Asterisk Talley Wins Girls Division, Lunden Esterline the Boys at 49th Junior PGA Championships

Dreams became reality for the winners of the 49th Junior PGA Championships held this week at Purdue University’s Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex. 

And while they both found themselves hoisting trophies on Friday, the two champions had very different paths to the winners’ circle. Asterisk Talley battled to the very end to win the Girls Division while Lunden Esterline cruised to a six-shot victory among the Boys.

The Girls Division came down to the final putt on the Ackerman-Allen Course, with Talley (12-under 273) winning by one shot over Zoe Cusack after the two battled near the top of the leaderboard for three-straight days. 

“It means a lot just coming so close in the past and just grinding it out until the end,” Talley said after hoisting the championship trophy. “It felt good to make that putt at the last hole and to not have to do a playoff.”

It appeared there would be no playoff at first because Cusack, not Talley, approached the 18th tee with a two-stroke lead. Then Talley sunk a 2-foot putt for birdie while Cusack double bogeyed, and a three-point swing gave Talley the outright win after 72 holes.

“We were both playing really well,” Talley said of her playing partner. “She was making some putts early today and I knew I would have to grind it out at the end. That's kind of just what I did.”

Talley, the No. 14-ranked female amateur in the world, led by two entering the final round, but it was Cusack who struck first Friday, opening with back-to-back birdies to move into a tie. Talley answered with a birdie on the 3rd to move back ahead by one, a lead she maintained at the turn. 

Cusack kicked off her back-nine with a birdie-bogey-birdie stretch on holes 10-12 to tie Talley once again, and then immediately birdied the par-3, 137-yard 13th to take her first lead of the day. Cusack’s lead got as large as three shots after Talley bogeyed 14 and 15, but it was Talley’s birdie on the par-5 16th, followed by both players’ bogeys on the par-3 17th that led to Friday’s dramatic finish on 18. 

“It was a grind all day,” said Talley, a rising junior from Chowchilla, California. “I didn't make a lot of mistakes. I made two bogeys, but I only made three birdies, so it was tough out there. I just didn't make a lot of putts. I wasn't that close to the hole on every hole. Just tried to grind it out until the end and not make many mistakes.”

“It was really fun,” added Cusack, a rising senior from Potomac, Maryland. “I played pretty well except for the last hole, but it was a great competition and a great experience.”

California’s Anna Fang and Washington’s Cienna Lee fired off the two low scores of the final round, 6-under 65 and 7-under 64, respectively, to jump up the leaderboard into a tie for third. China’s Ying Xu joined the pair at 9-under 276.

In the Boys Division, Esterline entered the final round at 19-under with a seven-stroke lead and only one bogey on his card back on Tuesday. All he needed to win Friday was to play steady and hope no one made a massive charge up the leaderboard. 

The Andover, Kansas, native took care of the first part, shooting an even-par 71 with three pars against three bogeys to finish at 19-under 266. 

“It means so much, it's hard to even put into words,” said Esterline. “I'm still trying to comprehend this whole thing. I didn't putt quite as well as I had the last few days, but I'd also putted out of my mind the last couple of days, so I wasn't expecting that again.”

The rest of the field did not make it easy for him. Giuseppe Puebla fired off a bogey-free 7-under 64 to jump 16 spots on the leaderboard to finish tied for second with Tyler Mawhinney, the only boy with four rounds under 70. Their scores of 13-under 272 might win most events, but this week the pair of Floridians finished six strokes off the lead.  

“I think it's just trying to stay steady throughout the round,” Esterline said on playing with a large lead. “I didn't look at the leaderboard for the first time until I think hole 9. I just tried to avoid looking at that and just stay within myself, play my own game.”

Playing in the final group with Florida’s Charlie Woods and North Carolina’s Pennson Badgett, Esterline was followed by a large crowd all day. Although many of those fans may have initially come to see Woods, who finished T-9 at 9-under 276, they also witnessed the rise of a new young star in Esterline. 

“I kind of enjoyed [the crowd] because when you hit a good shot, it's more rewarding and you hear all these claps,” Esterline said. 

Badgett (even-par 71) finished tied for fourth at 12-under 273 with California’s Ayden Fynaut (1-under 70) and China’s Zenghao Hou (1-under 70). 

In addition to winning the Junior PGA Championships, Talley and Esterline secured their spots on the 2025 U.S. Junior Ryder Cup Team, which will take on the European squad September 23-25 in New York. Play will begin at Nassau Country Club before moving to Bethpage Black for the final day as the juniors will showcase their skills on the same course that will host the pros when the Ryder Cup begins the following day on September 26.

“So excited,” said Talley. “It's always fun getting to rep the USA, especially with friends. It's going to be super fun at Bethpage.”

“It means a ton,” added Esterline. “Representing your country is a thing that people work their whole life for. It’s a huge accomplishment.”

Cusack will also be on the U.S. Team after her runner-up finish in the Girls Division. 

“It means a lot,” she said. “This is a great country, so to be able to represent it is super special.”

On the Boys side, Puebla and Mawhinney finished in a tie for second place and both will make the U.S. Junior Ryder Cup Team. With Mawhinney already qualified for the team based on the points list, the typical playoff spot for the runner-up spot was not needed.  

“I think through probably like 15 or 16 holes is when I really started to think about the spot on the team,” said Puebla. “Now that I finally secured a spot on the team, it's really amazing. I can't even express it, to represent the U.S. with a bunch of my friends, it should be fun.”

“I think that's everyone's dream, to play for your country and it means a lot doing it at Bethpage,” added Mawhinney.

The full U.S. Junior Ryder Cup Team, captained by PGA of America Past President and Master Professional Suzy Whaley, will be announced next week and include six girls and six boys.

Taylor Snively (Zionsville, Indiana), who led the girls after the first round, finished in a tie for 29th overall in the division at 1-over 286.

Sam Carraher (Crown Point, Indiana), who is committed to play for host Purdue University’s golf team, finished seventh overall in the Boys Division at 11-under 274.

Additional final results for Indiana players include: Luke Johnston (Evansville, Indiana), T-20 at 6-under 279; Silas Haarer (Middlebury, Indiana), T-20 at 6-under 279; and Samuel Harris (Charlestown, Indiana), T-32 at 1-over 286.

For more information about the Junior PGA Championships, visit JuniorPGAChampionship.com and follow on X and Instagram.