MARION – Nikitha Suresh won the trophies June 16, but she won the tournament a day earlier.
The Dublin Jerome standout, who will be a junior in the fall, shot a tournament-best 68 on June 15 to put herself atop the leaderboard by a stroke, then held that position to win the 50th Ohio Junior Girls Championship at Marion Country Club.
Suresh, who helped Jerome win the Division I state title last fall, shot 74-68-73 for a 1-under-par 215, taking the top spot by two strokes over last year’s runner-up, Elizabeth Coleman.
“I was making a lot of putts,” Suresh said of her middle round. “I was putting myself in good positions, and I gave myself a ton of opportunities. I was able to convert those opportunities. That’s what was going really well for me.”
And enough of her play carried over to the final day.
“I came in with a lot of confidence after my second round, so I think that definitely helped me put myself in good position and also stay calm under pressure when scores were starting to get tight,” she said.
Joining her in the last group were Coleman and defending champion Meadow Tian, a recent Olentangy graduate. With her closest rivals on the leaderboard also being her playing partners, Suresh always knew where she stood.
“Everyone is always aware of each other’s scores,” Suresh said. “We knew what position we were in the entire round. Things got pretty tight, especially toward the end. … We all knew it. Staying calm under that pressure was what helped me finish strong and win.”
Coleman, a Medina Highland graduate who will play at Ball State, shot 69-74-74 for a 1-over 217. She shot a 215 last year to finish two shots behind Tian’s 213.
“I like being able to play with girls who I’m competing directly against to try to win because you push each other. That is nice,” Coleman said. “I’m proud of Nikitha. She played really well, so that’s exciting. I wish a couple more putts would have fallen. It was just a couple of putts and a couple of shots that got me in trouble. I got a couple of silly bogeys.”
Tian, who won last fall’s Division I individual state championship and will play at Illinois, shot 72-70-77 for a 3-over 219.
Suresh earned a berth into the 2026 U.S. Girls Junior Championship at Old Chatham Golf Club in Durham, North Carolina, in July. It’s the first time an exemption has been awarded to the Ohio Junior Girls winner.
Suresh was fifth at state last year.
“This is actually my first win of the year,” she said. “I’m hoping to grab a couple more before we go into high school season.”
Another hole-in-one
For the third time, and the second year in a row, the tournament featured a hole-in-one.
Cincinnati’s Charlotte Soller joined Sophia Canale of Fairlawn in 2018 and Bella Mitchell of Lewis Center last year.
The Mariemont graduate and future Ohio University golfer hit the first ace of her career with a 7-iron on the 147-yard ninth hole.
“I said to the people I was playing with that I thought it rolled off the back,” she said. “I thought I had too much iron. All of a sudden I heard my mom scream and everyone started clapping. It was like a burst of excitement.”
She followed it up with two birdies and ended the tournament tied for 13th with a 233. Her final-day 74 was the best of her three rounds.
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This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Jerome golfer Nikitha Suresh wins 50th Ohio Junior Girls Championship
Reporting by Rob McCurdy, Marion Star / Marion Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Rob McCurdy, Marion Star | USA TODAY Network
