Kiara Romero, Oregon Duck Tied for Lead at Augusta National Women's Amateur

EVANS, Georgia - Kiara Romero, the sophomore on the Oregon Ducks women’s golf team, has a share of the lead after 36 holes at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

Romero fired a 4-under, 68 today to bring her to 9-under total for the first 36 holes of the championship. She had 7 birdies today, along with a bogey and one double bogey on the card. This is her second time playing at the championship, and she has her sister, Kaleiya Romero, as her caddie for the event. Kaleiya is a graduate assistant for the Oregon Ducks women’s golf team.

Romero is tied with the 2024 Augusta National Women’s Amateur Lottie Woad, who is the No. 1-ranked woman on the World Amateur Golf Ranking list.

Romero is No. 5 on that list.

"I feel like I have a lot more control over the mental side of it," Romero said after her round. "I had a double and a bogey back-to-back on 4 and 5, so I didn't let that get to me at all. I actually ended up birdieing the last three holes. So I feel like that kind of shows the way my game has matured from last year."

Romero is no stranger to winning events, with four runner up finishes this season, including the Therese Hession Regional Challenge, Alice and John Wallace Classic and Charles Schwab Women's Spring Invitational in 2025. She earned 2024 First Team All-America honors in her freshman season with wins in both the 2023 Annika Intercollegiate and 2024 San Diego State Classic.

In 2023, the four-time junior All-American Romero won the U.S. Girls' Junior.

The first 36 holes were played at the Champions Retreat Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia April 2-3, 2025. The entire field will then play Augusta National for an official practice round on Friday, April 4. The final round will take place at Augusta National on Saturday, April 5, and will feature the leading 30 players, including ties, who made the cut.

"I feel like this week I've been like the happiest I've ever been on the course,” Romero said. “I feel like, if you see me last year making a double, I'm definitely not happy. I'm definitely not looking around smiling at anyone. Today was a lot different. I kind of was really proud of myself for the way I handled it and kind of moved on from it."

The opening 36 holes were played on the Island and Bluff nines at Champions Retreat Golf Club. The Island nine is an Arnold Palmer design and serves as the first nine, while the Bluff nine, designed by Jack Nicklaus, is the second nine.

Friday's practice round and the final competitive round will be contested at Augusta National Golf Club, home of the Masters Tournament.

"I think already being there once kind of lets me know what I'm preparing for and stuff," Romero said. "I'm definitely going to enjoy the moment being there, but just going to try to do my best to take notes of the course and see where are the good spots and create a good game plan for Saturday."

Suvichaya Vinijchaitham, a freshman also on the Oregon Duck’s women’s golf team also participated in the first 36 holes but missed the cut after finishing at +8.

At the 2018 Masters, Chairman Fred Ridley announced the creation of the Augusta National Women's Amateur. Scheduled to commence the week prior to the Masters, the event was designed to inspire greater interest and participation in women's golf and create a new, exciting pathway for these players to fulfill their dreams.

The Champion of the event, if they remain an amateur, will receive an invitation to the next five Augusta National Women’s Amateurs, the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open, the 2025 Women’s Open, the 2025 Chevron Championship, and the 2025 Evian Championship - four out of the five major championships in women’s golf.