Experience and talent carry Latanna Stone to Dixie Women's title

Latanna Stone began the final round with a two-stroke lead in the women's division of the Dixie Amateur and then emphatically slammed the door on her closest pursuers by firing a 4-under 67 on Sunday to claim the title.

The LSU junior from Riverview, Fla. put together rounds of 69-69-70-67 to finish at 9-under 275 to earn a four-stroke over Reagan Zibilski, a senior at Springfield (Mo.) Catholic High School who has committed to play at the University of Arkansas next fall.

After opening her final round with three straight pars, Stone extended her lead with four birdies on the next six holes to make the turn at 4-under 32. Nine steady pars on her inward nine were more than enough to seal the title for the first-team All-SEC selection who played on victorious Palmer Cup teams in 2020 and '21.

"My play overall this week was solid, every part of my game was very steady," said Stone. "I have played in the Dixie Amateur since I was 12 years old, so winning it was very special to me."

For Stone, who first made a splash by qualifying for the U.S. Women's Amateur as a 10-year-old in 2012 -- she has been a member of AmateurGolf.com since then -- the Dixie win was a nice bookend to a year that started with her winning the Women's Orlando International Amateur in January.

Angela Arora, one of Canada's top junior players, finished third at 4-under 280 while Duke-bound Andie Smith was seven back at 2-under 282. Nicole Gal and Yunxuan (Michelle) Zhang, the co-leader after the first round, rounded out the top-five at 1-under 283. Gianna Clemente, a first-team Rolex AJGA All-American who shot a 7-under 64 in Friday's second round, finished seventh at even-par 284.