By Rahul Banerji
Sneha Singh, Pranavi Urs, and Sharmila Nicollet all but ensured entry to Stage II of the LPGA and Epson Tour qualifying process by making the 54-hole cut in California on Wednesday.
In all, the top 95 and ties seal their berths for the second and final stage in Florida this October from a starting field of 305 golfers, making the effort by the three Indians a creditable one so far.
Nikita Arjun was the only one to miss out, aggregating a 3-over total with the cut applied at 2 over after the first three days at Ranchi Mirage and Mission Hills.
While Sneha (68-75-69) was tied for 36th with a 4-under 212 aggregate, Pranavi (76-68-69) was tied 42nd on 3-under and Sharmila T48 on 2 under with rounds of 73, 68, and 73.
At the top, Canadian amateur Savannah Grewal (67-68-66) led for a second straight day after the third round of the LPGA and Epson Tour Qualifying Tournament Stage I.
Post the cut, the 125 remaining players will now look to improve final placings, though they all did well to come through the high-stakes third round that decided their status for the 2024 season.
Status sealed
According to the LPGA website, those surviving so far earn Epson Tour status and possibly a few starts in 2024 while no status is granted to those missing the cut.
On Wednesday, Grewal shot a 6-under 66 to be 15-under 201, rolling in seven birdies against one early bogey. It was only her second blemish in 54 holes and Grewal looks to have but locked up her spot in Stage II.
The Canadian is a former Drive, Chip, & Putt champion and competed in the 2022 Augusta National Women’s Amateur and plays for the University of Clemson.
“I felt very confident heading into Stage 1. My game has been trending in the right direction all year, and I had the opportunity to play in an LPGA event over the summer, which definitely gave me a lot of confidence,” Grewal said.
“My game plan has been to stay present and play smart golf. I think my mental game has been the best part of my game this week. I’ve stayed very present and have stayed in the moment all week.”
In the wake
Japan’s Suzuka Yamaguchi (-13, 68-69-66) was second, and Australian amateur Fiona Xu (-12, 69-68-68) third on 12 under 205.
England’s Harriet Lynch carded a 69 to share fourth place with four others on 10-under 206 and was confident of her progress.
“It feels really good to be near the top of the leaderboard. I am so grateful to be in this position and compete with the best,” Lynch said on the Epson Tour website.
“These three rounds have given me confidence going into tomorrow; however, I know that I still have one more round to play, and I am going to give it my all.
“Going into this week, there were a lot of “what ifs,” some positive, some negative, but I knew I had to trust my game as I have put a lot of work in to be where I am today.”
Bouncing back
Thailand’s Mim Sangkapong signed for one the lowest rounds so far with a bogey-free 9-under 63 on the Arnold Palmer Course to climb clear of the cut line of 217.
She was right on the bubble after back-to-back 73s but came away on Wednesday with an eagle and seven birdies.
“It feels very good to shoot that low and kind of unreal,” said Sangkapong. “I just kept telling myself to stay patient all day, just do what I could do, and let things fall where they may.”
Stage II of the qualifying tournament will be played at the Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Florida, from October 17 to 20.
Also read: Sneha Singh in top-10 at LPGA/Epson Tour qualifier Stage I
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