Canadian Emily Zhu wins Junior Orange Bowl golf championship

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Canadian golfer Emily Zhu has captured the prestigious Junior Orange Bowl Invitational.

The 16-year-old Zhu, from Richmond Hill, Ont., finished 7 under for the 72-hole tournament on Wednesday, three strokes ahead of Antonia Matte of Chile.

Previous winners of the Junior Orange Bowl girls event include LPGA Tour stars Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., Inbee Park, Cristie Kerr, Lexi Thompson and Ariya Jutanugarn.

Zhu, a member of Golf Canada’s national team, was the Canadian junior girls champion in 2019. She also tied for eighth at the Orange Bowl that year.

In the Orange Bowl boys event, Jean-Philippe Parr of St-Celestin, Que., was third, seven shots behind winner Sebastian Moss of the U.S.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 6, 2021.