Japan's Nakayama (66) Leads After First Round of 76th U.S. Girls' Junior

Rinka Nakayama, 16, of Japan, recorded a 5-under 66 on Monday morning to take the solo lead after the first round of the 2025 U.S. Girls’ Junior at Atlanta Athletic Club’s Riverside Course in Johns Creek, Ga. 

Playing in the first group off No. 10, Nakayama completed her outward nine bogey free, tallying three birdies prior to making the turn and recording one more on the par-4 2nd (her 11th), before stumbling with her only blemish of the day, a bogey, on No. 4. 

Unfazed, the Japanese junior parred the next hole and then hit what she described as the highlight shot of the day at the par-3 6th, sticking a 7-iron to two feet and tapping in for a fifth birdie. Nakayama closed her inward nine with another birdie on the seventh and two more pars on No. 8 and 9, finishing her first round in a USGA championship as the solo leader.

“I struggled off the tee, hitting my driver all over the place, but my approach play was very good,” said Nakayama, who’s still adjusting to golf in the United States. “The grass here is different from Japan, and it’s easy for [the ball] to sink, so I practiced my approach shots so that I could put spin on the ball, even when it is stuck.”

Xingtong Chen fired a 4-under 67 in what was her first competitive golf round in the United States outside of June’s 18-hole qualifier, where she shot a 72 in Eureka, Missouri, to earn medalist honors. The 16-year-old Singaporean finished the first round T-2, with a bogey-free outward nine Monday that featured three birdies. Chen would notch two more on hole No. 10 and No. 13 before bogeying the par-4 15th and closing with pars on her final three holes.

“My putting was really good today, it helped me a lot. The last few weeks it has felt like it is lipping out every time, even when I thought I hit it close,” said Chen. “This is my first time in the United States – to be able to qualify this year and come play has been a great experience.”

Heat was a noticeable factor throughout the day, with temperatures peaking at 96 degrees and the heat index surpassing 100 for most of the afternoon. While there aren’t exactly cool mornings in Atlanta during the month of July, players who drew morning tee times trended more positively than their counterparts in the hotter afternoon wave – with one exception in Sophie Han, of Hong Kong. 

Han, an incoming freshman at the University of Oregon, matched Chen’s 67 with five birdies and a single bogey of her own, and her 4-under total was the lowest round by a player teeing off in the afternoon by two strokes. 

“I had some memorable moments on holes nine and three, a few long putts there, and it made things a lot easier for me,” said Han. “I am going to try my best to enjoy this week because I know that this will be my last Girls’ Junior. I have a lot of hope and a lot of things I want to achieve this year.” 

Among those off in the morning, Americans Nikki Oh and Mia Clausen finished the first round tied for third at 3-under 68. Oh, 16, who competes on the U.S. National Junior Team, was even-par through 9 despite bogeys on No. 4 and No. 9, then kept a clean scorecard on her way in, with birdies on both of AAC’s outward nine par 5s and the par-4 13th.

Asterisk Talley, last year’s runner-up and the highest-ranked player in the field, shot an even par 71 and sits T-16.

What's Next

The second and final round of stroke play will take place on Tuesday, beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET off the first and 10th tees. Following the round, the field will be cut to the low 64 scorers for match play, which begins on Wednesday. A playoff, if necessary, to decide the final spots is scheduled for late Tuesday afternoon, daylight permitting. Match play continues from Wednesday until Saturday’s 36-hole championship match. Admission is free and spectators are encouraged to attend.

Notable

• 17-year-old Victoria Richani became the first player representing Lebanon to compete in the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship and is T-56 after shooting 3-over 74, currently within the match play cut line.
• Grace Lee hit the championship’s opening tee shot. From Suwanee, Ga., located just a few miles away from Atlanta Athletic Club, Lee recently led the Lambert High School girls golf team to a state title alongside GaEun Athena Yoo, who is also competing at AAC this week.
• Aliisa Helminen, who earned an exemption into this year’s championship by winning the Wisconsin Junior Girls Championship and shot 5-over in the first round, is the daughter of Ryan Helminen, a two-time Wisconsin State Open champion who competed in the 2025 U.S. Senior Open Championship at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colo., last month.
• The championship’s youngest competitor, Bella Simoes, of Lake Worth Florida, teed it up at just 11 years, 11 months and 11 days old. She shot a 3-over 74 and is currently within the match play cut line.
• Aubrey Hilgers, 15, of Surprise, Ariz., recorded an ace on the par-3 8th using a 7-iron. Hilgers, who was set on using 8-iron, went back and forth on club choice with 1992 U.S. Amateur Public Links champion Warren Schutte, her caddie this week, who convinced her to take the longer club. 
• Former GB&I Curtis Cup competitor Holly Clyburn is looping for 16-year-old Alejandra Botaya, of Mexico.
• Chloe Kovelesky, who was named to the inaugural U.S. National Junior Team in 2024 and now competes for Wake Forest University, has assistant women’s golf coach Ryan Potter on the bag, and USNDP Grant Recipient Avery Schartz is serving as caddie this week for sister Emerie Schartz. The sister duo from Wichita, Kan., competed in the 2025 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball together at Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club, falling in the Round of 32.

Quotable

• “Just the experience. Knowing that I can compete against the best juniors and having more USGA experience is really helpful.” – Nikki Oh on how past experience in the championship has helped her prepare for this week
• “I felt the greens were speeding up a bit, especially on my back nine. The wind was manageable today, but the greens were definitely firmer in the afternoon. My focus was on hitting greens, staying consistent and being patient. You couldn’t attack a lot of the pins, so I just played my own game and took it shot by shot.” - Arianna Lau on the difference between playing in the morning and afternoon waves
• “This is such a great tournament, and I was so excited to come. The experience was amazing, and I’m just really happy to be here. I’m looking forward to having fun this week and playing such a great course.” - Grace Carter on what it means to compete in her first USGA championship
• “I feel like it’s positive and it shows me that I can go all the way in a USGA event. I would say it helps here because match play rounds in any format help in preparation for this.” - Natalie Yen on how winning the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball is helping her this week
• “Just playing it before gave me an idea of what this tournament would be like. I feel a little more experienced now, and I have a lot of friends here, so it has just been fun to be out here. It is just a great course, and everything about the event has been so great.” - Mia Clausen on how her 2023 championship debut helped her prepare for the championship
• “Honestly, I’m really looking forward to trying some fast food in America. We actually tried Wingstop. That was pretty cool, but I want to try more of the different flavors.” – Rachel Lee, of Australia, on what she is most looking forward to during her first week in the United States