Two Duos Earn Spots in Prestigious 2026 USGA Women’s Four-Ball Via Boulder Creek Golf Club Qualifier
The team of Cathy Zhang and Anita Lumpongpoung earned medalist honors at the 2026 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Qualifier. The victory earned the duo a spot in the 2026 national tournament which will be held May 2-6, 2026, at Daniel Island Club in Charleston, SC. The team of Summer Schafer and Kiley Reisner finished second in the qualifier, which was held Nov. 19, 2025, at Boulder Creek GC, and also earned a spot in the 2026 event. –by Bill Bowman, Las Vegas Golf Insider
The format sees each player play their own ball throughout the round with the lower score of the two players counting on each hole.
The team of Katelyn Lehigh-Amelia Garibaldi earned first alternate status while Southern Nevada Junior Golf Association and local high school stars Emmerson Hinds-Madison Perez are the second alternates.
Medalist
There was a three-way playoff for medalist honors with Lumpongpoung pouring in a birdie putt on the first playoff hole to secure the medalist spot for her and Zhang. Each team tied at 8-under par.
“It was quite an honor to win,” Lumpongpoung said. “We just really tried to focus on our games and motivate each other and it worked out well.”
Lumpongpoung, who is 15, and Zhang, who is 16, are both being schooled on-line in California.
“We’ve been playing together since we were kids…since we were seven or eight years old,” Lumpongpoung said. “I couldn’t ask for a better partner than Cathy. We just really work well together.”
Zhang had five birdies in regulation while Lumpongpoung added three birdies and the playoff birdie.
The duo birdied three of the final five holes to get into the playoff.
“We were playing very well,” Lumpongpoung said. “We just kept our heads up and tried to get as many birdies as we could. Those last holes were challenging but we played them well.”
Lumpongpoung added their score could have been lower.
“I missed a couple of putts that I really should have made,” she said. “But we just stayed positive and we both played solid golf. It was a very good round for us.”
Now it’s on to the big show.
“We’re really looking forward to this,” Lumpongpoung said. “I need to work on my putting a little but Cathy did amazing in just about everything. Our confidence is probably at an eight or a nine right now. I think we will do amazing.”
