Two rounds remain in the 108-hole marathon at RTJ’s Magnolia Grove.
The field at LPGA Q-Series was cut to the top 65 and ties after the fourth round in Mobile, Alabama. A total of 70 players advanced. Two rounds remain in the 108-hole marathon at RTJ’s Magnolia Grove.
Australia’s Robyn Choi, No. 339 in the Rolex Rankings, leads the field by three strokes after carding back-to-back 64s. Choi, who hasn’t made a bogey in her last 57 holes, paces the field at 21-under 265. Japan’s Yuri Yoshida and Korea’s So Mi Lee both shot 65 in the fourth round and are tied for second at 18 under.
“I think I hit most greens,” said Choi, who last played on the LPGA in 2020. “I’m hitting them close as well, making the putts. Definitely making more than I have the last few months, so that’s good … just everything in general is clicking together, I think.”
Former U.S. Solheim Cup player Mina Harigae, who finished 101st on the CME points list, missing her full card by a single position, holds a share of fifth at 14 under.
Mina Harigae/LPGA photo
Former Clemson fifth-year senior Savannah Grewal shot 67 to remain in the top 10 at 13 under. Grewal, who recently turned professional to compete in Q-Series, medaled at the first stage of qualifying school and then opted to leave college after sailing through the second stage.
Over the past year, Grewal dropped four strokes off her scoring average in college golf.
“I think honestly, just knowing that I’m good enough to compete out here is a big thing,” said Grewal. “I think that helps with the confidence for sure.”
The top 45 and ties after 108 holes will earn 2024 LPGA eligibility, with players finishing 1-20 receiving a higher category of status.
The cut fell at 3 under. Notable players who missed the cut include Natthakritta Vongtaveelap, Emma Talley, Christina Kim, Emma Spitz and Su Oh.
The final round, originally scheduled for Tuesday, was pushed to Wednesday after three inches of rain fell on Saturday in Mobile, forcing Saturday’s third round to be postponed to Sunday.
The 108-hole grind that is the 2023 LPGA Q-Series will go to a seventh day.
The 108-hole grind that is the 2023 LPGA Q-Series will go to a seventh day.
Three inches of rain Saturday in Mobile, Alabama, led to the postponement of the third round, which had to roll over to Sunday. The final round will now happen Wednesday.
There are 104 golfers at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail competing for LPGA cards for the 2024 season. Robyn Choi of Australia leads the way at 13 under after 54 holes. She shot the lone 64 (7 under) at the Falls Course on Sunday. Three golfers – India’s Diksha Dagar, American Lauren Stephenson and Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe – posted 8-under 64s on the Crossings Course on Sunday.
Tied for second at 12 under, a shot back, are Japan’s Mao Saigo, Korea’s Hyo Joon Jang and Mira Harigae of the U.S., who finished 101st in the CME points, one spot out of earning a 2024 card. She also dropped from 49th to 120th in the Rolex Rankings. Rounds of 68-66-68 so far this week have her in solid position at Q-Series.
There will be a cut after the fourth round, which is now going to be on Monday, with the low 65 and ties advancing. The projected cut as of Sunday night is 3 under. Come Wednesday, the top 45 and ties will earn their cards. Any player who completes 72 holes will receive Epson Tour status.
The LPGA is sticking to the six-round schedule and also wants to “allow maintenance crews to prepare the golf courses and provide the fairest course conditions for the competition,” the tour said in a release.
The re-worked daily schedule, according to the LPGA, now looks like this:
Round 4 will start at 7:30 a.m. ET on Monday from No. 1 tee only
After round 4, the cut will be made of the top 65 players and ties
Round 5 will start at 7:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday on Crossings Course from No. 1 and 10 tee
Round 6 will start at 7:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday on Crossings Course from No. 1 and 10 tees
The five-time LPGA winner is instead caddying at LPGA Q-Series for good friend Jennifer Song.
Amy Yang is back inside the ropes after winning the CME Group Tour Championship and the $2 million first-place prize. Only Yang wont’t hit any shots. The five-time LPGA winner is instead caddying at LPGA Q-Series for good friend Jennifer Song, according to lpga.com.
Yang, 34, last played at LPGA Q-School in 2008, but agreed to return to help Song, who finished 149th on the CME points list, which determines LPGA status. The top 100 on the CME list keep full status each year.
Song, 33, missed 11 cuts in 18 starts on tour in 2023. The 2009 U.S. Women’s Amateur and U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links champion, Song has recorded 13 career top-10 finishes and made $3,006,404 since joining the tour in 2011.
Jennifer Song of the United States plays her second shot on the 18th hole on Day One of the ISPS HANDA World Invitational presented by AVIV Clinics at Galgorm Castle Golf Club on August 17, 2023 in United Kingdom. (Photo by Octavio Passos/Getty Images)
The newly abbreviated LPGA Q-Series got underway Thursday at the Robert Trent Jones’ Magnolia Grove Golf Course in Mobile, Alabama. The event, which has been shortened from 144 holes to 108 holes, concludes Dec. 5.
Song is one of 104 players who will compete over the Falls and Crossings courses, with a cut after Round 4 to low 65 and ties.
Players who finish in the top 45 and ties will earn 2024 LPGA cards, with those in the top 20 earning a higher status.
Players who finish in the top 45 and ties will earn 2024 LPGA cards.
An abbreviated LPGA Q-Series gets underway on Thursday at Robert Trent Jones’ Magnolia Grove Golf Course in Mobile, Alabama. The event, which has been shortened from 144 holes to 108 holes, concludes on Dec. 5.
A field of 104 players will compete over the Falls and Crossings courses, with a cut after Round 4 to low 65 and ties. Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Hae Ran Ryu medaled at the 2022 Q-Series.
Players who finish in the top 45 and ties will earn 2024 LPGA cards. Those who finish in the top 20 and ties will earn the Category 14 status while those who are 21-45 and ties will fall into Category 15.
Any player who completes 72 holes will receive Epson Tour status.
The deadline for players to sign up for Q-Series as a professional was Nov. 17.
NAPLES, Fla. — Savannah Grewal picked a fine time to be playing the best golf of her life. The Clemson fifth-year senior took a share of first at Stage 1 of LPGA Qualifying school and then promptly won her first college tournament at the Cougar Classic. Over the past year, she’s dropped four strokes off her scoring average.
After sailing through the second stage of Q-School last month, Grewal has decided to turn professional to compete in the upcoming LPGA Q-Series.
“It feels kind of surreal so far,” she said what lies ahead, “something I’ve been dreaming about since I was 8 years old.”
The second stage of LPGA Q-School wrapped up in Venice, Florida, Oct. 20 and of the 188 who started the week, 41 advanced. Among those 41 were nine amateurs, including Grewal (T-6) and LSU’s Ingrid Lindblad, who topped the field by four strokes with an 18-under total.
Lindblad, a fifth-year senior who is currently No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, shot 67-66-70-67 at Plantation Golf and Country Club’s Bobcat and Panther courses.
The deadline for players to sign up for Q-Series as a professional was Nov. 17. Lindblad was one of five amateurs who decided to forgo Q-Series and keep their Epson Tour status.
Clemson coach Kelley Hester offered Grewal an opportunity to come back for a fifth year knowing that she’d sign up for Q-School. Hester viewed whatever happened as a win-win situation.
“It was ultimately her decision,” said Hester, “but we knew that if she maLast year, the LPGA changed its Q-Series criteria, requiring players to turn professional before they can compete for an LPGA card.de it to the third stage, there’s no guarantees you get back there. So go for it.”
This year’s LPGA Q-Series takes place Nov. 30 to Dec. 5 in Mobile, Alabama, at the Magnolia Grove Golf Course.
Grewal credits her success so far at Qualifying school to her steady approach – not to high and not too low.
She has tidied up her wedge play over the past year and improved her speed control on the greens, cutting down on the number of three-putts. The pre-med major also saw a dramatic dip in her course load as she began pursuing a second degree in French.
For as long as she can remember, Grewal has enjoyed warming up with a 9-iron. In fact, she hits so many 9-irons in a practice session that she had to get a second 9-iron just to use on the range.
It’s no wonder that ball-striking is the best part of her game.
From a personal growth standpoint, Hester said Grewal reminds her of Stacy Lewis in terms of how she has blossomed during her time at Arkansas.
“The only other player I know who developed that much and become that confident in themselves over time is Stacy,” said Hester.
High praise for a player as she prepares to play for chance to compete against the best in the world.
Take a look at which players decided to turn pro, and after those, see which players are joining Lindblad by going back to school:
These golfers will soon have to make a decision about turning pro or go back to school.
The second stage of LPGA Q-School took place last week in Venice, Florida, and of the 188 who started the week, 41 advanced. Among those 41 were nine amateurs, including LSU’s Ingrid Lindblad, who topped the field by four strokes with an 18-under total.
Lindblad, a fifth-year senior who is currently No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, shot 67-66-70-67 at Plantation Golf and Country Club’s Bobcat and Panther courses.
Last year, the LPGA changed its Q-Series criteria, requiring players to turn professional before they can compete for an LPGA card. The deadline for players to sign up for Q-Series as a professional is 5 p.m. ET on Friday, November 17.
Lindblad said she’s decided to go back to school for one more semester.
“At the beginning of the year I’m like I am probably just going to go through the whole Q-Series and like peace out,” said Lindblad, “but I was talking to my coaches, and I really like it at LSU. Like, our coaches are awesome. This year we have a really good team, so I just want to give it a chance to get another SEC and maybe a national championship.”
Lindblad left Venice with Epson Tour status for 2024.
Ingrid Lindblad from LSU plays her tee shot on the 10th hole during the first day of stroke play competition at the NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championships at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale. (Photo: Rob Schumacher/The Arizona Republic)
Notable amateurs who missed the cut include Southern Cal’s Amari Avery and former U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Jensen Castle.
This year’s LPGA Q-Series takes place Nov. 30 to Dec. 5 in Mobile, Alabama, at the Magnolia Grove Golf Course.
Here are the eight other amateurs who will soon have to make a similar decision about turning pro:
Now a two-time winner in six starts on the Epson Tour, Ruffels said: “I feel the job is not done.”
Gabriela Ruffels didn’t do much to celebrate her record-setting victory last week at the Garden City Charity Classic at Buffalo Dunes. The 23-year-old simply headed to Denver with her mom for an early flight back home to Palm Springs, California.
Now a two-time winner in six starts on the Epson Tour, Ruffels said it’s too early to celebrate: “I feel the job is not done.”
The job, of course, is securing an LPGA card, a goal that was deterred when the former U.S. Women’s Amateur champion forgot to sign up for Q-Series last year. Such a costly mistake could’ve led to a mental break, but Ruffels gave herself a couple of days to feel disappointed and then accepted that she’d be spending another full season on the qualifying tour and “used it as motivation.”
She also had a frank conversation with her team.
“Last year I came 15th on the Epson tour money list,” said Ruffels. “I didn’t kill it out there. … I need to get better.”
The top 10 players on the Epson Tour money list earn LPGA cards for the following season. Ruffels holds a sizable lead in the money race with $89,262. Natasha Andrea Oon sits in second at $54,627.
Ruffels said her game has improved this season but not by a wide margin. Good play, she notes, is a culmination of solid work, and she feels as though she’s building on that foundation every week.
Not to mention getting comfortable being in contention and learning how to win at the professional level.
“One of the most important things in golf and in sport,” she said.
Ruffels, a former elite tennis player turned hungry pro golfer, didn’t start playing golf seriously until age 15 and rocketed up the world amateur rankings while playing for USC. In her first Q-School appearance in 2021, she missed out on advancing to Q-Series by a single stroke.
Last week in Garden City, Kansas, Ruffels opened with a bogey-free 10-under 62 and set a new 36-hole tour record at 18-under 126, breaking the old mark by three shots.
Ruffels, who said she plays best when she’s aggressive, wound up tying the tour’s 54-hole record by week’s end at 19-under 197. She pulled from the experience she had winning the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic in March.
“Since I’ve played professional golf, I haven’t really been in that situation that much,” said Ruffels. “I never really had a lead. Being able to close it out with at two-shot lead in Phoenix, that gave me a huge confidence boost.”
Ruffels’ parents, Anna-Maria Fernandez and Ray Ruffels, were professional tennis players while older brother Ryan plays professional golf. Mom has been on Ruffels’ bag most weeks since last spring, and her presence on tour has especially helped outside the ropes. Professional life, Ruffels noted, can be a lonely road.
“This year I felt like I’ve listened to them more,” said Ruffels of her parents’ advice. “I’ve kind of matured in the sense that I guess I’m listening to them more and knowing they’ve been professionals and their experiences correlate with the sport I’m in.”
Several years ago, the Epson Tour got rid of the “battlefield promotion” route to the LPGA, which gave players a card midseason after earning three victories on the developmental tour. Because players weren’t getting many starts through the promotion, the tour felt it was somewhat of a false promise.
The only way Ruffels could play her way onto the tour in 2023 would be to win an LPGA event. She’ll tee it up in a U.S. Women’s Open qualifier in Vancouver next Monday, hoping to earn a spot at Pebble Beach Golf Links.
It was a group effort on Sunday for Wagner, who had her dad on the bag, mom in the gallery and brother on the phone.
Samantha Wagner called Sunday at LPGA Q-Series a group effort. Her dad was on the bag, her mom was in the gallery and her brother was on FaceTime as she came down the 144th hole.
“I tried not to cry all day,” said a relieved Wagner.
At age 26, the former University of Florida player has at long last wrapped her hands around an LPGA card. What a difference a year makes.
Wagner’s efforts at last year’s Q-Series came to an early end after she called a penalty on herself and missed the first cut by just a single stroke.
Samantha Wagner of the United States and her mom embrace after the final round of the 2022 LPGA Q-Series – Dothan at Highland Oaks Golf Course on December 11, 2022 in Dothan, Alabama. (Photo by Hannah Ruhoff/Getty Images)
“It was the sixth hole of the first round,” Wagner recalled to EpsonTour.com earlier this year. “I think I was 1 under at that point. I hit a good shot into the par five and I walked up, and I had my hands full. I had my yardage book and a tee to fix my ball mark and my caddie was waiting for me to throw him the ball. And I just picked it up. I literally had gotten 6 inches off the ground with it, and I was like, ‘Ah, shoot.’ I put it back down, marked it, no one had seen it. I knew right away it was wrong.”
After she finished out the hole, Wagner walked over to playing partner Maddie McCrary and told her what happened. No one else had seen the violation. They called over a rules official to confirm the penalty.
“After that it kind of got away from me the rest of the week,” said Wagner, “and I missed the first cut by a shot, and you could nitpick 10 different holes out of that. But one thing I just had never counted on was like losing my mind for five seconds.”
Wagner, whose rookie year on the Epson Tour was 2018, finished 31st on the money list this season. She closed the season with five top-35 finishes, including a pair of top 10s to play her way into this year’s Q-Series.
“There is definitely a lot of emotions going back into last week,” said Wagner after play wrapped up on Sunday at Magnolia Grove in Mobile, Alabama.
“I think last week I literally would walk on every green with the ball marker in my hand. I was like, we’re not doing that again.”
Samantha Wagner of the United States and her caddy chat on the green during the sixth round of the 2022 LPGA Q-Series – Dothan at Highland Oaks Golf Course on December 9, 2022 in Dothan, Alabama. (Photo by Hannah Ruhoff/Getty Images)
Last year, Wagner felt like she rushed a lot of things and got too excited. This year, she came into the eight-round grind with a more level approach. She finished the fortnight in a share of sixth, one of 20 players in the field to earn category 14 status on the priority list. A total of 46 players earned LPGA cards, with those outside the top 20 falling in category 15.
Players in category 14 will be ranked higher on the priority status list that fills tournament fields. Players are listed in the order of their finish at Q-Series.
“I’m so excited,” said Wagner. “It’s just been a long journey. That’s what everyone here is working for. For me, I know I can compete there and I’m really excited to have the chance now.”
Meet the players who played their way onto the LPGA for 2023.
After a fortnight of pressure-packed golf, 46 players representing 21 different countries earned LPGA status for 2023 through Q-Series. A total of 23 of the 46 players will be LPGA rookies.
Hae Ran Ryu earned medalist honors, finishing at 29 under. The KLPGA player came into the event ranked 50th in the world. Ryu broke 70 in six of the eight rounds.
“I didn’t think that I could earn the LPGA tour card so soon,” said Ryu. “It’s still unreal to me that I could play on the LPGA tour.”
Three teenagers earned LPGA status for the first time, including former Netflix star Alexa Pano. Two players who are 30 and over are LPGA members for the first time.
Former Wake Forest player Ines Laklalech made history by becoming the first LPGA member from Morocco as well as North Africa and the Arab region.
Six players turned professional at the start of Q-Series. Two of those players earned LPGA status: Valery Plata and Natthakritta Vongtaveelap.
Plata, a fifth-year senior at Michigan State, prepped for final exams all throughout the tournament.
“I think it was good for me to just go home, stop thinking about what happened on the golf course and just think about school,” said Plata, who was 4 over in her first nine holes on Day 1 and finished the tournament 25 under.
Players who finished in positions 1-20 earned category 14 LPGA status, while those in positions 21-45 will be in category 15. Players in category 14 will be ranked higher on the priority status list that fills tournament fields. Players are listed in the order of their finish at Q-Series.
To wit: Of the 17 Q Series grads last year who kept their LPGA card in 2022, only 4 were below 20th. The lowest were a pair at T35: Linn Grant (who despite only playing the non-US events incredibly was 56th in CME points) and Caroline Inglis who got the final card at No. 100.
The first full-field LPGA event of the season is in March in Arizona.
Charlotte Thomas described this week as a “do or die” chapter of her professional career. Six years into the play-for-pay ranks, Thomas felt that whatever happened at Q-Series over the last eight rounds could be a sign.
In the end, the sign read: Back to the LPGA.
“I’m exhausted and ready for a drink,” said Thomas, who tied for 28th to earn back her tour card for 2023. A total of 46 players earned LPGA cards at Q-Series, a 144-hole grind that takes places over a fortnight in Alabama.
“I think when I look back on last year, I initially was disappointed that I lost my card and had to come back here,” said Thomas, “but I think the fact that I didn’t play golf for 16 months was – I kind of don’t give myself enough credit sometimes I don’t think.”
Thomas missed the 2021 LPGA season while struggling to find a treatment for chronic eczema.
Everyone in the field in Dothan has a story. Some have been toiling in the professional ranks for years, while others, like Michigan State’s Valery Plata, turned pro just before Q-Series. Plata tied for third with recent Stanford grad Aline Krauter.
Tournament winner Hae Ran Ryu, a KLPGA veteran, is ranked 50th in the world. (Epson Tour photo)
South Korea’s Hae Ran Ryu, currently No. 50 in the Rolex Rankings, topped the field at 29 under, clipping Bailey Tardy by two strokes.
Two years ago, Tardy missed out on earning her LPGA card through the Epson Tour by $343. Once again, Tardy finished 11th on the money list this year, missing the 10th spot by $1,765.
“I actually told my caddie just walking down, I think 15, and really anybody close to me knows that I wasn’t even going to sign up for QII,” said Tardy. “I think I signed up 15 minutes before the deadline, and that was because my coach told me to and was like, this is your opportunity, you can’t give that up.
“And I didn’t want to come to Q-School at all. Even at the beginning of the year I told everyone, I’m not going to Q-School. I’m not doing it. That’s not what I want to do.
“And I’m so happy I did.”
The top 20 players and ties earn category 14 status on the LPGA, while those who finished 21-45 and ties earned category 15 status. Players who finished outside the top 45 and completed all four rounds before the cut earned Epson Tour status for 2023.
“Feels good, especially since our first event of the year would be my home course in Phoenix,” said Dana Finkelstein, who tied for 15th.
“Superstition Mountain is kind of where golf started for me. The Safeway Open out there, I was like 12 or 13 and I went to go watch Annika [Sorenstam] and Morgan [Pressel] and all them. I have pictures of my awkward 12-year-old self at the golf course, and now it’s cool that I’m going to be playing and some other 12-year-old is going to be watching me. It’s pretty cool.”
The first full-field LPGA event of the season, the LPGA Drive On Championship, will take place March 23-26, 2023, in Gold Canyon, Arizona.
Finkelstein, an LPGA veteran, shared 15th with 2022 Alabama grad Polly Mack, who held on despite a closing 76. Mack played the first 72 holes without a caddie but employed a good friend for the second week.
Alexa Pano, the 18-year-old who starred in the Netflix series “The Short Game,” shot 68-67 over the weekend yet missed the top 20 by one stroke. Pano turned professional in the spring and finished 13th on the Epson Tour money list this season.
Jaravee Boonchant was one of three former Duke players who finished in the top 45. Boonchant had former Blue Devil teammate Gina Kim on her bag for Q-Series. The pair, along with Ana Belac (T-38), helped Duke win the 2019 NCAA title. (Kim earned her LPGA card earlier this year via the Epson Tour.)
Lindy Duncan, a former NCAA Player of the Year at Duke, shot three consecutive 73s to also take a share of 38th.
“I keep asking Gina questions that probably shouldn’t be asked on the course, but she was really helpful and very supportive,” said Boonchant, who tied for 21. “And she honestly was like the one who kind of put me in place and shape my thought and my mental game.
