ANWA runner-up Asterisk Talley has talent for LPGA right now, but she wants college golf
ANWA runner-up Asterisk Talley has talent for LPGA right now, but she wants college golf
AUGUSTA, Ga. — Asterisk Talley didn't see the ball drop when she holed out for eagle on the opening hole of Augusta National Golf Club. But the crowd told the story. The 16-year-old raised both hands to the sky in a rare outward celebration.
'Even as her dad I can't tell if she's happy or sad,' said her father, James, earlier in the week at Champions Retreat. 'You don't see her out there fist-pumping. I was like, was that good or was it bad? I don't know. It's always on the same plane.'
California's Talley, whose name means 'little star' in Greek, came up one stroke shy in her second Augusta National Women's Amateur despite birdies on two of the last three holes. A winner at the U.S. Women's Amateur Four-Ball and a finalist in two USGA championships last year – U.S. Women's Amateur and U.S. Girls' Junior – she's been awfully close to a Rose Zhang-like resume at an even younger age.
LPGA and World Golf Hall of Famer member Beth Daniel captained Talley at last year's Junior Solheim Cup and called her talent off the charts.
'She has an unbelievable amount of drive to win,' said Daniel, "and you don't see that in a lot of players. That comes along every once in a while.'
Talley has the game to compete on the LPGA right now. She has the length, level-headedness and willingness to learn and work that's required to be successful at the next level.
A year ago, she came to Augusta and told the press that her goal was to get to the pro ranks as quickly as possible.
'To be the No. 1,' she said.
Now, after she's had even more national success and exposure, she's singing a different tune. She wants to go to college.
'I think it's going to be a great experience for me,' said Talley, after a closing 68 in her second ANWA appearance. 'I think it would give me a chance to have a team all the time. I love team play, and I love that environment, and I think it's going to give me a great experience.'
Talley took down World No. 1 Lottie Woad in singles play at the Curtis Cup last summer and helped lead Team USA to victory at the Junior Solheim.
Her father reports she loves school and carries a 4.3 GPA. While many of her peers do school online, Talley goes to class five days a week from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Chowchilla High School. She has friends who have no idea what she does when she travels.
Talley might be mature beyond her years inside the ropes, but she's just a normal 16-year-old in her everyday life. While many in the field at the Sage Valley Invitational stayed on in Georgia for an extra week before the ANWA, Talley flew back to California in between events to get to class.
At last year's U.S. Women's Open at Lancaster Country Club, Talley found herself in contention early in the week after rounds of 70 and 71 and was an immediate media darling.
'When she gave that great interview at the U.S. Open that everyone loved, I'm being serious, I don't know that kid,' her father deadpanned. 'I pick her up from school and try to get information from her – if it isn't a yes or no answer she can give back, I get zero.'
James, a correction officer who's been on a steep learning curve of late, said he only learned about the World Amateur Golf Ranking about eight months ago. He gets peppered with questions about Asterisk's future and likes the idea of her going to college, pointing to the route Zhang took of going for at least a couple years.
'I don't think any hurt can come from it,' said James. 'If she wants to go hit the tour, it's always going to be there, but college is not.'
People used to tell Zhang college golf would ruin her. She hated that.
'I wanted to push myself to the limit,' she said on the eve of her 2023 Augusta National Women's Amateur victory.
A small number of LPGA stars won on the tour as teenagers – Paula Creamer, Morgan Pressel, Lexi Thompson, Lydia Ko, Ariya Jutanugarn, Brooke Henderson. Talley's trajectory is on a similar path. It's possible she could win at the next level before she even steps foot inside a college classroom but, as of now, she has options.
There's an independence, a sense of self that's developed in college that can't be found on tour amidst an entourage that always includes parents.
Michelle Wie West famously turned pro and then went back to college to find it.
Talley said she hasn't a clue how much she's grown in the past year, but her father said she's shot up 4 inches in eight months.
She may not have won at Augusta National, but there's no question to those paying attention that she's the next big thing.
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