CHICAGO — Stanford's Jay Leng joined some of amateur golf's biggest stars Sunday, defeating Vanderbilt's Michael Riebe, 5 and 4, to capture the 124th Western Amateur presented by Inspire11 at The Beverly Country Club.

After knocking off stroke-play medalist Miles Russell – the nation's top-ranked junior – 3 and 1 in the morning semifinals, Leng cruised in the championship match. The No. 33-ranked player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking won the second hole and never trailed, claiming six holes while losing just one in a commanding victory.

Resources: Match Play Bracket

Leng and Riebe, ranked No. 109, are California natives who have squared off plenty outside the college season. But Sunday's meeting carried far greater stakes.

“It was nice playing a friend because I knew it was going to be a friendly match,” Leng said. “Obviously, very competitive. We just played last week together. It kind of felt like just another match. I mean, obviously, there were a few hundred people watching.”

After Saturday's semifinals and championship match were postponed because of inclement weather, a large gallery returned to The Beverly Country Club on Sunday to watch amateur golf's premier championship crown its newest champion.

The 20-year-old Leng became the fifth Stanford player to win the Western Amateur, joining Michael Thorbjornsen (2021, Glen View Club) – who earned his first PGA TOUR win at the Rocket Classic in Detroit on Sunday – David Chung (2010, Skokie Country Club), Joel Kribel (1996, Point O’ Woods Golf & Country Club) and 15-time major champion Tiger Woods (1994, Point O’ Woods).

“To be honest, I'm kind of at a loss for words still,” Leng said. “I was trying not to think about it on the course at all, just trying to stay calm and play my game. But I don't think it's sunk in yet.”

The championship ended on the drivable par-4 14th, where the longtime competitors both made par before sharing a handshake and embrace after five days of competition.

“Yeah, that last putt, it took a little bit to pick the ball out of the hole,” Leng said. “It was just a lot of thoughts coming through my mind, and all the things I've been through and all the tournaments I've played have led up to this. It was a very happy moment.”

Riebe, 19, will carry plenty of confidence into his sophomore season at Vanderbilt after knocking off 2025 Western Amateur semifinalist Zackary Swanwick, Australian standout Kayun Mudadana and Auburn’s Logan Reilly – who recently helped the Tigers to a national championship – on his way to the final.

“It was a really fun week,” Riebe said. “I haven’t been playing that well this year, so to play good this week was awesome and at a great venue. I really stepped up to a lot of big moments this week which I’m really excited about. I trusted my game, obviously came up just short, which sucks, but looking forward to coming back in the future and playing more golf.”

The Western Amateur – first held in 1899 – is the third-oldest amateur championship in the world, behind only the British Amateur (1885) and the U.S. Amateur (1895). The championship’s grueling format features 72 holes of stroke play over three days to determine the Sweet 16 for match play. It’s one of the purest tests in amateur golf.

Knollwood Club in Lake Forest, Illinois, will host the 125th Western Amateur in 2027, becoming the first club to host the Western Junior and Western Amateur in consecutive years.

Round of 16 Results
Friday, July 31
Miles Russell, Jacksonville Beach, Florida def. Boston Bracken, Saint George, Utah, 3 and 2
Tyler Watts, Huntsville, Alabama def. Carson Bertagnole, Pinehurst, North Carolina, 5 and 4
Jaden Dumdumaya, Benicia, California def. Max Herendeen, Champaign, Illinois, 4 and 2
Jay Leng, San Diego, California def. Dean Greyserman, Boca Raton, Florida, 1 up
Josiah Gilbert, Millbrook, Alabama def. Baylor Larrabee, Ferndale, Washington, 1 up
Logan Reilly, Lovettsville, Virginia def. Daniel Bennett, Pretoria, South Africa, 1 up
Kayun Mudadana, Sydney, Australia def. Will Hartman, Marvin, North Carolina, 20 holes
Michael Riebe, Encinitas, California def. Zackary Swanwick, Napier, New Zealand, 2 and 1

Quarterfinal Results
Friday, July 31
Russell def. Watts, 3 and 1
Leng def. Dumdumaya, 5 and 3
Reilly def. Gilbert, 4 and 3
Riebe def. Mudadana, 4 and 3

Semifinals
Sunday, Aug. 2
Leng def. Russell, 3 and 1
Riebe def. Reilly, 1 up

Final
Sunday, Aug. 2
Leng def. Riebe, 5 and 4