Ethan Gao (Bailey Arredondo Photo)

Gao, a native of Johns Creek, Ga., carded rounds of 68-68 to get to 4-under. He recorded ten birdies, an eagle, three bogeys, and a triple bogey in the first round on the par-3 No. 14.

Gao birdied the final hole to secure the win.

"Honestly, surprised," Gao said about the win. "I didn't think I was in it until the last few holes and all the drama in my group. So it was really nice to get it done." 

Gao added, "On 18, on the second shot, I had a really bad number, and I just thought about it logically and went with the shorter club and hit it as hard as possible with a huge draw. That was one of the best decisions I could have made in that spot." 

Cui, the first-round co-leader, and Weidmann finished T2 at 2-under.

First-round co-leader Nathan Wang of Fremont, Calif., Kush Arora of Pleasanton, Calif., and Ethan Lien of Cupertino, Calif., finished T4 at even-par to round out the top five.

Gao was a member of the Team USA Junior Presidents Cup in 2022 and was a three-time AJGA Rolex Junior All-American.

"Definitely," Gao said about the pressure of playing his home course. "But we have played here so much I feel like I know the course like the back of my hand. I did a really good job focusing on each shot and trying to pick my spots." 

In the Senior Championship Division, Tony Ralph of Sunnyvale, Calif., finished in first place by ten shots, securing the wire-to-wire win. Ralph shot rounds of 71-69 to finish even par. Ralph's second-round 1-under 69 was the only round under par in the tournament in the Senior Championship Division.

Daniel O'Connor of San Francisco, Calif., finished in solo second place at 10-over, and Jeff Britton of Carmel, Calif., finished in solo third place at 11-over.

David Leede of San Francisco, Calif., finished as the low Mid-Amateur by three shots at 12-over. Jeff Duncan of Carson City, Nev., and Jim Williams of Orinda, Calif., finished as the low Super Senior's at 14-over

Wa Yeung Tong of Monterey, Calif., finished as the low scorer in the Women's Divison by three shots at 20-over.

Barclay Brown, a Stanford standout who turned pro in 2024, won the tournament last year, so in the two years the Silicon Valley Amateur has been at Stanford Golf Course, a Stanford golfer has won the tournament.

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The Stanford University Golf Course was designed in 1930 by renowned architects William Bell and George C. Thomas, Jr. Located in the foothills above the Stanford University Campus, it is consistently rated one of the finest courses in the world. In 1998, Golf Week Magazine ranked it 91st in the country, and in 1993, Golf Magazine rated it 88th in the world.

Stanford University Golf Course is steeped in tradition. Throughout the years, Stanford has hosted many intercollegiate and non-collegiate events, including the Stanford Invitational, Pac-10 Championships, NCAA Western Regional, Women's NCAA Championships, USGA Junior Amateur Qualifying, U.S. Open Qualifying and a former Senior PGA Tour event, The Gathering at the Farm.

Stanford University Golf Course has also produced many influential golfers throughout the years. Notables include former USGA presidents Sandy Tatum and Grant Spaeth and PGA Tour professionals Tom Watson, Tiger Woods, and Notah Begay III.