Augusta National announced that Lucy Li and Alex Melton have withdrawn from the Augusta National Women’s Amateur due to injury. Li, No. 7 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, was the most recognizable player in the field and among the favorites to win.
Li, 16, burst onto the golf scene at the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst when she became the youngest player to qualify for the championship at age 11. She gained even more notoriety earlier this year after appearing in an Apple Watch “Close Your Rings” advertising campaign. The USGA immediately opened an investigation into whether or not she had violated her amateur status.
While the USGA determined that Li had breached the rule, it still allowed her to retain her amateur status. The controversial decision kept Li in the field for the historic ANWA, that is until injury got in the way.
Jessica Yuen, a junior at Missouri, and Arkansas senior Kaylee Benton will replace Melton and Li in the field. Yuen owns two of the top three single-season scoring averages in school history.
Benton advanced to the semifinals of last year’s U.S. Women’s Amateur before falling to eventual champion Kristen Gillman in a playoff. In 2018, Benton scored the deciding point to help Arkansas win the school’s first SEC title.
