Nguyen Anh Minh before the historic moment: First time participating in a prestigious major tournament

Never before has Vietnamese golf been so close to a historic milestone as it is now. If he wins the final match of the 2025 US Junior Amateur, Nguyen Anh Minh will officially receive an invitation to the US Open, one of the four most prestigious major tournaments in the world of golf.

The final match of the 77th US Junior Amateur will take place at Trinity Forest Golf Club (Texas, USA) tonight (Vietnam time) in a 36-hole format. Anh Minh's opponent is Hamilton Coleman, a 17-year-old home golfer from Augusta, Georgia, which is considered the "holy land" of American golf.

To reach the finals, Anh Minh had to go through a really tough journey. 5 knockout matches, under the scorching sun of Texas, where the temperature reached 38°C for many days in a row.

This is even more special when recalling the not-so-smooth start of Vietnam's number 1 golfer. After a 74-stroke round in round 1 and ranking only 114th, Anh Minh made an impressive comeback in round 2. He scored 6 birdies, only 1 bogey, finished the round with 66 strokes (-5) to rise to T13, overcome the cut and confidently advance to the knockout round.

Anh Minh's journey in the knockout round continues to be a testament to his character and perseverance. In the quarterfinals, Anh Minh's opponent is Nicholas Gross, a sophomore at the University of Alabama, who was a semifinalist at the 2022 US Amateur.

The start was not favorable with a bogey on the first hole to let his opponent take the lead, but Anh Minh quickly turned the situation around, leading 2Up after 9 holes.

Although Gross tied at hole 13, the Vietnamese golfer still kept his cool and hit accurate shots to approach the flag, scoring 4 birdies from hole 14 to hole 17, ending the match with a 3&1 victory.

Entering the semi-finals against Qiyou Wu (China), who had just eliminated the second seed of the tournament, it seemed that Anh Minh would face many difficulties. However, the Vietnamese golfer easily took a 5Up lead after only 6 holes.

Wu's efforts helped him reduce the gap on hole 8, before the two tied for 7 consecutive holes. The match ended on hole 15 with a 4&3 victory, sending Anh Minh straight to the final.

Photo of Anh Minh and Coleman on the USGA homepage.

After this historic victory, the US Golf Association (USGA) homepage posted a picture of Anh Minh with the caption: "Nguyen Anh Minh is trying to make history by becoming the first Vietnamese to win a USGA title."

“This is really special. To be the first Vietnamese person to reach the finals of a USGA tournament. It is an amazing milestone," Anh Minh shared on the USGA homepage.

Minh, currently ranked 52nd in the world amateur rankings and set to join Oregon State University as a freshman this fall, is making his second appearance at the U.S. Junior Amateur. Last season, the 2007-born golfer made a splash by reaching the quarterfinals at Oakland Hills in his first appearance.

“I really wanted to go deeper than last year. That was the biggest goal and I'm grateful that I've made it this far," Minh recalled his quarterfinal performance last year.

Anh Minh is the 13th international golfer since 1994 to reach the final of the US Junior Amateur. The first was Enrique Sterling Jr. (Mexico) in 1964, but lost to the legendary Johnny Miller. Wenyi Ding (China) was the most recent winner in 2022.