Litchfield Park native Ashley Shaw secured a spot on the LPGA Tour, where she will compete against the world’s top female golfers following her victory at The John Shippen Cognizant Cup on Monday.
Ashley Shaw, a 15-year-old from Litchfield Park, Arizona, showcased her skills at the Upper Montclair Country Club in Clifton, N.J. She clinched the John Shippen Cognizant Cup with a one-over par 73, triumphing by a two-stroke lead on Monday.
Securing victory in the tournament granted the teenager a place on the LPGA Tour, where she is set to compete in the upcoming Cognizant Founders Cup this weekend. The tournament will take place at the prestigious Upper Montclair Country Club, courtesy of a sponsor’s exemption.
The 15-year-old will compete against the top female golfers globally, such as Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko, Jin Young Ko, and over two dozen others who have triumphed in major tournaments on the LPGA Tour.
“I’m extremely grateful for this opportunity that THE JOHN SHIPPEN, Intersport and Sommer Woods has given me to play in this event,” Shaw said in a press release. “To have the opportunity to play in an LPGA event is amazing. To be just 15 and to be able to have that experience of playing in a tournament with professionals at such a young age … I’m extremely grateful.”
Shaw clinched victory in the eight-player Cognizant Cup, triumphing as the sole amateur golfer amidst the field. Despite facing challenges early on with a bogey and double bogey on the eighth and ninth holes, respectively, she reached the halfway mark with a score of three over par.
Yet, she birdied the 10th and 11th holes, and subsequently parred the final seven holes to secure the tournament victory, triumphing over Mariah Stackhouse from Atlanta, aged 30, and Georgia Oboh from England, aged 23, by a margin of two strokes.
Shaw will mark her LPGA debut on Mother’s Day weekend following her victory in a tournament where her mom, Sylvia, supported her as a caddy.
“I’m blessed,” Sylvia Shaw said. “I’m excited and am a very proud mom. Ashley works very hard, and to see her experience the hard work coming to fruition is remarkable.”
Even at the age of 15, Shaw’s performance is garnering significant recognition.
In 2022, when she was 13, she caught the eye of Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry, who is an avid golfer.
Shaw became a member of a novel junior golf circuit known as The Underrated Tour, with the mission of promoting fairness and inclusivity in the sport.
She emerged victorious in the inaugural girls’ division of the Curry Cup, providing her with the opportunity to meet the tournament’s eponym.
“I found it funny when I walked up to the tee box, he was like, ‘Hi, I’m Steph,'” Shaw told AJGA.org in 2022. “And I was like, do you really need an introduction?”
Securing victory in the Curry Cup granted Shaw the opportunity to participate in the prestigious Hilton Grand Vacations ANNIKA Invitational. There, she had the privilege of meeting Annika Sorenstam, one of the most esteemed female golfers in history.
Now, her performance will be observed by the current stars of the game, whom Shaw aspires to succeed in the coming years.
Shaw currently holds the 194th position in the American Junior Golf Association rankings. Her ascent began after achieving a tied 11th position in the Jim Click Automotive/HSL Properties Championship in Tucson in May 2023, a tournament she triumphed in during 2022.
Since then, she achieved various rankings in different golf championships: tied for 132nd in the 2023 Girl’s Junior PGA Championship in August 2023, tied for 30th in the Joanne Winter Arizona Silver Belle Championship in December 2023, secured 5th place in the Mizuno West Coast Classic on March 14, tied for 16th in the Sacramento Junior Championship on March 28, and landed in 3rd place in the Mesa Hohokams Junior All-Star on May 2.
Shaw started competing in AJGA tournaments in 2021 and is set to travel to London as an ambassador for the Underrated Golf Tour. This event marks the tour’s inaugural tournament in Europe, scheduled for late May.
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