Lewis, Wie among 164 hopefuls set to tee off at Mission Hills Country Club, Sept. 16-19
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., Sept. 10, 2008 – The first of two LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournaments begins next week as 164 players start their quest toward membership on the 2009 Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour. Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif., hosts the first of two sectional qualifiers Sept. 16-19.
Texan Stacy Lewis and Hawaii’s Michelle Wie will headline the field as each makes her first attempt at qualifying for the LPGA Tour beginning next week. They will be joined by 64 international players, 99 from the United States and one from Puerto Rico.
Consistent with the LPGA’s history of being a true global Tour, the 164-player field features players from 19 countries. Canada is represented by the most international players with 13, followed by South Korea (12), Australia (5) andJapan (5). Remaining countries include Thailand (4), United Kingdom (4), Spain (3), Columbia (2), Mexico (2), Sweden (2) and Venezuela (2). One player represents each of the following countries: China, Germany, Ireland, The Netherlands,Scotland, South Africa and Switzerland.
Within the United States, 31 states are represented in the first LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournament as California leads the way with 23 entrants. The next closest is Florida with 13 players, followed by Texas with nine, Georgia with five and Hawaii with four. Arizona, Indiana, Massachusetts,Nevada, North Carolina and Oklahoma each have three.
The 72-hole sectional will be played on the Palmer and Dinah Shore Courses at Mission Hills Country Club. The Dinah Shore Course is the host site of the Tour’s first major of the season, the Kraft Nabisco Championship. The field will be cut to the low-70 players and ties after 36 holes. After four rounds, the top-30 players and ties will advance to the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament, Dec. 3-7, 2008 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.
The second LPGA Tour Sectional Qualifying Tournament will be Sept. 30-Oct. 3 at Plantation Golf and Country Club’s Bobcat and Panther Courses in Venice, Fla. The top-30 finishers and ties from the Venice qualifier will join the top-30 players and ties from next week’s sectional qualifier at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament. Making up the rest of the field in Daytona Beach will be current LPGA Tour members attempting to improve their priority standing and the 10 players finishing 6th through 15th on the 2008 Duramed FUTURES Tour season-ending money list.
All media interested in covering the upcoming LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournament in Rancho Mirage, Calif., should apply for credentials at www.lpgamediacredentials.com.
About the Ladies Professional Golf Association
As the longest-running women’s professional sports organization in the world, the LPGA features a membership comprised of world-class LPGA Tour professionals and dedicated Teaching and Club Professionals (T&CP). Today’s LPGA Tour features the most talented global sampling of professional athletes competing in 37 events on six continents with total prize money of more than $62 million. In addition to its dynamic Tour members, nearly 1,200 certified T&CP members serve the golf industry in teaching, coaching and management positions, and oversee programs aimed at increasing the involvement of women, girls and youth in golf. The not-for-profit LPGA’s Vision is to inspire, empower, educate and entertain by showcasing the best golf professionals in the world. Its Mission is to be a leader in the world of sports, to promote economic empowerment for all members, and to serve as role models on and off the course. The LPGA is headquartered in Daytona Beach, Fla. For more information on the LPGA, log on to www.LPGA.com.
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Media contact: Mike Scanlan, 386-274-6275, mike.scanlan@lpga.com
Final Field
LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournament
Mission Hills Country Club – Palm Springs, Calif.
Sept. 16-19, 2008
Jasi Acharya – Montana
Jennifer Ackerson – Texas
Sun-Ju Ahn – South Korea
Heather Angell – North Carolina
Kim Augusta – Rhode Island
Dana Bates – California
Taya Battistella – Oregon
Izzy Beisiegel – Oklahoma
(a) Leanne Bowditch – Australia
Elise Brandt – Canada
Stacy Bregman – South Africa
Becky Brewerton – United Kingdom
Vanessa Brockett – California
(a) Haley Brown – Texas
Sara Brown – Arizona
Jaclyn Burch – Florida
Angela Buzminski – Canada
Remi Jin Camping – Florida
Christi Cano – Texas
Jessica Carafiello – Florida
(a) Michaela Cavener – Oklahoma
Moah Chang – California
Aimee Cho – Florida
Christine Cho – Washington
Misun Cho – South Korea
Esther Choe – Arizona
Chella Choi – South Korea
(a) Clare Choi – Australia
Marina Choi – California
(a) Chihi Chu – Taiwan
Tiffany Chudy – Florida
(a) Iris Chung – Taiwan
Porani Chutichai – Thailand
Carling Coffing – Ohio
(a) Daria Cummings – Connecticut
Alison Curdt – Missouri
(a) Lucy Davies – California
Tanya Dergal — Mexico
Priscilla Duffield – Australia
Bridget Keala Dwyer – Hawaii
Martina Eberl — Germany
Tania Elosegui – Spain
Courtney Erdman – California
Juli Erekson – Massachusetts
Tiffany Faucette – Florida
(a) Veronica Felibert – Venezuela
Jennine Fiorito – Nevada
Danah Ford – Indiana
Megan Godfrey – Illinois
Ashley Gomes – California
Ashley Grier – Maryland
Shinah Ham – South Korea
Megan Heckeroth – California
Rebecka Heinmert – California
Selanee Henderson – California
Erin Houtsma – Colorado
Janell Howland – Idaho
Noon Huachai – Thailand
Erika Ilagan – California
Sabina Imboden – Switzerland
(a) Sophie Jang – South Korea
Y.J. Jin – South Korea
(a) Lacey Jones – Oklahoma
Hanna Kang – South Korea
(a) Mitsuki Katahira — Japan
Corina Kelepouris – Canada
Alice Kim – California
Jin Hyun Kim – South Korea
Moon Su Kim – South Korea
(a) Rebecca Kim – Oregon
Yoora Kim – South Korea
Ashley Knoll – Texas
(a) Lilly Kobayashi – California
Jennifer Kovach – Georgia
Elena Kurokawa – California
Min Seo Kwak – South Korea
Kelly Lagedrost – Florida
Vikki Laing – Scotland
Katrina Leckovic – Canada
Christina Lecuyer – Canada
Jeehae Lee – South Korea
(a) Susanna Lee – South Korea
Yeon Joo Lee – South Korea
Yumi Lee – South Korea
Marcela Leon – Mexico
Stacy Lewis – Texas
Soyeon Lim – South Korea
(a) Tzu-Chi Lin – Taiwan
Meghan Little – South Dakota
Maru Martinez – Venezuela
Kiran Matharu – United Kingdom
Catherine Matranga – Texas
Adrienne McDonald – Texas
Sasha Medina – Puerto Rico
Lisa Meldrum – Canada
Shayna Miyajima – Hawaii
(a) Mika Miyazato – Japan
(a) Paola Moreno – Columbia
(a) Carrie Morris – Texas
Debbie Munoz – Florida
Whitney Myers – Pennsylvania
(a) Kelly Nakashima – Hawaii
Susan Nam – Canada
(a) Tracy Nichols – California
(a) Anna Nordqvist – Sweden
Shiho Oyama – Japan
Caroline Park – South Korea
(a) Jamie Park – California
Sunny Park – Australia
Jenna Pearson – Illinois
Pornanong Phatlum – Thailand
Garrett Phillips – Georgia
Amber Prange – Indiana
Ashley Prange – Indiana
Tiffany Prats – Florida
Beatriz Recari – Spain
Melissa Reid – United Kingdom
Jean Reynolds – Georgia
Samantha Richdale – Canada
Nina Rodriguez – California
Ashley Rollins – Texas
Seema Sadekar – Nevada
Miki Saiki – Japan
Amy Schmucker – Minnesota
(a) Kathy Schowe – California
Dewi Claire Schreefel – Netherlands
Patty Schremmer – Florida
Trisha Self – Colorado
Elisa Serramia – Spain
(a) Margaret Shirley – Georgia
Maggie Simons – North Carolina
Kristie Smith – Australia
Libby Smith – Vermont
Sae Hee Son – South Korea
Nontaya Srisawang – Thailand
Elizabeth Stuart – Florida
Jenny Suh – Virginia
Perry Swenson – North Carolina
Tiffany Tavee – Arizona
Christin Thomson – Canada
Annie Thurman-Young – Utah
Sarah Tiller – Idaho
Natalie Tucker – Florida
Gina Umeck – California
Lynn Valentine – Connecticut
Andrea Vanderlende – Florida
Eileen Vargas – Columbia
Briana Vega – Massachusetts
Whitney Wade – Kentucky
(a) Alison Walshe – Massachusetts
Karlie Ward – California
Adrienne White – Canada
LeAnna Wicks – Michigan
Michelle Wie – Hawaii
(a) Nicole Wildes – Georgia
Onike Williams – California
Caryn Wilson – California
Andia Winslow – Washington
Grace Woo – California
Jillian Wyne – Canada
Hoi Ning Eva Yoe – China
(a) Masayo Yonamine – Japan
(a) Justina Yu – Nevada
Henni Zuel – United Kingdom
Contact:
Mike Scanlan, 386-274-6275, mike.scanlan@lpga.com
