In her fifth and possibly last ANWA, Virginia senior doggedly chases another strong finish

EVANS, Ga. — University of Virginia senior Amanda Sambach had no business making par on her first hole Wednesday in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. Teeing off on No. 1 at Champions Retreat, the three-time All-American snap-hooked her tee shot into a bunker, where she drew a mudball. A blocked 6-iron went well right of the green, finding the downslope of one of the course’s cavernous bunkers. Short-sided, Sambach took a full-swing lash to put her ball to 10 feet and holed the par putt.

“I’m a dog,” she said on her way to the second tee, referencing the skill and grit needed to escape with par. Sambach went on to make six birdies against just one bogey to shoot five-under 67 and sit tied for third after the first round, four shots back of Stanford junior Megha Ganne and her record-setting 63.

After the round, Sambach, who is making her fifth ANWA start this week, was asked about her outward declaration of confidence because for those who know the soft-spoken 22-year-old, it was a rare glimpse into an inner confidence that she typically keeps inside.

“It was a bit of a joke,” she said, laughing after the round, not ready to fully embrace the gregarious moment. But underlying that passing comment is the freedom of a player who is at a potential crossroads in her golfing career and is simply content with soaking in the present and playing with confidence.

“There's been less and less pressure as I come to this golf course year after year,” Sambach said, referencing her four previous starts—two missed cuts, followed by two T-14 finishes in 2023 and 2024, when she got to play the third round at Augusta National. “I still have expectations for myself, but just really able to play free.”

The freedom with which Sambach is playing stems from a few distinct sources. Perhaps most significant is the uncertainty of her future golfing career and her acknowledgement that as a college senior this could very well be her final trip to Augusta National. “Knowing this is maybe my last time here, I'm definitely trying to make the most out of the experience and enjoy every single shot,” Sambach said.

There is a sentimentality with which Sambach is speaking, as if she recognizes the crossroads she faces. Growing up in Pinehurst, N.C., Sambach would often take family trips to Hilton Head Island, where dozens of mini-golf courses lined the streets. “Every time we were on vacation, we’d play mini golf every single day,” Sambach said of her introduction to golf. “I forced my dad to take me.”

That love of mini golf soon translated to the range and the course, but given she also showed promise as one of the best young tennis players in her area, she faced a choice: competitive golf or tennis. Weighing her options, Sambach, around 12 at the time, chose golf. “I thought the people were a little bit nicer. Tennis is super intense. I’m competitive, but it was just a little too much for me,” she said.

With full focus on her golf, her game took off. She won three consecutive state titles, captured six American Junior Golf Association events, and a slew of other championships, including the prestigious North & South Women’s Amateur. That success continued at Virginia, where during her sophomore year she won three times, including the ACC individual championship. She set the UVA single season scoring record and was a finalist for the Annika Award. More wins and another Annika Award finalist honor followed in her junior year, and she began her senior season with a win as well.

But the decision to turn professional is not as simple as an accomplished resume may suggest. As we have recently seen with talented collegiate players in Stanford’s Rachel Heck and Duke’s Phoebe Brinker, some with the merits to play at the highest level recognize the realities of tour life and opt for another vocation.

Sambach, who is currently ranked 23rd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, isn’t sure of her vocation yet. “Undecided,” she said when asked what her plans are after graduating with her sociology degree next month. “I’m not totally sure yet. I’m going to finish off the rest of the spring and see where that takes me.” She floated graduate school as an option if pro golf wasn’t her choice, but her uncertainty was palpable.

But rather than being weighed down by such an important decision, Sambach is playing uninhibited, as if she recognizes that either she will turn professional and this is her final chance to soak in the experience of Augusta National, or she will move in another direction, and this week is simply a culmination of a successful golfing journey.

“My mindset right now is honestly just to have fun,” she said. “I don't know where golf will take me in the future, so just trying to stay in the moment.”

Her second source of freedom this week is the current state of her ball striking. She has been struggling a bit with her swing recently, working hard with her swing coach Rickey Sullivan to rid herself of an old tendency of getting stuck in the downswing, leading to weak right shots.

“I've been working on a lot in my game,” she said. “I wasn't super confident heading into this week just not seeing like the ball flight that I want. I've been struggling with that a little bit, but obviously today felt really solid.”

The freedom comes not from feeling in complete command of her swing, but an acceptance that she is a feel player, and she is going to play with what she’s got. No swing thoughts, aside from a last-second feel of making a big turn in the backswing.

The final source? Her local caddie Rusty Goble, whom she first met in 2021, when he was assigned to her for this championship. They had great rapport, and even though she only sees Goble once a year, at this championship, she has had him on the bag for each of the past two years.

“There's a lot of, ‘What are you listening to right now? What did you have for dinner last night?’” Sambach said. “We talk about food a lot. We’re both pretty big foodies.”

The result of all the above factors creates a player competing with complete freedom, content with the uncertainties that lie beyond this week and this spring and who is appreciative of another chance to compete at Augusta National.

Whether that freedom produces big hooks like off the first tee or the kind of heroic shots like her short-sided save on No. 1 and the six birdies that followed—Sambach is OK with it all. After all, she is a dog.