VERONA — Among all of her successes on the golf course as one of the state’s most dominant junior players, there was one task that had eluded Mya Morgan.
On Monday, she made sure that no boxes were left unchecked.
Morgan, an 18-year-old recent graduate of Elizabeth Forward High School, shot a 2-over score of 148 to claim the 19th WPGA Women’s Amateur Championship at Green Oaks Country Club, becoming the first junior player and the youngest player to win the WPGA Women's Amateur.
“This is my last tournament as a junior golfer, so the first thing that went through my mind was, ‘wow I finally did it. I am now a collegiate golfer and now I have all of the fall and all the spring to look forward to,’” said Morgan, who posted rounds of 73—75 to earn the win.
Victories are nothing new to Morgan, who finished her high school career with two WPIAL district and two PIAA state titles. A week ago, she appeared in the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship and reached match play.
But a win in a WPGA event had slipped through her grasps on a few occasions as a junior, including a trio of runner-up finishes in the WPGA Girls’ Match Play Invitational and a third place finish in the Women’s Amateur a year ago.
“Especially this year, having been in the Match Play one last time and making it to the final round again and then losing it on (the 18th hole)… knowing that I finally got an actual win made it very sweet to me,” said Morgan, who will enroll at Central Michigan later this summer.
As part of the first group off Monday, and alongside reining champion Emily Holzopfel, Morgan finished her second round over two hours before the final groups finished, leading to some stressful leaderboard watching from the clubhouse.
Kate Sowers of West Middlesex was closest to her throughout the day. But Sowers finished second at 7-over following a late bogey stretch. Holzopfel was 9-over and placed third and Cora Hirz of Fairview was fourth at 11-over.
Morgan, Sowers and Hirz are all members of Team Pennsylvania of the U.S. National Development Program.
“This tells me that I’m right there,” said Morgan of the strong field she watched attempt to chase her down. Two weeks ago, I played in the U.S. Girls’ Junior and made the cut in a USGA national event. All I know is that I’m at the top of my game right now and that will lead me into the fall.”
In the WPGA Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship, for players 25 and older, Katie Miller Gee repeated as the division’s champion in the event's second year of existence.
Miller Gee, who also won the 2023 Women’s Amateur, shot a 7-over score of score of 153 through her two rounds, winning by seven strokes over Georgia Capotis and Katrin Wolfe.
“I knew it was going to be a marathon,” said Miller Gee of the 36-hole day. “But I generally welcome those. I haven’t actually played 36 holes in a day since last year in this event. I knew I was going to need to be patient. The setup was pretty challenging.”
A decorated player from Westmoreland County and member at Green Oaks Country Club, Miller-Gee saw the course play near its toughest Monday. She posted rounds of 74—79.
“Super fair hole locations, but it was a little long, especially the par 3’s,” she said. “I was just trying to hit solid shots and it really favored me well, especially for the first 18 (holes).”
The 10th WPGA Women’s Senior and Super-Senior Championships were won by Kristine Hnat and Randi Lichtenstein, respectively.
For Hnat, it’s a third title in the competition’s decade of existence, but first since 2020. She is the first player to win a WPGA Women’s Amateur Championship — regardless of age division — three times in the same division.
“I haven’t really been playing much,” said Hnat, who shot a 3-over score of 75 to win the single-round championship. “But I saw an email about it and decided to give it a try. I had a great round because of the people I played with.
“And I hit the ball straight. I usually never hit the ball straight. The course was set up a little bit tough… You couldn’t really be aggressive, but I stayed below the hole a lot.”
Colleen Meyers, the head coach of Duquesne women’s golf, placed second at 6-over, while defending champion Jane Wymer and Courtney Myhrum each shot 8-over.
Lichtenstein, who won the Senior Women’s Amateur in 2023, shot 8-over Monday to win the Super-Senior, which is for players ages 65 and older.
“I’ve won both divisions now because I just keep getting older and older,” Lichtenstein said with a laugh. “I putted well today and I’ve been putting well the last few days. My driver was a little off today, but I had a few good holes.”
Patti Nelis finished second in the Super-Senior division at 12-over, while Nancy Harned and Jackie Rummel tied for third at 14-over.
For each winner, seeing the growth of the event — from 20 players at Green Oaks Country Club in 2024 to 67 registered two years later at the same venue — was just as rewarding as the victory.
“It's so exciting for women's golf in general,” said Miller Gee, who serves as the president of the Women’s Golf Association of Western Pennsylvania and coaches at Hempfield High School. “There's definitely a lot of momentum and energy behind the women's side of the game.”
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