Maria Jose Marin knew something great would happen at Augusta National’s 12th hole. The 19-year-old Colombian was in the middle of playing Amen Corner unscathed when her tee shot on the par-3 12th came up short of the green and slowly started rolling back towards Rae’s Creek. Then it stopped on the grass that wasn’t quite short enough to be an unwanted ramp into the water. The wind had tricked her, but she got a break.
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“I think it’s a miracle that my ball stayed there,” Marin said. “I just kind of have to make par and walk away out of here because this just happens once.”
Marin did get up and down for par at 12 and shot a final-round four-under-par 68 for a come-from-behind win in the seventh Augusta National Women’s Amateur. She opened with rounds of 65 and 69 at Champions Retreat and set a record for the lowest score in championship history at 14-under. Marin’s playing partner for the day, Spain’s Andrea Revuelta, was the solo runner-up while being in a group of five players at the top of the board who shot 68.
Star amateur Asterisk Talley had a one-shot lead heading into the final round and played well to maintain that lead through 10 holes. Then the 17-year-old made a bogey on the 11th (her first bogey in the tournament) and a shocking 7 on the 12th when she twice hit into the water out of the back greenside bunker. (The Californian ended up shooting 75 and tying for fourth at eight-under.)
All of a sudden, Marin had a four-shot lead, and she secured a win in one of the most prestigious events in amateur golf. Beyond her good fortune at 12, the 19-year-old birdied the par-5 13th, suffered a bogey at the par-5 15th, and bounced back with a birdie at the par-3 16th.
The reigning NCAA champion out of Arkansas said she felt like she’d won it with her play at Amen Corner.
Maria Jose Marin plays her second shot from the bank in front of the 12th green. [David Cannon]
“One of the signs was the ball staying on that ridge on 12,” Marin said. “I’ve never seen a ball stay there, and I think it was just God holding the ball there, like, ‘Don’t move. This is happening for something.’ I think getting into the green on 13 [in two shots to make birdie], that was another sign. I stayed out of my strategy, and it worked out perfect.”
When Marin made the winning putt on the 18th hole, she raised her right arm. She’d been smiling a lot during her round at Augusta. Then there were lots of hugs and tears with her family, coaches and friends.
She made the victorious walk from the 18th to the clubhouse with her arm around her 10-year-old brother, Emilio.
“It meant a lot,” Emilio said. “She was spectacular.”
Emilio is a golfer as well, and it was as much a win for him and the entire Marin family. Farah O’Keefe, a University of Texas golfer who missed the cut but was a fan on Saturday, hugged Emilio and said, “Congratulations, little man.”
It’s a win for Colombians and the golf community, and some of those fans carried mini flags of their home country. Marin, who is part Mexican as well, was proud to become the first Colombian – man or woman – to win at Augusta. She is the third consecutive foreign player to win the ANWA title, with England’s Lottie Woad winning in 2024 and Spain’s Carla Bernat Escuder last year.
Maria Jose Marin with her father Jose Marin after winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. [Hector Vivas]
“Representing Columbia will always be the greatest pride I have,” Marin said. “Knowing I have their full support makes my heart warm and means the world to me.”
Along with Bernat Escuder being on hand to cheer for her, there was tour pro Maria Fassi, a fellow Arkansas alum and mentor (who finished second in the first ANWA in 2019), and Razorbacks coach Shauna Taylor. When the round was over, Bernat Escuder wasn’t so sure Marin got her due after winning the 2025 NCAA Championship as a sophomore. She joins Jennifer Kupcho (2019) and Rose Zhang (2023) as an NCAA and ANWA champions.
“It’s very cool to see her win,” Bernat Escuder said. “After she won the NCAAs, she didn’t get any major invites that I thought she should’ve. She works very hard, and it’s cool to see another Spanish speaker win here.”
Marin won’t be ignored after winning ANWA, a title that could change her career. She earned automatic exemptions into four professional majors this year – the Chevron Championship, US Women’s Open, AIG Women’s Open and Evian Championship.
Those photos of her smiling around the course and kissing the championship trophy will last forever, too. It was a dream realised, one that truly took shape when she came to the US for the summer to play in five junior events as a 14-year-old. Fast forward to a win at Augusta five years later.
“My emotions the whole round were a roller-coaster. I didn’t start that solid. I was looking at the leaderboard, and Asterisk was already making a move,” Marin said. “But I just reminded myself that I had to stay really, really patient because anything can happen out here. When that last putt sank in, I just thought to myself, ‘Well, I made it. All of my hard work has paid off, and I’m just extremely proud of myself.’”
Her comeback was a lesson in perseverance. She played in three previous ANWA tournaments, but hadn’t played well at Augusta National. She shot 76 and 78 in 2023 and 2024, respectively, and missed the cut last year. One of the things that changed was her caddie, Darren Woo. He’s a local firefighter and caddied for Marin in a recent practice round Champions Retreat. She used him instead of her dad, Jose, as she had in years past. Then there was her approach to the tournament.
“Of course I was nervous today, but I was extremely nervous my last three times that I played here,” Marin said. “My golf was in a good spot, but it was not like I was totally in control of it. I think I just got a little desperate in past years trying to force things out here, and that’s one of the things that you can’t do here. You can’t force things. You just have to just be smart, stick to your strategy, and let the birdies come.”
She made six birdies on Saturday, including four on the front nine.
“This is only going to help me boost my confidence. I think every time I’m having a hard time or kind of a low in my golf, just remind myself that I was able to do this and I was able to overcome all the pressure,” Marin said. “That means winning at Augusta. And just using it in my favor to just keep working hard and never giving up.
“As I said yesterday, inspiring younger generations for me is always going to be my main goal, and all of the little girls and little boys watching me back home, it’s great to have them watching because that’s what I wanted to accomplish one day.”
