Elayna Bowser of Dearborn Tops 2025 Women’s Points List
By Greg Johnson- GAM.org
FARMINGTON HILLS – Elayna Bowser reached the round of 16 in the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship at Monterey Peninsula Country Club in California and wanted to keep going for a couple of reasons.
First, the 28-year-old Dearborn real-estate agent wanted to win the national championship, but she also wanted to advance because she would get another round on the club’s famed Dunes course.
“That was the nicest course I’ve ever played,” she said. “I wanted to keep winning matches because I wanted to win obviously, but I also just wanted to keep playing that golf course. The views were spectacular, but the thought that went into the design of the course was amazing and it required so much creativity. It was so fun to play.”
Her run to the round of 16 combined with a runner-up finish in the Michigan Women’s Amateur and a tie for second in the GAM Women’s Mid-Amateur powered Bowser to the top of the Golf Association of Michigan Points List, and she has been named the 2025 GAM Women’s Player of the Year, Ken Hartmann, senior director of competitions and USGA services, announced today.
It’s the second consecutive year in which Bowser has earned the honor.
Player of the Year point totals can be found on a pull down from the PLAY tab at GAM.org. Carl’s Golfland is the presenting sponsor of the points lists. Later this week, the GAM will announce the Men’s Player of the Year, and in the next few weeks the GAM will announce more Players of the Year in gender and age categories.
Bowser, the 2019 Michigan Women’s Amateur Champion during her standout collegiate career at Loyola University Chicago, is a reinstated amateur. She played for four years professionally following college and returned to the amateur ranks in 2024.
“Being Player of the Year is so hard to accomplish,” she said. “Michigan has so many talented players, and I feel great that I’m still able to be out there and compete. It gives me so much confidence in my game.”
Hartmann said he is impressed that Bowser has found a way to maintain her game while balancing golf with her real-estate career.
“She has figured out a way to keep her game at a high level,” he said. “She played well in everything this summer. Experience is part of it, but she’s also just a great competitor.”
Bowser earned 797.5 points to top the list, just ahead of GAM Women’s Mid-Amateur Champion Laura Bavaird of Trenton, who had 750.
Michigan Amateur Champion Macie Elzinga of Byron Center and Bowling Green State University finished third with 635 points, and Kimberly Dinh of Midland with 495 points and Elise Fennell of Caledonia and Illinois State University with 360 points rounded out the top five.
Bowser said with her current golf game, less is more.
“I actually practice less with my work schedule, but I play as much as possible and try to enjoy it,” she said. “My favorite times on the golf course these days are not always in tournaments but playing a round of golf with my brother or at 4 or 5 o’clock with my boyfriend and playing in a Saturday skins games with the guys at Dearborn Country Club. I think I’m more relaxed with golf now and that has helped me in competition.”
