The 2026 Arizona Junior Amateur Championship presented by AZ GOLF welcomed the nation’s premier junior golfers to the high country at Talking Rock Golf Club in Prescott, Ariz., June 22-24. The three-day event exhibited three rounds of elite golf, picturesque vistas, pristine playing conditions — and a hole-in-one by defending champion Beau Ellington. Highly acclaimed as one of Arizona’s elevated junior golf championships, the Arizona Junior Amateur presented by AZ GOLF has served as a proving ground for many of the state’s top junior players, annually attracting one of the deepest and most competitive fields in the Southwest. This year’s championship carried significant competitive implications. For the first time in JGAA history, the Girls Champion earned an exemption into the 2026 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship in Durham, North Carolina. The boys and girls champions each received fully exempt status into the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA), one of the nation’s premier junior golf organizations. This event was also the only WAGR ranked tournament on the JGAA schedule.
In the Girls Division, future Texas Longhorn golfer Alexis Lamadrid swooped in from behind and staged a remarkable comeback to beat Charlene Lamb of Scottsdale. Lamadrid of Phoenix rode the hot hand after her latest triumph at the prestigious AJGA Heather Farr Classic at Papago a month ago, her third AJGA victory to date. A bogey-free front nine highlighted by three birdies in the final round put her over the top, backed by two rounds of consistently steady play. She remained within arm’s reach and didn’t waste the leapfrog opportunity when it presented itself. Lamadrid wrapped the event at 4-under par (70-72-70). Lamadrid, a UT Austin commit, will be heading into her senior year of high school at Xavier Prep this fall.
Lamb, who’s signed to play women’s college golf this fall at Florida Gulf Coast, tied for second alongside Cindy Yang (Irvine California and a Virginia Tech commit) at 1-under par. Julia Herzeberg, who is heading to Clemson this fall, took solo 4th at even par and Lauren Richardson and Natalia Fox rounded out the Top-5 for the girls. Massive round of applause for defending champ Beau Ellington of Paradise Valley, who aced the 167-yard 16th hole par-3 with an 8-iron in the 2nd round. Doesn’t get much sweeter than that.
As for the Boys side, Ty Gould of Gilbert took the title with a 3-under par (69) in the final round. Nash Yogurtian of Gilbert, who had the lead after 2 rounds, fired a final round of 76 to finish tied for 4th. Six players in total battled tooth and nail and exchanged momentum shifts throughout the final day of play. Birdies flying and putts sinking. But only one guy would persevere through the carnage and come out on top. Gould ultimately prevailed by the thinnest of margins, a one-stroke victory at 4-under par for the week (70-73-69) to grab his first JGAA win of the season and now earns fully exempt AJGA status. Not to mention Gould has already made his mark on the AJGA circuit having won his first AJGA event earlier this year up in Northern California at the AJGA Preview Presented by Choose Redding Lodging. He has proven he can win when the lights shine the brightest and this title further validates his ability to perform in high-stakes environments. New Mexico standout Alex Hanna, who won last week at the Thunderbird Junior Classic, and Karsten McCain of Flagstaff tied for 2nd at 3-under par. Rounding out the top-5 was Chase Cesarek of Tucson and Jake Goyen of Mesa.
Thanks to Talking Rock Golf Club for hosting us!
