Rianne Malixi touched all of it off after which capped it in historic fashion. A 3-week stretch that had the entire world suddenly taking a look at the Philippines as a rising golf power.
The euphoria over a ladies pair that performed exceptionally well on the Paris Olympics golf competition has yet to die down on Sunday when the 17-year-old Malixi ruled the US Women’s Amateur championship—considered one of the oldest and most prestigious events on the planet—that had her occupying a special place in the game’s history.
No other greats in the ladies’s game apart from South Korea’s Eun Jeong Seong in 2016 has achieved what the prodigious Filipino did in a 22-day span as she became just the second player to ever win that event and the US Girls’ Junior in the identical 12 months.
“It feels so surreal straight away,” Malixi told Cameron Jourdan of golfweek.usatoday.com, because the Filipino went 12-0 in those two match play events, with two of those victories coming within the finals over Asterisk Talley, a 15-year-old Californian touted by plenty of experts to be a future international force.
“It’s just an honor.”
After Malixi won the junior title, Bianca Pagdanganan and Dottie Ardina also brought honor to the country after placing fourth and joint thirteenth, respectively, at Le Golf National in France just the day before, because the Philippines has never had this much success in a string in a sport that pales in popularity in comparison with basketball, and recently, volleyball.
Jourdan wrote raves on Malixi, who has committed to go to Duke next 12 months, the following step in her preparation to make the Ladies Skilled Golf Association (LPGA) full time.
Rianne Malixi hits a picture-perfect drive on the fourth hole of her final match against Asterisk Talley. —PHOTO COURTESY OF USGA
“I really like Asterisk,” said Malixi in the identical article. “Developing a relationship together with her has just been so awesome. She’s just an awesome player and an awesome person as well.”
Only eight players in history have won each United States Golf Association (USGA) events, with Rose Zhang the last to accomplish that completing her double in 2021 when she won the women title, a 12 months after winning the ladies’s crown.
“Just 22 days. I mean, it feels so surreal straight away. Just every part just got here in so quickly,” Malixi was quoted by golf.com’s Jack Hirsh.
This effectively is the fifth major victory for Malixi this 12 months counting victories in Australia, South Korea and Japan.
Norman Sto. Domingo, Malixi’s coach since she was 11, is clearly very happy with what his ward has achieved this 12 months.
“She really deserves every part that she gets,” Domingo told the Inquirer over the phone. “I haven’t seen anyone who works as hard on her game as she does. Easy incomparable.”
Future plans
Sto. Domingo bared among the things that he and Malixi have talked about, especially about her plans in earning a full LPGA card by the point she’s 20.
“Duke gave her the most effective offer,” the coach bared. “The varsity has given her the choice to play for them for just two years after which opt out, and after that, the varsity will proceed to support her in her quest to make the LPGA.
“No other school gave her a proposal that might even come near that,” Sto. Domingo said as Malixi turned down scholarship offers from a minimum of 13 other prestigious universities counting Stanford and UCLA.
“That’s her plan. It’s not forged in stone, but she has mentioned that to me,” Sto. Domingo said. INQ
