Joanne Winter Arizona Silver Belle: Nikki Oh wins her second event of 2023
Nikki Oh (Arizona Silver Belle photo)
15-year-old Nikki Oh from Torrance, Calif., shot 10-under 206 following her rounds of 73-68-65 to win the Joanne Winter Arizona Silver Belle Championship by two-strokes at Briarwood Country Club in Sun City, Ariz.
Oh entered the final round trailing Amy Lee, the 36-hole leader, by three strokes. Lee had maintained the lead at 6-under par with consecutive rounds of 69-69. Oh carded a flawless 7-under 65 in the final round, a new course record, bridging the gap and securing the title with a two-stroke victory over Lee.
Lee from Langley, BC, added a final round 70 to finish as the runner-up at 8-under 208.
This also marked Oh’s second title of the season, following a win at the Ping An Bank Junior Open in July this year.
Oh is the daughter of noted instructor Ted Oh, who works with former world No. 1 Lydia Ko and qualified for the U.S. Open 30 years ago at age 16 was also a member of one of the teams which stood as co-medalist at the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball event after 36-holes, prior to the match-play side of the tournament at the Home Course in DuPont, Wash. Additionally, she advanced to the Round of 16 in the U.S. Women's Amateur in August.
Lydia Portlock of San Antonio, Tex., shot rounds of 68-73-68 to finish third at 7-under 209, closely followed by Alona Avery of Riverside with rounds of 76-69-65 for a fourth-place finish at 6-under 210.
ABOUT THE
Arizona Silver Belle Championship
Founded in 1971 by Joanne Winter, LPGA, the Joanne Winter Arizona Silver Belle Championship was to encourage competition in golf for young women amateur golfers under the age of 24. Today, it is nationally recognized and included in the major golf rankings, including AmateurGolf.com. This tournament qualifies for AJGA Performance-Based Entry. Entrants must be younger than 24 years old as of December 28. All applicants 14 years and younger will be reviewed as one group and will compete for the Overall Champion title and within the '14 and Under' age division.
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