Canada’s Elizabeth Tong of Thornhill, Ont., was the lone Canadian to advance from the Stage II of LPGA Qualifying School at the Plantation Golf & Country Club in Venica, Fla.
From the brink, to the wrong side, Elizabeth Tong (Thornhill, Canada) entered the final round in a tie for 85th, knowing she had to improve her standing if she wanted to finish inside the top 80 to advance to Stage III.
“I fixed something on the range, which really helped so I could hit the ball straight,” Tong said. “I was like, ‘Don’t be scared to be aggressive because once you do that, you’re going to start making bogeys.’ That was the plan.”
Tong shot a 3-under on Sunday to finish 4-over for Stage II. That was good enough to finish tied for 55th.
“It’s actually my first time at Stage III,” said Tong. “That’s exciting in itself. I’ve played both of those courses before, so it won’t be totally foreign.”
The top 80 and ties from Stage II advanced to Stage III. All in all, 82 individuals fired plus-7 or better to advance to the final stage from Nov. 27 – Dec. 3 in Daytona Beach, including Yadloczky, Sepmoree, and Tong.
Players that did not finish in the top 80 will still have Symetra Tour membership for the 2018 season, including Canadians Megan Osland (Kelowna, B.C.), Christina Foster (Toronto), Brogan McKinnon (Mississauga, Ont.) and Anna Young (Saskatoon, Sask.).