GRANITEVILLE — Gianna Clemente is no stranger to the highest levels of junior and amateur golf.
The 16-year-old Floridian burst onto the scene as a 14-year-old by Monday qualifying into three consecutive LPGA Tour events, and she’s maintained that upward trajectory to become a “veteran” player in some loaded fields despite her age.
Next month she’ll be making her third Augusta National Women’s Amateur appearance against a field primarily composed of elite college talent, and this week she’s playing in her fourth Junior Invitational at Sage Valley.
Her schedule is loaded with prestigious events at exclusive courses, and a trip to Sage Valley Golf Club is right up there with the best of them.
“Just excited to be here again,” she said. “This is one of my favorite tournaments of the year, and they just treat us so well here the entire week. I mean, the golf course is amazing in itself, but the week and the way they treat us is really unmatched. So, yeah, I’m just excited to be back and going to have some fun this week.”
Clemente, the reigning American Junior Golf Association Rolex Junior Player of the Year on the girls’ side, tied for 11th at Sage Valley last year before racking up several high finishes. She won the Mizuho Americas Open last May, tied for third at the U.S. Girls’ Junior in July and was runner-up in October at the PING Invitational.
She knows what it takes to play well here, having finished alone in fourth in 2022 in the inaugural girls’ championship and following that up by tying for eighth the next year.
“I think knowing the greens is really important. These greens can get a bit tricky, especially as they get faster throughout the week,” she said. “But, yeah, just working on my swing a little bit right now and just trying to dial some things in with the wedges and things like that, make sure the distance control is good. This course can be a little bit demanding, especially if you miss the fairway, so I think just trying to dial the swing in, for sure.”
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