Two women who played at least a portion of their college golf at the University of Colorado advanced through stage I of the three-stage LPGA Tour qualifying process on Sunday.
Esther Lee (pictured), who spent her final three seasons at CU after starting at Duke, tied for 25th place out of a field of 361 in Rancho Mirage, Calif. She closed with a 1-over-par 73 in round 4, giving her a total of 4-under 284.
Natalie Vivaldi, who played her first three seasons at CU before concluding her career at San Diego State, finished a stroke behind Lee, in 31st place. She shot a 76 on Sunday.
The top 90 finishers and ties after four rounds advance to stage II of the three-stage Q-school, scheduled for Oct. 19-22 in Venice, Fla. At stage III Nov. 29-Dec. 3 in Daytona Beach, Fla., the top 20 performers will earn full status on the 2018 LPGA Tour, while others will receive conditional status.
Former University of Denver golfer Mariell Bruun just missed advancing to stage II of Q-school. A 72 on Sunday left her at 4-over-par 292, in 91st place and one shot shy of what was necessary to move on to the second stage.
Here are the scores of the players with strong Colorado connections:
Advance to Stage II
25. Former CU golfer Esther Lee 75-69-67-73–284
31. Former CU golfer Natalie Vivaldi 71-71-67-76–285
Failed to Advance to Stage II
91. Former DU golfer Mariell Bruun 73-73-74-72–292
Missed 54-Hole Cut
144. Emily Gilbreth of Denver 72-74-75–221
194. Former CU golfer Jamie Oleksiew 74-75-75–224
194. CU golfer Brittany Fan 80-72-72–224
214. Samantha Stancato of Colorado Springs 76-77-72–225
311. Paige Crawford of Colorado Springs 83-76-76–76–235
For all the scores, CLICK HERE.
