JOHNS CREEK, GA. – 2025 just keeps getting better for Short Hills native Aphrodite Deng.
Roughly two months removed from winning the junior tournament at the Mizuho Americas Open in Jersey City, Deng, 15, who represents Canada on the golf course, hoisted the championship trophy at the 76th U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club’s Riverside Course in Johns Creek, Georgia.
The U.S. Girls’ Junior consists of eight rounds, with the first two rounds being stroke play and the final six being match play.
Deng advanced into the match play portion of the U.S. Girls’ Junior after finishing the stroke play portion of the tournament at +2, good enough for a tie for 32nd and a spot in the 64-player match play field.
In the first match-play round, Deng topped Australia’s Sarah Hammett 2 and 1. Deng then followed that win with a 2 and 1 win over American Mia Carles. In the round of 16, Deng needed 19 holes to defeat China’s Yujie Liu. Next, Deng topped American Chloe Kovelesky 2 up to advance to the semifinals. Then, in the semifinals, Deng battled fellow Short Hills native, Rayee Feng, defeating her 2 and 1 to advance to the final.
In the final round, golfers played 36 holes with Deng matching up against Singapore’s Xingtong Chen, a 1-up winner over American Grace Carter in the semifinals.
Deng got out fast and took a commanding lead, going 4 up after 13 holes. However, Chen would mount a comeback to cut Deng’s lead to 2 up after 26 holes. Not letting Chen’s rally faze her, Deng won hole 27 with a par and followed that up with a birdie to win hole 28 to regain her 4-up lead.
Chen, for her part, did not go away easily, though, winning holes 30, 32, and 34. However, a bogey on hole 31 for Chen and a par on that same hole for Deng would mean that Deng only needed to halve hole 35 to walk away with the 2 and 1 win.
“It really means a lot. I just can’t believe that I won,” Deng said. “I didn’t really think about the end result because I knew there were a lot of good players here. I just tried to win each match.”
Deng added, “I think I stayed in the moment throughout the whole match. I did get a little tired at the end. I learned that I’m pretty consistent and I’m pretty good, and I think that I stay pretty calm in front of a crowd and cameras.”
With the win, Deng received a gold medal, custody of the Glenna Collett Vare Trophy for one year, exemptions into all remaining U.S. Girls’ Junior Championships for which she is age-eligible, exemption into the 2026 U.S. Women’s Open Presented by Ally, exemptions into the 2025 and 2026 U.S. Women’s Amateur, a likely invitation into the 2026 Augusta National Women’s Amateur, and her name engraved on the 2025 USGA Champions Plaque that will reside in the Hall of Champions inside the USGA Museum in Liberty Corner.
Additionally, Deng continues a year that has seen her win three of the four tournaments that she has competed in. The list of tournaments that she has won in 2025 includes the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley in March, the earlier-mentioned Mizuho Americas Open in May, and now the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship. With her three wins and an additional fifth-place finish in 2025, Deng has ascended to the top spot in the Rolex American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) Rankings.
Furthermore, with her win in Georgia, Deng joins a prestigious list of golfers to win the U.S. Girls’ Junior, including Hall of Famers Mickey Wright, JoAnne Gunderson Carner, Amy Alcott, and Nancy Lopez, along with current LPGA stars Lexi Thompson, Minjee Lee, Ariya Jutanugarn, and Rose Zhang.
Lastly, Deng picked up her first LPGA Elite Amateur Pathway (LEAP) point with her win at the U.S. Girls’ Junior. The LPGA’s LEAP program provides elite amateur golfers a road to membership in the LPGA via a weighted point system based on golfers’ accomplishments as amateurs. Deng earned one LEAP point with her victory in the Peach State and now needs 19 LEAP points to qualify for LPGA Tour membership.
