Five players to watch at final stage of LPGA Q-Series with cards on the line
After four days of stroke play, 70 players are left for the final week of Q-Series. With eight different countries representing the top 10 players on the leaderboard, it’s safe to say women around the world have put their heart on the line to earn their LPGA card. Louisville’s Lauren Hartlage climbed to the top of the leaderboard with a 4-under 68 on Sunday to finish 14 under heading into the second week of Q-Series. She has a one-shot lead over Spain’s Luna Sobron Galmes, Germany’s Polly Mack, Belgium’s Manon De Roey and America’s Riley Rennell.
Week two will begin Thursday, Dec. 8, at Highland Oaks Golf Course in Dothan, Alabama. Let’s review the requirements to acquire an LPGA card.
- To earn full status on the LPGA, players must finish inside the top 20.
- To earn conditional status, players must finish inside the top 45.
- Anyone outside the top 45 by the end of the week will earn Epson Tour status.
In addition to those mentioned above, here are five players to keep on your radar:
Ana Belac
A Duke alum who helped her team win the NCAA Championship in 2019, Belac turned professional in 2020 with conditional status on the Epson Tour. During the height of the COVID-19 summer, Belac managed to win Epson Tour Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year. She became the first Slovenian to join the LPGA and finds herself in the mix at Q-Series. Belac currently sits at 12 under par, which is tied for 6th.
Sofia Garcia
A star from Paraguay, silver medalist in the 2019 mixed team Pan American Games, and 2021 Augusta National Women’s Amateur participant, Garcia finished her rookie year on the Epson Tour with five top-10s. The Texas Tech alum is tied with Belac at 12 under going into week two.
Bianca Pagdanganan
Averaging just shy of 280 yards off the tee, Philippine’s Bianca Pagdanganan is one of the longest hitters on the LPGA. Pagdanganan began her rookie year on the LPGA in 2020 after playing for the University of Arizona and helping her team win the NCAA Championship in 2018. She finds herself in a good spot after week one of Q-Series, tied for 17th after shooting a 5-under 67 on Sunday.
Bailey Tardy
Bailey Tardy has had quite the fight to get onto the LPGA. For the past three years, Tardy found herself one or two spots short of the Epson Tour money list top 10, which is what was needed to earn her LPGA card. In 2020, when the number of players who acquired LPGA status through the Epson Tour money list was reduced to five due to a shortened season from COVID-19, Tardy finished 6th. In 2021, Tardy finished two spots behind the 10th player, and this year Tardy was again one spot short of getting her card. Despite battling multiple injuries over the years, Tardy now finds herself in the hunt to earn full LPGA status. After four days, she remains at 9 under par and sits at T-25.
Mariah Stackhouse
Making it on the cutline, Mariah Stackhouse has given herself a chance to earn LPGA status. At two under, she sits four shots outside the top 45. Stackhouse has played five years on the LPGA. A four-time All-American at Stanford University (2012-2016) and a part of the NCAA championship team in 2015, her resume proves to be one to watch as she attempts to climb the leaderboard.