Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

2 days ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

2 days ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

3 days ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

3 days ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

3 days ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

3 days ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

3 days ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

3 days ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

3 days ago
Pro Golf Has Its Next Tiger Woods. Her Name Is Rose Zhang
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 2 years ago on
May 26, 2023

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Rose Zhang dominated amateur golf like no other female in the modern game. Now the Stanford star is ready to take on the best.

Zhang announced Friday she is turning pro, ending an amateur career in which the 20-year-old sophomore set the Stanford record with 12 wins — one more than Tiger Woods — in only 20 tournaments.

She won the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, followed that with her second straight NCAA titles and was No. 1 in the amateur world ranking for 141 weeks, another record.

“Wow … it’s finally happening,” Zhang announced on Instagram. “The endless love, support and inspiration from so many people brought me to this point of my golf career.”

Special Exemptions for Zhang

She will have no shortage of opportunities — the remaining four majors, including the U.S. Women’s Open and the Women’s British Open — have given her special exemptions.

The Women’s Open is at Pebble Beach, the most iconic of U.S. Open venues, for the first time. While no longer an amateur, Zhang is the first player to get a special invitation to the U.S. Women’s Open without having LPGA status since Michelle Wie West.

“This is a big moment for our sport, and I’m very appreciative of the USGA for the opportunity to be part of it,” Zhang said.

Even rarer is getting an invitation to the Women’s British.

“Rose Zhang is an incredibly talented golfer who has already written her name into the history books as an amateur golfer,” said Martin Slumbers, the CEO of the R&A. “It is very rare that we grant a special exemption for the AIG Women’s Open but we believe that Rose’s exceptional achievements to date warrant her inclusion in the field at Walton Heath.”

Zhang’s Debut and Future Tournaments

Zhang will make her debut next week in the Mizuho Americas Open, a new tournament hosted by Michelle Wie West at Liberty National in New Jersey.

“Rose is one of the greatest amateur golfers in the history of the sport – male or female – and we are thrilled to welcome her into our field,” said Jerry Rizzieri, the president and CEO of Mizuho Securities USA.

It was an example of the hype that Zhang brings with her to the professional game. But then, she has been facing expectations ever since she won the U.S. Women’s Amateur and the U.S. Girls Junior. She was the eighth player to win both, but the first to win the Women’s Amateur (at age 17) before the Junior.

Along with the two NCAA titles — Stanford won the team title last year — the final piece of an incomparable career was the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, already among the elite amateur events because it is held at the home of the Masters.

She also will player the Kroger Queen City Championship in Cincinnati, an event run by Excel Sports, the management agency with whom she signed.

Endorsement Deals and Stanford Degree

Zhang already has NIL deals at Stanford, and given her mixture of prodigious talent and remarkable grace and humility, likely will be among the highest-paid in women’s golf through corporate endorsements. Such announcements are expected next week.

Zhang grew up in Irvine, California, and spent two years at Stanford. Her 12 career titles — the last won was the NCAA — broke the record previously held by Tiger Woods, Patrick Rodgers and Maverick McNealy. She tied the Pac-12 record set by Lorena Ochoa at Arizona.

Zhang first reached No. 1 in the women’s amateur ranking in September 2020. She broke Lydia Ko’s record of 130 consecutive weeks at No. 1, and overall record (141 weeks) that was set by Leona Maguire.

Along with the two Opens, the KPMG Women’s PGA at Baltusrol and the Amundi Evian Championship in France, Zhang has accepted invitations to play the Dana Open near Toledo, Ohio, and the Canadian Women’s Open. She could qualify for other LPGA events by finishing in the top 10.

While turning pro, Zhang said she would finish her degree at Stanford.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

How Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Will Make China Great Again

DON'T MISS

What’s Caitlin Clark Worth to the WNBA? A Lot More Than Her $78,066 Salary.

DON'T MISS

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

DON'T MISS

Madre Fire Spurs Evacuations Across 3 Counties, Grows to More Than 70,000 Acres

DON'T MISS

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

DON'T MISS

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

DON'T MISS

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

DON'T MISS

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

DON'T MISS

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal

UP NEXT

What’s Caitlin Clark Worth to the WNBA? A Lot More Than Her $78,066 Salary.

UP NEXT

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

UP NEXT

Madre Fire Spurs Evacuations Across 3 Counties, Grows to More Than 70,000 Acres

UP NEXT

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

UP NEXT

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

UP NEXT

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

UP NEXT

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

UP NEXT

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

UP NEXT

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal

UP NEXT

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rachelle Maria Blanco

Madre Fire Spurs Evacuations Across 3 Counties, Grows to More Than 70,000 Acres

2 days ago

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

2 days ago

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

2 days ago

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

2 days ago

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

2 days ago

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

2 days ago

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal

2 days ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rachelle Maria Blanco

2 days ago

Russia Pounds Kyiv With Largest Drone Attack, Hours After Trump-Putin Call

2 days ago

Boxer Chavez Jr Expected to Be Deported to Mexico to Serve Sentence, Mexican President Says

2 days ago

How Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Will Make China Great Again

Can you hear it — that loud roar coming from the East? It’s the sound of 1.4 billion Chinese laughing at us. Thomas L. Friedman The New Yo...

24 hours ago

Solar Farm in Riesel, Texas
24 hours ago

How Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Will Make China Great Again

Caitlin Clark Signs T-Shirt
24 hours ago

What’s Caitlin Clark Worth to the WNBA? A Lot More Than Her $78,066 Salary.

President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
2 days ago

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

The Madre Fire burning near New Cuyama has scorched 70,801 acres as of Friday, July 4, 2025, afternoon, making it California’s largest wildfire of the year, with only 10% containment and multiple evacuation zones in place. (CalFire)
2 days ago

Madre Fire Spurs Evacuations Across 3 Counties, Grows to More Than 70,000 Acres

2 days ago

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

A pumpjack operates at the Vermilion Energy site in Trigueres, France, June 14, 2024. (Reuters File)
2 days ago

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

Palestinians gather to collect what remains of relief supplies from the distribution center of the U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, June 5, 2025. (Reuters File)
2 days ago

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

Billy Wayne Sinisgalli, a 54-year-old transient known locally as Wayne, was found dead along a rural Fresno road Wednesday in what authorities are investigating as a suspicious death. (Fresno County SO)
2 days ago

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend