Brooks, 17, of Sorrento, Fla., sealed the win with a dominating performance, defeating Wendy Hsaio, of Chinese Taipei, 9 and 7. Brooks teamed with Hannah O’Sullivan, 17, of Chandler, Ariz., for a 1-up four-ball victory to open play on Day 1. O’Sullivan defeated Brooks in the 36-hole final match of last month’s U.S. Women’s Amateur at Portland (Ore.) Golf Club, 3 and 2.
“The last week in China has been an overall incredible experience as I bonded with my teammates and fellow competitors as we made lasting memories,” said O’Sullivan. “I am always so honored and humbled to represent our country, and it is the opportunities to represent the United States that I cherish the most. I really enjoyed meeting and playing with my teammates and all of the players from China and Chinese Taipei.”
Later on Day 1, Brooks and Kyosuke Hara, 16, of Honolulu, Hawaii, produced a 5-and-4 mixed foursomes win. On the second day of competition, Brooks and Kyle Suppa, 17, of Honolulu, Hawaii, won, 7 and 5, in mixed four-ball and later that day she partnered with Mika Liu, 16, of Bradenton, Fla., for a 4-and-3 foursomes win. In May, Liu won the inaugural U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Bandon Dunes with partner Rinko Mitsunaga.
O’Sullivan and Suppa each earned four points for USA-Mexico, with the latter going 4-0-1. Suppa halved a Day 2 foursomes match with partner Doc Redman, 17, of Raleigh, N.C. Both golfers won their singles matches with O’Sullivan defeating Chen Hsuan, of Chinese Taipei, 2 and 1, and Suppa edging Hsu Hung-Hsuan, of Chinese Taipei, 2 and 1.
“When we got to the golf course and we met our caddies, it was so hard because we could not speak Mandarin and they could not speak English, so it was like playing charades,” said Hara. “Although at the end of the week I found out that my caddie could say quite a few English words, which made my life easier.”
Angel Yin, 16, of Arcadia, Calif., the runner-up in the 2015 U.S. Girls’ Junior, and Liu each went 3-2. Yin defeated Man Jin, of the People’s Republic of China, 2 up, in the final singles match of the competition, while Liu cruised over Qi Tian, of the People’s Republic of China, 6 and 4.
On Day 1, Yin and Liu produced a 4-and-3 four-ball win.
Spencer Soosman, 17, of Westlake Village, Calif., and Redman posted 2-3 and 2-2-1 records, respectively. Soosman dropped a 1-up decision to Guan Tianlang, of China, who made the cut in the 2013 Masters at the age of 14 after earning his invitation by winning the 2012 Asia-Pacific Amateur. Soosman teamed with Redman on Day 1 for a 5-and-4 four-ball win, and with Hara on Day 2 for a 2-up foursomes win.
All four female players from Mexico competed in USGA championships in 2015, including U.S. Girls’ Junior semifinalist Evelyn Arguelles and 2015 U.S. Women’s Open qualifier Maria Fassi.
Cheng Jin, of China, who advanced to the Round of 64 in last month’s U.S. Junior Amateur and competed in the U.S. Amateur, earned a 3-and-2 singles win over Jorge Villar, of Mexico.
Besides the golf, the team got a chance to visit the Great Wall of China, which dates to 220 B.C. and was constructed by Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China.
“The most interesting story from my trip was hiking up the Great Wall of China,” said Suppa. “They were probably the steepest steps that I have ever climbed in my life and they extended out for a very long time.”
