Kirtland Central golfer Hayden Dan competes at national championship
Kirtland Central’s Hayden Dan tied for 19th at the First Tee National Championship in Chapel Hill, giving the Four Corners a place in a 48-player national field.
Hayden Dan finished tied for 19th at the First Tee National Championship in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, putting Kirtland Central and the Four Corners region on a national stage at UNC Finley Golf Club. The incoming junior represented First Tee- Four Corners in a 54-hole, no-cut stroke-play event that brought together 48 golfers, 24 girls and 24 boys, ages 14 to 18.
The sixth annual championship ran June 21-25 at the University of North Carolina’s campus course and mixed elite competition with the broader First Tee experience. Players were selected solely on golf ability, and the week also included guest speakers and time on a top collegiate golf campus. First Tee’s 2026 field included 12 players who had already committed to college golf teams. Each division winner received the Tattersall Cup and an exemption into the PGA TOUR Champions’ PURE Insurance Championship at Pebble Beach Golf Links in September.
Dan’s path to Chapel Hill was built in the Four Corners. She won the Durango Hillcrest Invitational in April, helping Kirtland Central top Durango High School, and then finished runner-up at the NMAA Class 4A girls state tournament in May for the second straight year. She has also placed in the top 10 at each of the last three state championship tournaments, a stretch that dates back to her eighth-grade season.
Her national tournament started slowly, with a 13-over-par opening round, but she steadied herself Wednesday with a 5-over round that included two birdies on the back nine. Dan entered the final round at 18 over par and closed with a 9-over 79, which left her tied for 19th in the girls division. Ashley Shaw of Phoenix, Arizona, won the title at 10 under par after a final-round 65 and finished 13 shots ahead of Naomi Phan of Fort Worth, Texas.
Kirtland Central coach Judith Camacho said Dan wants to keep pursuing golf and be a good example for younger players.
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