Peebles golfer Alyssa Smalley wins junior event playoff in Loveland

Alyssa Smalley of Peebles brought a regional junior golf title back to Adams County after winning a playoff at Hickory Woods Golf Club in Loveland. Smalley tied Lainey O’Donnel of Cincinnati at 99 and then finished first in both the Girls 16-19 Division and the Girls 13-19 Division.

The Southern Ohio PGA National Links Junior Open was held Thursday, June 18, 2026, and it put Smalley on the same leaderboard with some of the area’s strongest junior players. Tucker Taylor of Chillicothe won the boys side with a 74, taking both the Boys 16-19 Division and the Boys 13-19 Division. The boys 13-19 group played from a 6,258-yard setup at par 72, a reminder of how demanding the course was for the younger field.

Smalley’s 99 did more than earn a division win. It held up in a playoff, which meant she had to deliver when the round was effectively reduced to one decisive moment against O’Donnel. In a junior event built around scorecard pressure and narrow margins, that kind of finish stands out as much for composure as for the number itself.

Hickory Woods also stayed active on the junior circuit earlier in the month, hosting another Southern Ohio PGA junior event on Thursday, June 11. That run of tournaments showed the course serving as a steady stop for Ohio juniors, not just a one-day venue for a single result.

For Peebles and the rest of Adams County, Smalley’s win carries a local significance that goes beyond one scorecard. It puts a county athlete into the top spot of a competitive regional field and gives younger golfers a clear example of what is possible when local players move into invitationals and PGA junior events. In a sport where opportunities often grow with access to tournaments, coaching and repetition, Smalley’s playoff win gave Adams County another visible result on a wider stage.