AUGUSTA, Ga. — While every member of the 72-player field at this year’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur will be working to etch their name in the history books at one of golf’s most historic venues, that isn’t everything that’s on the line this week in Augusta, Ga.
Not only will the champion receive the coveted trophy and be exempt into the next five editions of the ANWA so long as they remain an amateur, but they’ll also be invited to participate in some of the most prestigious events in women’s golf on the LPGA Tour, receiving exemptions into four of the year’s five major championships.
The first event the ANWA winner will get to tee it up in is The Chevron Championship, which is set to begin in two weeks on Thursday, April 18. It’s the second year that the tournament will be contested at The Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands, Texas having been held at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif., in its previous 51 editions.
Emilia Migliaccio, who made the 36-hole cut on the number on Thursday, was one of six amateurs in the field at The Chevron Championship in 2020 and fondly remembers her experience competing in the LPGA’s major, a moment that was made even more special by whom she got to play alongside in the first two rounds.
“After getting the exemption, I wondered who I was going to be paired with,” remembers Migliaccio. “It ended up being my college teammate, Jennifer Kupcho. It felt like we were back trying to qualify for Wake Forest. I remember we were both struggling, but then we fought back and made the cut. It was really memorable for me because that was my fourth major, but the first one I made a cut in.”
As one of the top-ranked amateurs in the world during her collegiate heyday, Migliaccio was more than used to competing on some of golf’s biggest stages, having done so plenty of times throughout her career. But the experience of teeing it up in a major alongside the world’s best players is something that cannot be recreated, even in the most storied of amateur tournaments. So Migliaccio is grateful that the ANWA winner will get that opportunity and will be hoping that she can mount one of the largest comebacks in Augusta National Women’s Amateur history to have that chance come the end of the final round.
“I know it would mean so much to every player in the field to earn an exemption into an LPGA major,” Migliaccio said. “There’s already so much that comes with winning ANWA, but to go from teeing it up with the best amateurs in the world to the best professionals just two weeks later, it’s just such a special opportunity. So much credit goes to Chevron for wanting to grow the game and to show off top amateur players on a major stage.”
Rachel Kuehn hasn’t had nearly as much experience as her Wake Forest teammate when it comes to playing in majors, but she does know what it’s like to battle against the Tour’s most talented. The now 22-year-old played in the 2023 Amundi Evian Championship last July, and while she ultimately missed the cut at Evian Resort Golf Club, it was an invaluable glimpse behind the curtain for the aspiring professional golfer.
“I had a great experience at Evian. I didn't play great, but being around the best players in the world was so special,” said Kuehn. “To go out and get a chance to play for an exemption into another major is a really cool opportunity for everyone in the field. It gives you a chance to evaluate where you are and where you want to go.
“Like my parents harped on when I was growing up, every experience, you should never take it for granted. When I was playing in the Evian, I tried my hardest to soak it all in and enjoy the week and learn from everyone that I got to play practice rounds and tournament rounds with. You don't know how often that's going to happen and how many chances you're gonna get to play in major championships.”
Currently sitting in a tie for second at 3-under with 18 holes at Augusta National Golf Club left to play, 16-year-old Gianna Clemente will be contending on Saturday in Georgia as she works to add the Augusta National Women’s Amateur title to her laundry list of incredible achievements.
As a 14-year-old in 2022, she Monday qualified for three straight LPGA Tour events and has played in one additional LPGA Tour tournament and two Epson Tour events since that same year, gaining plenty of knowledge about the professional ranks very early on in her young career. And she’ll lean on some of that experience as she works to win a title on Saturday at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.
“It’s very important,” Clemente said when asked if she’ll rely upon her past success against professionals in the final round. “It can be a little bit intimidating. Obviously, Augusta National is very intimidating. Just reminding myself that I've been in these situations before, and I felt these nerves before. It's really important to draw some confidence off that.”
But having yet to play in a major championship, a goal that every little girl dreams of accomplishing when they pick up a golf club for the first time, Clemente’s eyes sparkled with anticipation at the mention of the opportunity to earn four LPGA Tour major exemptions with a victory. And having already had a taste of what it’s like to play on the biggest stage in women’s golf, you can be sure that Clemente will be doing everything she can on Saturday to make her dream a reality and find herself in the Chevron Championship in just a couple of weeks.
“It would be an honor. I would absolutely love to do that. Obviously, I have a lot of work ahead of me still left to make that happen,” said Clemente. “I've played in three LPGA events, and none of them were majors, but it was such good experience. I had a great time in all of them, and it was just so fun. I would love to be able to do that again.”
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