Martín Sampedro Earns Top Spot in World Amateur Rankings

STANFORD, Calif. — On the strength of another outstanding summer, Paula Martín Sampedro has moved into the top spot in the most recent women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings. She becomes the 24th female ranked No. 1 in the history of the rankings.

After leading Stanford to its second NCAA Championship in her three seasons as a Cardinal, Martín Sampedro has stayed busy. She stayed in Southern California for the U.S. Women’s Open before heading overseas for a few weeks in June and July. She made match play in The 123^rd Women’s Amateur, which she won last year, and then played in the Arnold Palmer Cup for Team International and in the European Ladies’ Team Championship for Spain.

To close out the summer, Martín Sampedro won the Smyth Salver at the AIG Women’s Open, awarded annually to the best-placing amateur golfer at the LPGA major. Martín Sampedro won it for the second consecutive year, becoming just the fifth golfer to earn the award twice.

Martín Sampedro becomes the third Cardinal to reach the top spot of the women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings, joining Andrea Lee and Rose Zhang. She is also the first female Spaniard to be ranked No. 1. The only other Spanish top-ranked amateur was Jon Rahm on the men’s side, who spent 60 weeks in the top spot from 2015-16.

The most recent Cardinal ranked No. 1 in the world was Zhang, who holds the record for the longest reign atop the amateur rankings, spending 142 consecutive weeks ranked No. 1. Lee reached the top spot on four occasions, holding it for a total of 17 weeks beginning in 2015 and ending in 2019.

Stanford and Duke are the only women’s golf programs in the country to have three golfers reach No. 1 in the women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings.

This is the first new No. 1 in the women’s World Amateur Rankings since July 29, 2025, when Kiara Romero took over at the top. Romero spent over one year as the top-ranked amateur but recently announced her decision to turn pro, forgoing her final year of college eligibility at Oregon.

With Martín Sampedro moving into the top spot, Andrea Revuelta moves into the No. 2 position in the rankings, making Stanford the second program to hold the top two spots in the WAGR rankings.