Amelie Zalsman, 16, and Charlotte Cantonis, 18, carded a bogey-free, 5-under 66 on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the 2025 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball at Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club in Nichols Hills, Okla.
Cantonis and Zalsman, from Tampa and St. Petersburg, Fla., respectively, carded five birdies in total, including back-to-back birdies from Zalsman on holes 6 and 7, followed by a third consecutive birdie for the side by Cantonis on No. 8.
“There were up and down moments for both of us throughout the round, and we definitely saved each other on a couple of holes,” said Zalsman. “But I think our teamwork was just great today.”
Off the course, Cantonis is set to join Auburn University this fall while Zalsman, a member of the U.S. National Junior Team, attends a boarding school in the Bahamas.
Twin sisters Janae and Jasmine Leovao fired a round of 4-under-par 67, finishing as the solo side in second. The duo was two strokes back of the leaders through 16, when Jasmine recovered from a hooked drive by hitting 3-wood from the fairway rough to seven feet, sinking the birdie putt.
“That was my best shot of the day,” said Jasmine. “I thought Janae was in perfect position, so I just thought I’d hit it and see what happens.”
The Leovao twins, from Oceanside, Calif., are currently attending Long Beach State University and have quickly made a name for themselves. Last year, Jasmine made history as the back-to-back Big West Individual champion while sister Janae earned First Team All-Big West honors after competing in the lineup in every event during the season.
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Four sides finished the first round in a tie for third place at 3 under par on what was a windy first round, including mid-am duo Megan Buck and Shannon Johnson and Florida duo Catherine Andino and Nicole Sardinha.
“Trying to judge the wind and how the ball was going to release made it very challenging,” said Buck. “It was playing tough. It was hard to get the ball really close to the hole. If we had any birdie look, that was a positive today.”
Oregon natives Natalie Yen and Asia Young were also among the sides at 3-under-par 68. The duo competed in last year’s Four-Ball and intend to lean on that experience this week.
“I think we're ready. We’ve played a lot more together and become really good friends,” said Young. “It feels great to keep playing as a team. There’s no pressure – it's like ‘we’re in this together.’”
NOTABLE
- Nicole Iniakov, Mi Li and Anna Ritter are all competing as solo players in the championship, with their partners unable to participate. Ritter was the low solo side, finishing 2 over par on her own ball.
- Meredith Finger is the daughter of Matt Finger, who partnered with Michael Korcuba in the 2016 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball and lost 6 and 5 to Nathan Smith and Todd White in the opening round of match play.
- Only two sides recorded bogeyfree rounds, and both were in the same foursome: Buck and Johnson, Zalsman and Cantonis.
- One of last year's medalists, Katelyn Lehigh, of Loveland, Colo., is competing this week alongside a new partner, Amelia Garibaldi, of Stockton, Calif. The duo finished among the sides at 3under par.
- Fourteen-year-old Harlow Gregory, of Norman, Okla., hit the championship’s opening tee shot.
- Skylar Dean and Reagan Ramage were disqualified following a violation of Rule 4.1.
View results for U.S. Women's Four-Ball
ABOUT THE
U.S. Women's Four-Ball
The U.S. Women's Amateur Four-Ball was played for
the first time in 2015 at Bandon Dunes Golf
Resort in Bandon, Oregon. It immediately became
one
of the USGA's most popular tournaments. The event,
which
has
no age restriction, is open to those women
with
a Handicap Index of 14.4 or lower. It is one
of
15 national championships conducted annually
by
the USGA.
View Complete Tournament Information