Take 5: After Qualifying at 14, a Mature 19-Year-Old Kovelesky Returns to Women’s Open

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It was supposed to be a momentous week for a precocious 14-year-old. And in a way, the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open at The Olympic Club, in San Francisco, was a joyous accomplishment for Floridian Chloe Kovelesky.

Then relatively unknown to the public, the Boca Raton native impressed with a swing speed measured at a whopping 112 miles per hour and drives averaging 301.3 yards, which led the field of the world’s best players for two rounds.

But such bombastic numbers also led to some disingenuous and derogatory comments on social media from ignorant onlookers, the kind of bullying that can lead anyone, especially a young teen, to tears. Rounds of 81-81 became a missed cut, but not a missed opportunity.

If anything, Kovelesky came to the realization that the world doesn’t function in a vacuum.

Dealing with such adversity, such as two ensuring knee surgeries and an illness that slowed her sophomore season at Wake Forest, have made the now-19-year-old mentally stronger.

This week, Kovelesky returns to the biggest stage in women’s professional golf, having qualified for the 81st U.S. Women’s Open Presented by Ally at The Riviera Country Club.

Kovelesky arrives in Southern California still with the same bubbly personality of the 14-year-old who first set foot at this championship, only with more maturity and armed with an improved game that’s undergone transformations since 2021. For starters, she doesn’t drive the ball as far, having dialed back to put less pressure on her surgically repaired knee.

Three semesters at Wake Forest – she enrolled in January of 2025 – has changed how she approaches practice and attacks courses. Kovelesky opened the 2025-26 campaign with a victory at the Annika Intercollegiate Presented by 3M and a runner-up in the Jackson T. Stephens Cup. She finished her sophomore campaign with third place finishes in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship and the NCAA Tallahassee (Fla.) Regional.

At the same time, she edged college teammate Macy Pate in a 2-for-1 playoff at Rolling Hills Country Club, in Monroe, N.C., making par as darkness enveloped the U.S. Women’s Open qualifying venue, one of 26 conducted from April 26 to May 13.

“Not the ideal scenario,” said Wake Forest assistant coach Ryan Potter, who was on Kovelesky’s bag that day and again this week. “At least we knew one person from Wake was going to be in the [Women’s] Open.”

As she sat in Player Dining in the sprawling Spanish-style clubhouse at Riviera, Kovelesky reflected on her first U.S. Women’s Open start and the ensuing five years.

Kovalesky certainly was no stranger to the spotlight. In 2017, she finished second to Lucy Yuan in the Girls 10-11 Division of the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals at Augusta National Golf Club. She also was part of an Esquire documentary focused on the U.S. Kids World Championship, an event held annually in Pinehurst, N.C., that she won three times in various age divisions. Kovelesky wasn’t thrilled with the actual outcome, but younger players have told her they were inspired by the project, which warms her heart. Kovelesky wants to be someone who plays a role in growing the game.

Which is what made the social media bullying at the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open so disheartening. Chats with mentor Morgan Pressel, a fellow Boca Raton resident who went through her share of highs and lows as an elite amateur and LPGA Tour pro, helped ease Kovelesky through the ordeal. They first met when Kovelesky was 8 and a friendship blossomed. Kovelesky even had Pressel’s former caddie, Barry “Rock” Cesarz, on the bag that week.

Pressel told Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols: “It’s a really tough thing to be a public figure in any fashion, and to be thrown into at that age. People can be really mean online. It’s part of the reason why I’m not on Twitter (X) anymore.”

Added Kovelesky: “Definitely an interesting week. I was learning a lot still. Had a lot of things happen. Some of the stuff wasn’t great.”

But there were fun moments too. She played a practice round with Lydia Ko and when the two saw each other a year later, the New Zealand star remembered Chloe like a close friend.

Playing a true Open venue like Olympic’s Lake Course was another great lesson for the powerful-hitting Kovelesky. She has come to relish tough and challenging setups.

Two knee surgeries followed, the result of a domestic accident. To avoid further damage, she began to dial back some of the power, while harnessing her iron game, specifically her wedges. Since coming to Wake, all facets of her game have tightened up.

In 2024, she was invited to join the inaugural U.S. National Junior Team, which provided top notch coaching along with nutritional and psychological tips. She competed in the USA vs. Australia “friendly” match at SentryWorld, in Stevens Point, Wis. She has since transitioned to the Elite Amateur Program, a product of the U.S. National Development Program.

“Chloe is such a good kid,” said Chris Zambri, the lead coach for the USNDP. “She is very kind, loves animals more than most, and hits the ball a mile!

“It seems that Chloe has always been a dominant driver of the ball.  She is working hard on becoming a great iron player and wedge player.  She has a tidy short game and is a good putter, better than she gives herself credit for.  Like many golfers, Chloe is continuing to develop her mental skills in order to accel at the highest levels of the game.  I think embracing the mental side of the game will prove to be extremely helpful to Chloe as she progresses towards her goal of playing the LPGA [Tour].”

That maturity was something that attracted the Wake coaches to Kovelesky. They saw someone who is fun to be around, but also a fierce competitor. The biggest transition would be assimilating to a classroom setting, something completely different from being home-schooled. Balancing academics with practice, travel and tournaments is not easy for freshmen, especially one joining the team in mid-season. Kovelesky enrolled a semester early in January 2025 and wasted no time blending in with her new teammates.

It’s something that impressed Potter.

“You don’t know how it will work out,” said Potter. “You learn how to manage your time, sleep and taking care of your body. Physically, she has skills you can’t teach.”

In the last 18 months, Kovelesky, a quarterfinalist in last year’s U.S. Girls’ Junior (lost to eventual champion Aphrodite Deng), has seen her World Amateur Golf Ranking® rise to its current number of 28. She also finished 17th at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur with a wild final round that included birdies on Nos. 11, 12 and 16 and an eagle on the par-5 15th.

The high ranking got her exempt into the U.S. Women’s Amateur this August at The Honors Course, in Ooltewah, Tenn.

After the Women’s Open, she’ll travel to Scotland to play The Women’s Amateur at historic Muirfield and then represent the U.S. in the Arnold Palmer Cup at Tralee, in the Republic of Ireland.

The only disappointment outside of not winning an NCAA team or individual title this spring was being named first alternate for the 2026 USA Curtis Cup Team that will look to regain the Cup next week at nearby Bel-Air Country Club.

A younger Kovelesky might have fretted the disappointment. She took the news in stride, knowing it will add motivation to make the 2028 team for Royal Dornoch.

Those are decisions, Kovelesky knows, far from her control. All she can do is keep performing to her high standards and let the results speak for themselves.

“It was not the phone call I was hoping to get,” said Kovelesky on not making the team. “In golf, you win some and lose some.”  

She is, however, playing with the world’s best players this week at Riviera. Getting through a dramatic playoff against teammate Macy Pate was tough, but the payoff was sweet. Her mom, Tina, immediately texted her husband, Rich, back in Florida, and arriving at the Wake campus in Winston-Salem, N.C., at midnight after a nearly 2-hour drive was much more palatable.

Exhausted yes. But far more exhilarating than if she had not advanced.

“I called my dad, but he already knew because my mom was texting him,” said Kovelesky. “I gave my mom a big hug. It was a full-circle moment.”

Being back at a U.S. Women’s Open site certainly flooded the memory bank. Yet once on property, she immediately embraced Riviera. At just under 6,700 yards (par 71), the course’s length plays into Kovelesky’s strengths. Potter said she can reach two of the three par-5 holes (1 and 17) in two and can certainly drive the 307-yard 10th hole, considered one of world’s best short par-4s.

Her preparation included playing 10 holes on Sunday, nine more on Monday and 18 on Tuesday. She booked times that suited her and didn’t necessarily seek out the LPGA Tour stars like so many first-timers and amateurs do at these championships.

One thing is for sure: she won’t be starstruck by the crowd, cameras or fellow competitors.

“I’ve gotten used to it,” said Kovelesky. “Almost all of our collegiate events have cameras.”

She’s also much more prepared. In 2021, not realizing how cold San Francisco can be in the summer, Kovelesky didn’t pack much warm clothing, including pants. This time, Kovelesky was armed with a full complement of attire for all kinds of weather conditions.

Her golf game also seems ready. Her mindset is ready, and she won’t let any outside influences affect how she performs.

“The course is really awesome,” said Kovelesky. “It’s in great shape. It’s long and really nice. I like it.”

David Shefter is a senior staff writer at the USGA. Email him at dshefter@usga.org.