17-year-old Megan Khang of Rockland, Mass. (USGA photo)

Granted, Khang was not in contention to become the first amateur to win the championship since Catherine Lacoste 48 years ago. Rather, she was in the mix for low-amateur honors.

"I did know where I was because the two behind me, Mariel [Galdiano] and Muni [He] are actually my friends, so we're all close,” said Khang, who was 4 over par through 54 holes, one shot ahead of Galdiano and He. "I know we're all friends, but on the golf course we're fighting to the last second. So I knew where I was, and I wanted it to stay that way."

Khang, 17, of Rockland, Mass., made sure of that on Sunday, shooting a final-round 71 to finish at 5-over 285, one stroke ahead of Galdiano, 17, of Pearl City, Hawaii, who also shot 71 and finished a stroke back at 6 over.

He, 16, of the People's Republic of China, and Hannah O’Sullivan, 17, of Chandler, Ariz., each finished at 8-over 288 in their first U.S. Women’s Open appearances. Emma Talley, 21, of Princeton, Ky., the 2013 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, finished at 11-over 291.

Khang, who recently graduated from Rockland High School, but has yet to commit to college plans, was two strokes shy of the low 72-hole score by an amateur: 283 by Grace Park in 1999.

"I knew what I had to do, which was just play my own game because the hard part about making the cut was over,” said Khang, a semifinalist in the 2013 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship. "So I just played relaxed out here."

While not a win in the truest sense, Khang had no problem categorizing this finish among her brief career accomplishments.

“It's definitely among the top, I think maybe No. 1 right now, besides Kingsmill, because it is the U.S. Women's Open and it is the best women in the world,” said Khang, who tied for 58th at the LPGA Tour’s Kingsmill Championship in May. "It's great to compete out here with them."

Galdiano will not receive a medal for finishing as the second-lowest amateur, but her bonus came late Friday when she was one of five of 25 amateurs to make the cut.

"When I found out I just made it, I was like let’s take this home,” she said.

Because the Hawaii qualifier for next month’s U.S. Women’s Amateur was being held earlier this week, Galdiano faced the prospect of missing out on the championship at Portland (Ore.) Country Club. By making the cut and finishing 72 holes, Galdiano is exempt, along with the other four amateurs.

Khang and Talley are opting out of the U.S. Women’s Amateur due to scheduling conflicts. Khang has accepted a sponsor exemption for a Symetra Tour event, while Talley is heading to stage 1 of the LPGA Tour’s Qualifying Tournament.