Tag: Dewi Weber

LPGA Q-Series: Former Netflix star, an NAIA history maker and freshly-minted pros set for 144-hole grind

Meet 12 of the players set for the 144-hole grind.

One hundred players will tee it up this week at LPGA Q-Series, an eight-round grind that begins on Dec. 1 and ends Dec. 11. The first week will be contested at the RTJ Trail at Magnolia Grove in Mobile, Alabama, at the Crossings and Falls courses.

The field will be cut to top 70 and ties after the first week of competition. The second week of competition will take place at Highland Oaks Golf Course in Dothan, Alabama.

A total of 45 players will receive LPGA status in 2023. This is the first year that players were required to turn professional before entering Q-Series. A total of six players turned pro for this week: Nataliya Guseva, Minji Kang, Ashley Lau, Heather Lin, Valery Plata and Natthakritta Vongtaveelap.

Players in the top 75 of the Rolex Rankings automatically advanced to the final stage. Those players include: Yuna Nishimura (44), Hae Ran Ryu (51) and Minami Katsu (56).

Players who finish in the top 20 of Q-Series will fall under Category 14 of the LPGA Priority List. Those who finish 21-45 and ties earn Category 15 and Epson Tour status Category C.

Those who complete all four rounds before the cut earn Epson Tour status.

This year’s field features an eclectic group of players, including former college hotshots, up-and-comers and a former Netflix star.

“No one really wants to be here,” said Dewi Weber, who finished 101st on the CME points list this year, one position shy of a full card.

“The vibes are always really, really weird at Q-school. But I was a rookie on the LPGA, but I feel like I’m kind of a vet when it comes to Q-school because I’ve done this now four times, even though I don’t want to but I have.”

A 59, six 61s: Low scores galore in second round at LPGA team event Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational

Low scores were scattered all over the leaderboard at the Midland Country Club on Thursday.

Sarah Jane Smith and Mariajo Uribe shot a 74 in the LPGA’s lone team event in Wednesday’s opening round but produced a score 15 shots better Thursday at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.

That’s right, the dynamic duo teamed up for a 59 on the par-70 course in the second round. But, that was only good enough to get into a tie for 16th after 36 holes.

Low scores were scattered all over the leaderboard at the Midland Country Club in Midland, Michigan, on Thursday, with six teams posting a 61 in the second round.

The 61 carded by the team of Pauline Roussin and Dewi Weber was highlighted by an ace on the par-3 7th hole by Roussin. They lead the tournament by three shots at 14 under.

Jennifer Kupcho and Lizette Salas, who combined for 10 birdies and a bogey, also shot 61 on Thursday. They are in solo second at 11 under, three shots back.

There are five teams tied for third at 10 under, and that group includes two more teams who shot 61: Matilda Castren and Kelly Tan as well as Sarah Kemp and Elena Sharp.

Sophia Popov and Anne van Dam are tied for eighth after they carded a 61. Amanda Doherty and Sophia Schubert also shot a 61.

There were 11 62s posted, including Tiffany Chan and Haeji Kang, who are among those teams tied for third.

Marina Alex, playing alongside LPGA legend Karrie Webb, shot a 62. They are tied for sixth. A Lim Kim and Yealimi Noh also posted a 62.

Annika Sorenstam and Madelene Sagstrom shot a 66, one day after a 65 put them atop the leaderboard. They are now tied for eighth with two days to go.

Sorenstam, a 51-year-old mother of two, retired from the LPGA in 2008 but began competing in several events last year in the run-up to her debut in the U.S. Senior Women’s Open, which she won. The 72-time winner last won on the LPGA on May 11, 2008, at the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill. Should Sorenstam win on Saturday, it would be 5,179 days since her last LPGA title.

Nelly and Jessica Korda shot 69-63 in the first two days and are tied for 12th. The defending champions of the tournament are another sister squad, Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn. Their Thursday 64 wasn’t enough, however, to salvage their first-round 73, leading to a missed cut.

The Dow features a Saturday finish. The LPGA’s fourth major of 2022 is July 21-24 at the Amundi Evian Championship in France.

Beth Ann Nichols contributed to this article.

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