location. This time, Kittivat just missed. An unflappable Huang sank the putt again to applause from the patrons gathered around the green.
“It feels awesome, and I'm really happy about winning,” Huang said. “The trophy was really heavy.”
Huang was one of eight champions out of the 80 participants in the 12th Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals. As the girls and boys went through their paces at each of the skills stations, Masters competitors were never far away. A few early arrivals in the Masters field were hitting balls just down the tee at the Tournament Practice Area. Past champions, including Rory McIlroy and Mark O’Meara, resplendent in their Green Jackets, handed out trophies and posed for photographs with the participants.
Nine-year old Roy Moon, of Bellevue, Wash., won the Boys 7-9 division and then went viral with his response during a television interview following his victory. Asked how he and his family would celebrate his victory, he said, “We’re gonna probably party all night.”
The victory in the Girls 10-11 division went to Ava Chen, an 11-year-old from Brooklyn, N.Y. Her highlights included holing the longer of the two putts, an uphill 30-footer. She also hit one of her two chip shots to 10 inches from the hole.
Lucy Cui, 13, of Honolulu, took the honors in the Girls 12-13 group after sinking both of her putts. In the oldest girls division, composed of 14- and 15-year-olds, Nirvika Koduru, of Boca Raton, Fla., belted a 257-yard drive and rolled in the 30-foot putt to win.
We’re gonna probably party all night.
On the boys’ side, Stephen Sanders Jr., 11, of Grand Prairie, Kan., prevailed in the 10-11 division. He hit a drive of 245 yards and a putt to 10 inches. In the 12-13 group, 13-year-old Texas Terry, of Austin, Tex., a National Finalist for the second time, reached 250 yards on a drive and left his two putts a combined 2 feet, 14 inches from the hole. He received his trophy from McIlroy.
“It was amazing. I always dreamed it would be Rory,” Terry said. “He’s one of the best golfers in the world; he’s one of my favorites. My grandmother, who passed away recently, he was her favorite golfer. So it meant a ton.”
Arno Wehle, 15, of San Jose, Calif., won the Boys 14-15 division after chipping to 7 inches and hitting two fine lag putts using a unique approach.
“In the local qualifiers, they have little rings and I think of it as a big pizza, and I'm just trying to lag my ball up inside of the pizza,” Wehle said.
For the first time, an extra half point was awarded this year for every attempt completed in 40 seconds or less. The vast majority of the attempts were completed within that time.
Many former Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals participants have gone on to compete at golf’s highest levels.
Akshay Bhatia competed in the inaugural event in 2014, tying for sixth in the 12-13 division. On the day of the 10th competition in 2014, Bhatia, by then on the PGA Tour, won in San Antonio to become the first former Drive, Chip and Putt participant to earn an invitation to the Masters. He will be playing in his third Masters this week. Another PGA Tour player, Michael Thorbjornsen, won the Boys 14-15 division in 2016.
Several LPGA Tour players are former National Finalists, too. Lucy Li won the 11-12 division in 2014. She made more history later that year, becoming the youngest qualifier (at age 11) for the U.S. Women’s Amateur and the U.S. Women’s Open. Gina Kim placed fourth among 14- and 15-year-olds in 2015. Alexa Pano earned three trips to the National Finals, winning twice, in the 10-11 division in 2016 and the 12-13 division the following year. More recently, Yana Wilson won the 12-13 division in 2019 and (after a one-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic) 2021.
In addition, 10 players in this year’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur are former National Finalists.
The LPGA Hall of Famer Nancy Lopez was one of many legends on hand Sunday to watch the event.
“These kids are so adorable,” she said. “They’re having the best time. This is just a special place and opportunity to be here at Augusta National doing this.”
