Andover golfer Lunden Esterline powers Team USA to lead at Junior Ryder Cup
Lunden Esterline is turning heads from Wichita to New York.
The 17-year-old Andover native is fresh off a record-setting victory at the Junior PGA Championship, which earned him the opportunity to represent Team USA this week at the Junior Ryder Cup.
On Tuesday, Esterline and teammate Hamilton Coleman dropped a tight morning foursomes match 1 up to Europe’s John Doyle and Kris Kim. The afternoon brought redemption, as Esterline and partner Zoe Cusack delivered the USA’s biggest win of the day — a 6-and-4 rout of Alice Kong and Doyle in mixed foursomes. Esterline and Cusack will tee off again Wednesday morning in mixed four-ball competition at 9:30 a.m. Central time.
After day one, Team USA holds a narrow 6.5-to-5.5 lead, buoyed by Esterline’s standout performance.
The three-day event features six boys and six girls per side, all 18 or under, with Tuesday and Wednesday at Nassau Country Club and Thursday’s singles matches at Bethpage Black, the same course hosting the professional Ryder Cup the following day.
Esterline, who won a Kansas high school state title in Class 3A as a freshman in 2024, is a junior at Wichita Collegiate and is verbally committed to Auburn. He no longer competes during high school season, rather playing year-round to compete nationally. He is one of the top-ranked junior golfers in North America.
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