Marin & Lopez Make Cut at U.S. Women's Open, Both Inside the Top 25

PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. – Current Arkansas women’s golfer Maria Jose Marin and former Razorback Gaby Lopez finished above the 36-hole cut line of 4-over par at the 81st U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera Country Club (Par 71).

Lopez is tied for third and one shot off the lead at 3-under and Marin is tied for 22nd at 1-over.

Lopez was hot out of the gate in the first round with five birdies on her first nine holes. The second nine (she teed off from No. 10) proved more difficult as she bogeyed three of her final eight.

The former All-American for Arkansas started the second round one shot back and tied for second but quickly jumped to the top with a birdie on No. 1. Her start wasn’t as strong as Thursday’s but she parred the remaining eight holes on the front. Lopez struggled through the difficult stretch of Nos. 13-15 with a pair of bogeys, but got back to even with a 12-footer for birdie on the par-3 16th.

She finished the second round with a 71 and will start the weekend one shot back of leaders Alison Lee and Ruoning Yin.

Marin, coming off a top 5 finish at last week’s NCAA Championship down the road in Carlsbad, also started the tournament hot with a pair of birdies on Nos. 5 and 6, she hit both of her approach shots to six feet. She three-putted and dropped a shot on the following hole but parred all 11 remaining holes with up-and-downs for par on Nos. 9, 12 and 13.

The junior finished her opening round with a 1-under 70 and was T13.

Marin’s second round was more of a roller coaster. She teed off from No. 10 and started with a birdie and a bogey on Nos. 11 and 12. Even through six, she birdied the par-5 17th with a five-footer putt to move inside the top 10 at 2-under. Marin had a seven-foot putt for par on No. 18 but it lipped out. She bounced back with a birdie on No. 1 after her long putt for eagle slowed up three feet short of the hole.

Marin dropped shots on Nos. 3 and was T17 at even headed into her36th hole, the par-4 ninth. Her approach shot from the right edge of the fairway landed well short of the green and she failed to convert an 11-foot putt to save par. She finished with a 2-over 73.

Marin is one of five amateurs to make the cut and is tied with world No. 1 Kiara Romero and Canada’s Aphrodite Deng as the low amateurs. The field started with 28 amateurs.

Marin entered the U.S. Open having made the cut in her previous two major appearances: the 80th U.S. Open and the 2025 Amundi Evian Championship.

Marin will tee off the third round at 1:55 p.m. CT alongside Shuri Sakuma. Lopez is paired with Sei Young Kim and their round will begin at 4:15 p.m.

Television coverage of the third round will air live on USA from 5-7 p.m. and switch to NBC from 7-10 p.m.

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