Online Reporter
Brandon Moyo-Zimpapers Sports Hub
ONE of Zimbabwe’s leading amateur golfers, Keegan Shutt, produced a stellar performance in the final round of the 2025 Junior Orange Bowl, finishing tied on fourth position at Biltmore Golf Course in Miami, United States of America (USA), last weekend.
Shutt carded an impressive two-under-par 282 to finish in the top five of one of the most prestigious junior golf tournaments in the world.
He was five strokes behind Lorenzo Rodriguez, who captured the Junior Orange Bowl crown after shooting seven-under-par 277.
Shutt was in a three-way tie for fourth with Harry Cox of England and Joey Iaciofano of the US.
The Royal Harare prodigy — who was part of the Zimbabwean team that competed at the 2024 All Africa Golf Team Championship (AAGTC) in Bulawayo last year — started off strong in round one of the tournament with an impressive four-under-par 67.
His first-round score placed him among the early contenders for the championship, with the eventual winner, Rodri-guez, carding a similar score.
In the second round, Shutt shot one-under-par 70 before facing a difficult third round. It was in round three that the Zimbabwean ace had a challenging outing on the course. Shutt carded his worst round of the tournament, shooting six-over-par 77. Following his disappointing performance in the third round, he bounced back strongly in the fourth and final round.
He produced a remarkable comeback, shooting an impressive three-under-par 68 in the fourth round to complete the tournament and secure a top-five finish.
Shutt — not only one of the best in Zimbabwe — has now established his status as one of the world’s rising talents.
In an interview conducted with Babygrande Golf during the tournament, Shutt, who is looking to turn professional in the near future, said he aims to play as much golf as possible this year and carry his momentum from the previous year.
“I will be playing a lot of tournaments because I just finished school last year. I will be playing many tournaments in South Africa, and I want to try and get as many wins as possible, like I have done before. I want to try and keep that up. When I go to college, I just want to gain new experiences,” said Shutt.
With Shutt finishing in a three-way tie for fourth and Rodriguez winning the tournament, in second place was Joshua Hess of Switzerland (six-under-par 278), with Colombia’s Tomas Restrepo finishing third (five-under-par 279).
Shauna Liu of Canada won the girls’ event, becoming the fourth Canadian girl to win the Junior Orange Bowl and the second in the past five years, alongside Emily Zhu (2021). Maude-Aimée LeBlanc was the first in 2006, followed by Brooke Henderson seven years later.
Rodriguez and Liu now join a list of Junior Orange Bowl champions that includes Tiger Woods (1991) and LPGA Hall of Famer Inbee Park (2002). The line-up also features LPGA major winners Lexi Thompson (2009) and Brooke Henderson (2013), as well as current Saudi International champion Joaquin Niemann (2014).
Meanwhile, the first tournament of the year on the Zimbabwe Golf Association (ZGA) calendar is scheduled for January 25 at Bulawayo Golf Club. It is the Dugmore championship, which is the traditional season opener in Zimbabwe.
