Pairings | Results
July 12, 2026--Final Round
This past season, Sebi Aliaga not only helped Claremont Mudd-Scripps win a Division III national championship team crown, but he also won the D-III individual title.
Not much later, he can now celebrate his first NCGA major title.
Aliaga, a sophomore at CMS, made a clutch birdie--sinking a 4-foot putt after nearly reaching the par-5 18th green in two--for a final-round 2-under 69 to win the 46th Amateur Stroke Play Championship by a stroke over Reid Buzby and Zachary Hawkins at Poppy Hills. He'd set up his birdie try after chipping onto the green.
"I was in the fairway and came up a bit short, but I knew I was in a good spot where I'd be chipping from," said Aliaga, who finished the 54-hole event with a total of 4-under 209. "When Zachary missed his eagle putt, I knew what I had to do. I just tried to start my putt on a good line and see what happens."
With second-round leader Calvin Etcheverry slipping to a 73, the door to a win swung wide open for a number of players. Buzby made a charge--carding birdies on holes Nos. 13, 14, 15 and 17--for a 67 that got him to within a shot of the magical 4-under total but settled for a par on 18 after finding the greenside bunker. The long-hitting Hawkins, a teammate of Etcheverry at Stevenson School, reached the 18th in two but missed a lengthy eagle try, leaving him with a 70 and the same 210 total.
Jack Jarvis (67) and Luca Suarez (70) also flirted with the lead before finishing at 211.
Aliaga didn't exactly start out great, either. He'd bogey holes No.2 and No.3 to start his day.
"I don't think I recognized how difficult the final round was going to play coming in to it," Aliaga said. "I got my teeth kicked in early. It was nice to hang in there and still have a chance at the end. It was a lot of fun."
Known as the NCGA's U.S. Open in toughness, only seven players finished the event with total scores under par.
In the first round, however, Poppy Hills was more than welcoming. Two players--Santa native Corey Ghiringhelli and San Jose's Ryan Vaughan--carded an albatross. Ghiringhelli made an opening albatross on the par-5 10th hole, while Vaughan got his on the par-5 18th. For some extra fun, Ghiringhelli also added an eagle on the par-4 13th hole.
Photo Gallery Below
July 11, 2026-Second Round
Stevenson School senior Calvin Etcheverry will have a chance at some quick redemption.
Etcheverry, coming off a tough runner-up finish at the NCGA Junior Championship on Tuesday, will enter Sunday's final round of this weekend's Amateur Stroke Play Championship as the solo leader. A day after opening with a 69, Etcheverry was again steady, carding a 70 for a two-day total of 3-under 139.
In second place, just one shot off the lead, are Sebi Aliaga and Zachary Hawkins.
A sophomore at Claremont Mudd Scripts, Aliaga posted a 67, the low round of the day, which pushed him 15 spots up the leaderboard. Aliaga's run started when he went 5-under through his first nine thanks in part to three straight birdies on difficult holes Nos. 3 through No.5. This past season, Aliaga helped CMS earn a Division III national championship crown.
Hawkins, like Etcheverry a senior at Stevenson, remained in the mix with a second-round 71. The two helped Stevenson claim its second straight CIF Boys' State title in June.
At the NCGA Junior, Etcheverry had a two-shot lead over Kailer Stone entering the final round. He lost the lead, and then lost to Stone after finishing the event with three consecutive bogeys.
Alone in fourth place at 141 after a second round 72 is Luco Suarez.
Both Reiz Buzby (73) and defending NCGA Player of the Year Matt Cohn (69) are also right in the thick of things at 143. Cohn, who won last month's Mid-Amateur at Poppy Ridge, is searching for his 8th NCGA career title. The San Francisco resident has yet to win the Stroke Play Championship.
Photo Gallery Below
July 10, 2026- First Round
If Friday's first round is any indication, this year's NCGA Amateur Stroke Play Championship at Poppy Hills is going to be electric.
Consider: the first round had a pair of players make an albatross.
Santa Rosa native Corey Ghiringhelli (top photo, below) made an opening albatross on the par-5 10th hole. Ghiringhelli's second shot--a 7-wood from 245 yards out--took two bounces on the green and rolled right into the bottom of the cup.
For good measure, Ghiringhelli also added an eagle on the par-4 13th hole.
Later, San Jose's Ryan Vaughan (photo, lowest below) also had an albatross in the first round, getting his on the par-5 18th.
When the day ended, a pack of five players was tied atop the leaderboard at 2-under 69--Luca Suarez, Calvin Etcheverry, Nick Randaazzo, Zachary Hawkins and Ghiringhelli.
Etcheverry is coming off a solid runner-up finish at the NCGA Junior Championship at Lake Merced GC, where he lost by only two to eventual winner Kailer Stone. Both Etcheverry and Hawkins helped Stevenson of Pebble Beach win the CIF State title in June.
Randazzo, now age 44, is chasing his 13th NCGA title. The Cypress Point caddie has two previous Stroke Play crowns (2018, 2020).
Following Saturday's second round, a cut will be made with the low 30 (and ties) advancing to Sunday's final round.
