March 26, 2024
The United States Golf Association (USGA) today
announced the establishment of the inaugural U.S. National Junior Team, and Northern California's Asterisk Talley is a member.
The U.S. National Junior Team is the newest milestone for the
U.S. National Development Program, which launched last year to ensure that American golf is the global leader in the game by focusing on six key pillars: talent identification, access to competition, national teams, athlete resources, player development and relations and athlete financial support.
The program’s elite juniors represent the first of three national teams to be formed with the Amateur Team to be
announced in 2025 followed by a Young Professional Team in 2026.
Composed initially of 10 girls and eight boys, the 18-player roster represents the country’s elite junior golf talent who will embark on a unified pathway designed to nurture the potential of America’s top players. The USGA plans to grow the National Junior Team to 30 boys and 30 girls over the next three years.
“We are thrilled to introduce the first U.S. National Junior Team, a group of 18 exceptionally talented
young athletes who represent the bright future of American golf,” said Chris Zambri, head coach of the U.S. National Development Program. “Nearly every other golf country in the world has long enjoyed the benefits of a developmental program and national teams, and the announcement of this team is a major
milestone in the USGA’s commitment to the growth of our American athletes and ensuring we remain the global leader in the junior, amateur and professional game.”
Talley, still just 15 years old and a freshman in high school, is a star on the Junior Tour of Northern California, having won 26 events. She is only three wins shy of the all-time JTNC win record held by Sabrina Iqbal.
Other accolades include winning the 2023 American Junior Golf Association’s Rolex Girls Championship and the recent Junior Invitational. She will be among the women competing in the Augusta National Women's Amateur next week.
Throughout the 2024 season, the 18 players will participate at bi-annual camps and compete internationally under the U.S. flag. The team’s first training camp will be held May 8-11 at Atlanta Athletic
Club in Johns Creek, Ga., and the first international friendly match will take place this summer against Australia.
For more information, visit usga.org/give_usndp.
To read a feature story on Talley that appeared in NCGA Golf Magazine, please click here