U.S. National Development Program 2025 Year in Review

A number of firsts occurred in 2025 for the U.S. National Development Program (USNDP). The seven pilot states in the State Junior Team Program announced their initial rosters, members of the U.S. National Junior Team competed against several top collegiate programs for the first time, and the program announced the roster for the inaugural Elite Amateur Program.

U.S. National Junior Team

Year two of the U.S. National Junior Team featured 22 athletes from all parts of the country. The team met for two camps: the first at Desert Mountain Club, in Scottsdale, Ariz., in May, and six months later at the Club at Olde Stone, in Bowling Green, Ky.

Five members of the U.S. Junior National Team combined to finish fourth as a team out of 12 teams at the Sahalee Players Championship, the first time the USNDP competed in a collegiate event. Tyler Watts, who has signed to play for the University of Tennessee (2026), posted a 54-hole total of 1-under- par 215 (73-70-72), finishing in a tie for fourth place individually out of 71 competitors.

“The event could not have gone better for us,” said Chris Zambri, head coach of the U.S. National Development Program. “The best weeks to learn something about your game are when you play a tough course or there is some sort of pressure. We had both of those in spades this past weekend. I’m super proud of the way the guys performed and the way they embraced a difficult course setup. Just an incredible experience for us as a team.”

The U.S. National Junior Team also played a match against Team Canada – Next Gen at Champions Golf Club, in Houston, Texas, in April.  The match, featuring 12 juniors from each country, spanned two days of competition, featuring mixed (boys and girls) four-ball and foursomes on Saturday, followed by singles matches on Sunday.

"We loved getting to compete while keeping it friendly and getting to know some golfers we don't normally get to play against,” said Tiffany Joh, a two-time USGA champion and assistant coach of the USA team. “The kids can learn a lot from a weekend like this. Just because it's a competition doesn't mean it's not an opportunity to build relationships. I met some of my best friends, to this day, in match play situations.”

The team boasted 32 USGA championship appearances across seven events in 2025.

Two team members, Asterisk Talley and Jude Lee, played in the U.S. Women’s Open Presented by Ally at Erin Hills. Talley earned her spot from her runner-up finish at the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur. The 16-year-old Talley, who shared low-amateur honors in 2024 at Lancaster (Pa.) Country Club, was competing in her second U.S. Women’s Open.

“They're such fun events,” Talley said at her pre-championship press conference. “It's great to be here and be surrounded by great players, volunteers and other people who make it a great week. It really motivates me to play well when other great players are in the field and when these are such top events, think it just motivates us to play well and to have a good time.”

Lee, who has signed to play at Stanford University next fall, qualified for her first major after shooting 3-under (71-70—141) at the Soboba Springs Golf Club qualifier in California in April. A USNDP Grant recipient, Lee has now been a part of the U.S. National Junior Team for two years.

“Just having the national team and having a group of friends who I see on the golf course all the time and having that extra layer of sport, it just really means the world,” Lee said at her pre-championship press conference. “Just seeing how much USGA has done for the game of golf, especially amateur golf, brings a greater amount of appreciation, and I'm just so grateful to have them.”

Tyler Mawhinney and Will Hartman won the 2025 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship, the second and third USGA champions to come from the USNDP. Talley won the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship.

“I think it's given me confidence,” said Hartman about being on the U.S. National Junior Team. “It's a great honor, and I think the fact that we were on it just gave us confidence.”

USNDP Grant Program

As part of its commitment to mitigate barriers of cost to promising junior golfers who demonstrate both financial need and the potential to progress through the USNDP pathway, the USGA awarded more than $865,000 to 109 junior golfers (52 girls and 57 boys).

A total of 32 states were represented, with the most athletes coming from California (19), Florida (15), Georgia (7), and Texas (7). With an average age of 16, the grant recipients ranged in age from 14 to 18 and 52 percent were athletes of color.

 The group had 21 USGA championship appearances across six events, with the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball leading the way with seven individuals qualifying.

There were 120 tournament wins, including 12 American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) events, and 329 top-5 finishes. The group boasted a scoring average of 74.42 across 292 AJGA events and 685 other tournaments.

 There are 25 athletes who have signed or are committed to playing collegiate golf in the Class of 2026.

State Junior Team Program

The seven pilot state teams – Southern California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Ohio and Tennessee –- named their inaugural rosters in 2025. State Junior Team Program members made 28 appearances across six USGA championships in 2025.

Hamilton Coleman and Mason Howell, both members of Team Georgia, claimed USGA championships in 2025.

Howell won the 2025 U.S. Amateur at The Olympic Club in August at just 18 years of age, becoming the third-youngest winner in championship history. The victory earned him a spot on the USA Walker Cup Team, where he went 2-0-1 for the victorious Americans at Cypress Point Club. He also represented the USA in the World Amateur Team Championship held in Singapore in October.

Coleman captured the 2025 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship at Trinity Forest Golf Club in July. He needed 25 holes to survive his Round-of-64 match, the longest U.S. Junior Amateur match in 23 years. The Martinez, Ga., native represented the United States on the victorious 2025 Junior Ryder Cup Team and is a three-time AJGA Rolex Junior All-American.

Mia Clausen of Team Southern California made it to the Round of 16 at the U.S. Girls’ Junior and was recently named to the 2026 U.S. National Junior Team, one of five state team members to make the jump to the U.S. National Junior Team.

Seventy athletes are committed or have signed to play college golf from this program.

USNDP-AJGA Exemptions

In 2025, 262 kids utilized an AJGA exemption given to the USGA, totaling 311 appearances. From that group, there were 66 top-10 finishes, 26 top-five finishes and seven wins.

Many kids became exempt into additional AJGA events, with 10 becoming fully exempt for the rest of the 2025 season.

ELITE AMATEUR PROGRAM

The USNDP announced its first Elite Amateur National Program roster in 2025 that included 17-year-old phenom Gianna Clemente and 2025 USA Walker Cup star Jackson Koivun.

Clemente, who turned professional in November, was low amateur at the Chevron Championship outside of Houston and played in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

Koivun led the victorious USA Team at The Walker Cup at Cypress Point Club and was the recipient of the 2025 McCormack Medal, given to the No. 1 golfer in the World Amateur Golf Ranking at the conclusion of the U.S. Amateur. The Auburn Tiger made the cut in six of his seven PGA Tour starts and earned his card through PGA Tour University, but elected to return to school for his junior year.