LAKE ELMO, Minn. — Kiara Romero couldn’t help but smile. When she looked around, she was surrounded by fans clad in green and yellow.
The junior at Oregon was making her LPGA debut at the Standard Portland Classic. For many amateurs, it would be their first time playing on the big stage, and the pressure might swallow them whole. Not Romero, the No. 1 amateur in the world, who was playing only an hour-and-a-half from her college campus. With Ducks fans in attendance, it felt like a home game.
For Romero, it’s a feeling she ought to get used to.
Romero began her third season of college golf this week in the Annika Intercollegiate at Royal Golf Club outside of Minneapolis, the same course she won in her debut two years ago. A lot has changed in that time span, including her expectations for the future, going about as high as her ball flight when she smashes driver and shapes iron shots. And with the addition of the LPGA Elite Amateur Pathway (LEAP) program, Romero may soon be a professional if her recent stretch of strong play continues.
“It’s been a lot of fun playing on the LPGA, a few events there, and playing on TV quite a bit these past few weeks,” Romero said of her newfound stardom. “It’s just been amazing. And it kind of just makes it a lot more fun out there.”
Romero’s talent has always been there. Plenty of people got introduced to it last month at the U.S. Women’s Amateur. Facing a 1-down deficit on the 18th hole in the quarterfinals, she hit driver off the deck on the par-5 18th hole and eventually won it, forcing extras.
The next week, Romero made her LPGA debut in Portland, where she finished in the top 10, earning her a spot in the next event’s field in Canada. She made the cut there, too. Those two LPGA appearances earned her three points in LEAP, moving her to 14. If she gets to 20, she earns an LPGA card.
When the summer began, Romero, the 2023 U.S. Girls’ Junior champion, had only two points.
A year ago, LEAP didn’t exist, but the LPGA finally announced a direct pathway to the tour for the top amateurs, similar to PGA Tour University. Lottie Woad was the first player to earn her card via the program, and then she won her pro debut at the Scottish Open this summer.
Now all eyes turn to Romero, who isn’t too focused on trying to get to 20 points.
“It provides another path to the LPGA, but as for right now, I don’t think it changes much perspective-wise,” she said. “My goals for right now, just kind of focusing on each tournament as it is and not worrying about it too much.”
Romero set a U.S. Women’s Open record earlier this summer when she closed in 5-under 67 at Erin Hills, the lowest final round ever from an amateur. She played on the U.S. Palmer Cup team and then moved to No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking when Woad turned pro. After the U.S. Women’s Amateur at Bandon Dunes, Romero earned the McCormack Medal. Add in her points from the two LPGA starts, it adds up to 12 LEAP points in about 2.5 months.
Her path to an LPGA card is there. She’ll get to play in majors, like the 2026 U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera, and the next week she’s a shoo-in to represent the United States in the Curtis Cup, where she’ll get two points. There are also points available for winning the Annika Award, the Women’s Golf Coaches Association Player of the Year, the individual champion at NCAAs, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the World Amateur Team Championship, which Romero will lead Team USA at next month in Singapore.
It’s almost a matter of when, not if, Romero will earn her LPGA card.
“I know it’s pretty hard to get the 20 points,” Romero said. “But if it happens, it happens.”
At the Annika Intercollegiate, Romero opened in 3-over 75 but bounced back with a 3-under 69 on Tuesday with a crazy back nine that featured four birdies, an eagle, a bogey and a double. She’s inside the top 10 heading into the final round.
As far as what her junior season and future holds, that’s up to Romero. She said her ultimate goal is to win a national championship. Coming back to the tournament where she won in her collegiate debut has given her good memories.
It’s a reminder to enjoy being an amateur now because this part of her golf career is in its final stages. But soon, she’ll have fans like the ones in Portland cheering for her week in and week out.
“It’s just really cool to look back at it and think about how excited I was to come here as a freshman, just 17 years old, and play my first college event,” Romero said. “It just kind of puts it into perspective to see how excited I really was to come out here, and right now, it’s just like another college event. So, just to look back at that, it kind of gives me a lot of gratitude and just to get back to that perspective of being really excited to come out and just play golf.”
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