Darling, Rydqvist Set to Compete at ANWA Wednesday

AUGUSTA, Ga. – All-Americans Hannah Darling and Louise Rydqvist are set to compete in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur this week. Darling is making her third appearance in the prestigious event while Rydqvist will be making her debut.

Darling is slotted No. 19 in the latest World Amateur Golf Rankings while Rydqvist is No. 45.

Competitors will play 36 holes at Champions Retreat Golf Club on Wednesday and Thursday. There will be a cut after 36 holes with the top-30 and ties advancing to the final round, which will take place at Augusta National Golf Club on Saturday after a practice round on Friday. In the event of a tie after 54 holes, the winner will be decided by sudden-death playoff.

Tickets for the final round were made available in advance via an application process. No tickets will be available at the gates.

Rounds one and two will be brodacst live from 1:30-3:30 p.m. (ET) on Golf Channel. NBC Sports will produce and broadcast three hours of live final-round coverage Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. Additionally, Golf Channel’s “Live From the Masters” will commence on Friday, April 5 at Augusta National to provide coverage of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals and the Masters Tournament.

Rydqvist is the seventh different Gamecock to compete in the event since its inception in 2019. The list includes the following:

• Ainhoa Olarra – 2019 (T-12th)

• Pauline Roussin-Bouchard – 2021 (T-3rd)

• Ana Pelaez – 2021(T-12th)

• Paula Kirner – 2021(missed cut)

• Pimnipa Panthong – 2021 (missed cut)

• Hannah Darling – 2022 (T-27th) ; 2023 (missed cut) ; 2024

• Louise Rydqvist – 2024

The field for the 2024 Championship consists of the following players based on the following qualifications:

1. Reigning U.S. Women’s Amateur Champion
2. Reigning Women’s Amateur Champion
3. Reigning Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific Champion
4. Reigning R&A Girls Amateur Champion
5. Reigning U.S. Girls’ Junior Champion
6. Reigning Girls Junior PGA Champion
7. Reigning NCAA Division I Women’s Individual Champion
8. Past champions of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur within the last five years
9. The 30 highest ranked players from the United States of America based on the prior year’s (2023) final Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking, not otherwise qualified
10. After qualifications 1-8 above, the 30 highest ranked players not otherwise qualified, as listed on the prior year’s (2023) final Women’s World Amateur Ranking
11. Players receiving special invitations from the Augusta National Women’s Amateur Committee

The ANWA was announced on Wednesday, April 4, 2018, by Chairman Fred Ridley during his annual press conference at the Masters Tournament. The event was established to inspire greater interest and participation in the women’s game by creating a new, exciting and rewarding pathway for these players to fulfill their dreams.

Jennifer Kupcho, the world’s top-ranked amateur, played her final six holes in five under par, including an eagle on the par-five 13th at Augusta National, to become the champion of the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in 2019. The 2020 championship was canceled due to the effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Seventeen-year-old Tsubasa Kajitani became the first international ANWA champion and the first winner from Japan at Augusta National in any tournament with her playoff victory over Wake Forest’s Emilia Migliaccio in 2021. In 2022, 16-year-old Anna Davis became the youngest champion after a three-under-par 69 in the final round at Augusta National. In 2023, after two and a half years as the No. 1 amateur in the world, Rose Zhang defeated Jenny Bae in a two-hole playoff.

Provided she remain an amateur, the 2024 Augusta National Women’s Amateur Champion will receive an invitation to the next five Augusta National Women’s Amateurs, the 2024 U.S. Women’s Open, the 2024 Women’s Open, the 2024 Chevron Championship, the 2024 Evian Championship and any USGA, R&A and PGA of America amateur championships for which she is eligible for one year.

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