EVANS, Ga. — On a day of record-low scoring at Champions Retreat in the first round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, Stanford junior Megha Ganne shot nine-under 63, the lowest round in the six-year history of the championship, to take the early lead. Ganne bested the previous record (65) set by former Stanford teammate and 2023 ANWA champion Rose Zhang. What’s more, it was Ganne’s lowest competitive round of her life.
She saw it coming. Well, sort of.
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“I had a feeling I was gonna go low today, but not this low, so I’m just trying to enjoy it,” said Ganne, 21, who is making her fifth appearance in the ANWA after competing four times at Augusta National in the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals. “I feel like sometimes you can think and talk things into existence, so I just kept telling myself the story that I want to see today. I think that visualizing is really helpful to me, and I try to do that.”
Talk about calling your shot. Ganne, a native of Holmdel, N.J., about 45 minutes south of New York City, began her round on the 10th hole at Champions Retreat and made seven birdies, one eagle and no bogeys. In her four previous starts in this championship, she finished T-9, T-20, with two missed cuts.
The golf world was first introduced to Ganne during her breakout performance at the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open at The Olympic Club. Ganne, who was 17-year-old high school senior at the time, grabbed a share of the first-round lead and ultimately found herself in the final grouping on Sunday with Lexi Thompson and eventual champion Yuka Saso. Though Ganne fell back slightly to finish T-14, she earned low amateur honors.
Throughout the week, though, it was her jovial presence with media and fans that stood out as much as her talent. That good-hearted nature continues this week in Georgia, where she played her first round as part of a twosome after 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur and Girls’ Junior champion Rianne Malixi withdrew prior of Wednesday’s start. Waiting before nearly every shot on the threesomes in front, Ganne took the break in stride with help from caddie and Stanford assistant women’s golf coach Brooke Riley.
“It’s hard to be in a flow and feel, like you hit a wall every shot,” said Ganne, who is one of eight Stanford players in the field this week. “I just tried to stay loose, stay chatting, and talk through it. Brooke was telling me about a random word game she played with her friend a few weeks ago, and they both on the second try guessed the word fermentation after randomly saying words.”
Ganne, who is currently ranked 12th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, is in the midst of a stellar junior campaign with the Cardinal, which, if you’ve been following college golf, is not a surprise considering the Cardinal women’s team have won every single tournament they have entered so far this season. Ganne earned her second collegiate victory in October in Hawaii at the Nanea Invitational, and her worst finish is a tie for 11th.
The solo leader and the lowest round in Augusta National Women’s Amateur history. #ANWAgolf pic.twitter.com/ZgwIK5TNRy
— Augusta National Women's Amateur (@anwagolf) April 2, 2025
The strong season comes after being forced to take some time away from the game last summer to deal with a hip and back injury. After playing in the U.S. Women’s Open in June, Ganne didn’t play another event until mid-October. In fact, the time away may have served her game well.
“It was actually a really fun reset and a fun summer, so I’m not too bummed about it. But I’m feeling a lot better now,” she said. “I went to Madrid with one of my teammates, Paula [Martin Sampedro], who’s from Spain, so it was fun.”
Now healthy after rehabbing and strengthening her hip, Ganne appears to be peaking at the perfect time, with not only this championship this week but with college postseason to soon follow. And for her, there’s no better place to shoot the lowest competitive round of her life.
“I think it’s the most exciting week in amateur golf, men’s or women’s, period,” she said. “I think everyone in golf knows about it. They might not know about certain other tournaments, but when this one’s happening, people tune in. … These women carry themselves in such a great way. I’m really excited to see where the tournament goes, although I don’t think it can get that much better than it is now.”
Ganne will tee off in the second round at Champions Retreat at 9:55 a.m. ET on Thursday. After a practice round at Augusta National on Friday, the top 30 players and ties will compete in the final round at Augusta on Saturday.
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
