JGAA junior golfer Ashley Shaw accomplishes quite the feat as she became the youngest player to win the John Shippen Cognizant Cup and youngest overall winner in tournament history. The 15-year-old out of Litchfield Park collected three birdies and minimized damage throughout her round to put together a 1-over-par 73 to win by two strokes, despite being the only amateur in the field. Shaw will play in the LPGA Tour Cognizant Founders Cup this week at Upper Montclair in New Jersey on a sponsor’s exemption. Meaning the high school amateur will compete against the top female golfers worldwide, such as World No. 1 Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko, Jin Young Ko, and over two dozen others with major tournament victories on the LPGA Tour. With her mother, Sylvia, by her side as her caddy, Shaw will mark her debut on the LPGA tour during Mother’s Day weekend, following her victory in this memorable tournament.
“Shaw continues to make history and it’s been incredible to see her grow on-and-off the golf course,” said JGAA Executive Director Scott McNevin. “All of us at the JGAA are thrilled to see Ashley make her LPGA Tour debut and we’ll be cheering her on from the Grand Canyon State. Congrats!”
Her accolades continue to grow as Shaw is the inaugural Curry Cup winner and youngest Arizona Women’s Match Play champion. Currently ranked 194th in the American Junior Golf Association standings, Shaw’s trajectory has been steadily upward since her T-11 finish in the Jim Click Automotive/HSL Properties Championship in Tucson in May 2023, a tournament she triumphed in back in 2022.
Subsequently, she secured a T-132 place in the 2023 Girl’s Junior PGA Championship in August 2023, followed by a T-30 position in the Joanne Winter Arizona Silver Belle Championship in December 2023. Her momentum continued with a top-5 finish in the Mizuno West Coast Classic on March 14, a T-16 in the Sacramento Junior Championship on March 28, and a remarkable 3rd place finish at the Mesa Hohokams Junior All-Star on May 2.
Shaw embarked on her AJGA journey in 2021, and now, she’s set to represent as an Underrated Golf Tour ambassador in London for the tour’s inaugural event in Europe at the end of May.
The 2024 LPGA Tour Cognizant Founders Cup will take place May 9-12 at Upper Montclair in Clifton, New Jersey. The tournament is designed as a tribute to the founders of the LPGA.
