Maria Jose Marin Makes History in Win at Augusta National Women's Amateur

AUGUSTA, Ga. – One year after missing the cut at the 2025 Augusta National Women’s Amateur, Arkansas golfer Maria José Marin will return to Fayetteville as the seventh champion of the prestigious event held at Augusta National Golf Club.

José Marin hoisted the trophy thanks to a tournament record-low score of 14-under par (65-69-68), four shots better than the rest of the 72-person field. She is the first Razorback and SEC golfer and the first South American to win at ANWA.

How it Happened

The Cali, Colombia native entered Saturday’s final round at 10-under and tied for second with Stanford’s Meja Örtengren, two shots back of Cardinal commit Astersik Talley at 12-under. Örtengren and Talley made up the final pairing.

José Marin teed off second to last at 10:50 a.m. local time with Stanford’s Andrea Revuelta, who started the round at 6-under. The duo each birdied Nos. 2, 5 and 7 and were each 2-under on the day headed into the ninth hole.

Still two shots back of Talley (-14), who started her round with three birdies in her first four holes, and in solo second after Örtengren (-10) double-bogeyed No. 7, José Marin started her charge at No. 9 with an eight-foot putt for birdie after using the green’s backstop on her approach shot on the par-4.

José Marin made the turn at 13-under, one back of Talley and in second with four birdies in her pocket.

After her second shot on the par-4 10th hole missed the green, José Marin’s momentum into the second nine looked to be short-lived, but an impressive 15-foot par save kept her on the chase to the top as Talley parred the ninth hole.

José Marin escaped the par-4 eleventh hole with a tap-in for par, but that hole started what would be Talley’s collapse as she suffered her first bogey of the 54-hole tournament.

Now at the famous par-3 twelfth hole, José Marin’s tee shot landed short of the green but avoided nearby Rae’s Creek. She rolled her chip past the hole, but knocked in a four-foot putt to complete the up-and-down for par.

“So my plan on 12 was going to the middle of the green down the left,” José Marin said. “Of course the ball didn’t turn down the left, it turned straight to the pin, and I think I got tricked with the wind because I felt it off my back. I think it’s a miracle that my ball stayed there. I just kind of have to make par and walk away out of here because this just happens once.

As José Marin was making her way to the 13th tee box, Talley added fuel to the fire when her tee shot on No. 12 landed in the bushes beyond the green. The ball rolled down into the backside bunker, setting up the 17-year-old California native with an up-and-down chance for par.

Talley’s bunker shot not only rolled past the hole, but into Rae’s Creek. She decided to drop her shot into the same trap and, again, her bunker shot did not stop until it hit water. Talley put her second drop across the hazard and pitched it close for an easy putt for quadruple bogey.

Talley’s blunder, Örtengren’s back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 11 and 12 and a birdie for José Marin on No. 13 launched the Razorback into first by four strokes at 14-under. Tally, Ortengren and Revuelta were tied for second at 10-under with six holes to play.

José Marin suffered her first setback of the second nine on the par-5 15th hole with a long putt to save bogey but was still three shots clear of Revuelta.

“I looked at the leaderboard, and I think just my adrenaline went up,” José Marin said. “I had a pretty routine shot, and I just flew it past the green. As I’m saying, I think it was just a little bit of nerves.”

Revuelta pressured José Marin with well-placed shots, but missed key birdie putts down the stretch. Talley and Örtengren fell out of the hunt, finishing three-over and two-over, respectively, on their remaining four holes.

José Marin all but locked up the championship with a birdie on the par-3 No. 16 hole with its traditional Sunday hole location at The Masters.

“The hottest player out there was Andrea,” José Marin said. “In my head, I was like, okay, if I don’t play well, she’s going to come from behind. So just hitting that great shot on 16 exactly how I planned it and just walking away with a birdie there, it was just like, okay, I think it’s down. Just enjoy the walk, but still be smart of what you’re going to do.”

She enjoyed the walk, smiling her way up to the 18th green.

José Marin nearly won by five strokes after her long putt for birdie lipped out on No. 18, but tapped in for par to finish with a 4-under 68, the best score by a Razorback at Augusta National.

The final leaderboard ended with José Marin at 14-under, Revuelta in second at 10-under and Talley and Örtengren dropping to fourth at 8-under.

Arkansas’ Reagan Zibilski, who made the cut after a 72-69 start to the week at Champions Retreat, carded a 3-under 69 for a 10th-place finish in her ANWA debut.

With the win, provided she remains an amateur, José Marin received an invitation to the next five Augusta National Women’s Amateurs and exemptions for the Chevron Championship, the U.S. Women’s Open, the Evian Championship and the Women’s Open. She made her major debut last season after winning the NCAA’s individual title last May.

Up Next

Arkansas will begin postseason play on April 17 in Belleair, Florida, at the SEC Championship at Pelican Golf Club.

For more information on Arkansas women’s golf, follow @RazorbackWGolf on social media.