“What a menace” – Max Homa lauds ‘sick’ Rose Zhang performance at the Mizuho Americas Open 2023

Rose Zhang won the 2023 LPGA Mizuho Americas Open in a playoff over Jennifer Kupcho. She was tied with Kupcho after the fourth round on Sunday, June 5, with a nine-point deficit. They both played a par-4 on the first hole of the playoff, but on the second, Zhang made a par-3 while Kupcho made a par-4.

Zhang's achievement was lauded by notable golfers such as Tiger Woods and Max Homa. Homa appreciated Zhang on Twitter, claiming she is a menace to the players.

"That was so sick that she missed that. No birdies all day and still won. What a menace," Homa wrote.

Tiger Woods also lauded the younger golfer on her victory and wrote on Twitter:

“Incredible few weeks for Rose Zhang, defends her NCAA title and then wins in her Pro debut. Go card!”

Rose Zhang played the last round with two bogeys to score 74. She started the game with a birdie on Thursday, June 1. The American golfer carded five birdies and three bogeys in the opening round.

She made three birdies and two bogeys along with an eagle in the second round to score 69. Her best performance was recorded on the third day when she played a bogey-free round with six birdies to score 66. However, in the final round, she sank two bogeys and scored 74.

Speaking about her victory in a TV interview, Zhang said:

“What is happening? I just can’t believe it. It was just last week that I won NCAAs with my [college] teammates, and to turn pro and come out here, it’s just been amazing.”

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"Incredible" - Fans react to Rose Zhang's phenomenal finish at the 2023 Mizuho Americas Open 2023

Rose Zhang turned pro in 2023 and fortunately won a title in her first season. She had an incredible debut on the LPGA Tour. Fans were also impressed with her performance and commented on Twitter. They wrote:

"Incredible"

"A prodigie from Stanford par'ing the field to death. Neverrrrrr."

"One word… Impressive!! Go Bears"

"An extremely entertaining finish. Kupcho is terrific also. Look forward to seeing both of them!"

Rose Zhang was born in Arcadia, California on May 24, 2003. She currently resides in Irvine. She started her golfing journey at the age of nine and attended the Pacific Academy. She enrolled for her graduation at Stamford University in 2021.

Zhang won the NCAA Championship in 2022 and defended her title last month by one stroke. With this victory, Zhang became the first woman in golf history to win two consecutive NCAA individual titles.

After defending her title in May at NCAA, Rose Zhang announced that she will be exploring her career at the professional level and made her debut at the 2023 Mizuho Americas Open.

During her amateur career, Zhang competed in four of the five major events with the best finishes recorded at the Chevron Championship in 2020, when she finished in 11th position.

Rose Zhang was awarded with Mark H. McCormack Medal for outstanding performance in 2020, 2021 and 2022.