When San Jose resident Kiara Romero saw the final putt roll in on the 36th hole, she quickly found her parents, Rick and Maricel, for a group hug.
Romero, the 2020 Junior Tour of Northern California Girls' Player of the Year, had ascended the mountain.
A freshman-to-be at the University of Oregon, Romero captured the 2023 U.S. Girls' Junior Championship, defeating runner-up Rianne Malixi of the Philippines, 1-up, in the 36-hole finale at U.S. Air Force Academy Eisenhower Golf Club’s Blue Course.
Prior to the winning 7-foot par putt dropping in, Romero was hanging on to a slim 1-up lead in a classic match that was tight the whole way through. Neither Romero nor Malixi ever held more than a 2-up lead.
“My heart was racing,” said Romero. “I didn't really think about how it was going to be determining the match and stuff, I just tried to focus on putting a good stroke on it.”
With the win, Romero became the sixth NorCal native to win the U.S. Girls' Junior, joining NCGA Hall of Famer Pat Hurst (1986), Jamille Jose (1988), Dorothy Delasin (1996), Lisa Ferrero (2000) and Yealimi Noh, who won the title in 2018 at Poppy Hills. On the USGA's Glenna Collett Vare Trophy, she'll join a group that includes U.S. Women’s Open champions Mickey Wright, JoAnne Gunderson Carner, Hollis Stacy, Amy Alcott, Inbee Park, Ariya Jutanugarn and Minjee Lee as well as Nancy Lopez, Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang.
“I'm just so excited and super tired,” Romero said. “I mean, it's been a long day and I'm really glad I got it done. I don't think [the USGA title has] really sunk in yet.”
While Romero's sister Kaleiya did not make the trip, the two will be in the field together when the 2023 U.S. Women's Amateur tees off Aug. 7-13 at Bel Air Country Club in Los Angeles.
Kiara earned an exemption into the championship thanks to her win, while Kaleiya made it through Sectional qualifying.
Other perks for Kiara include exemptions into the 2024 U.S. Women's Open at Lancaster (Pa.) Country Club and an exemption into the 2024 Augusta National Women's Amateur.