http://www.symetratour.com/news/feeds/full-news-and-blogs.aspx en-US Sun, 19 May 2013 17:14:01 GMT Sun, 19 May 2013 17:14:01 GMT Full News and Blogs Feed - Really Simple Syndicator 1.0 http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/ashevill-complete-second-round-recap.aspx Friends of Mission Charity Classic The Country Club of Asheville COMPLETE Second-Round News & Notes May 19, 2013 Complete Second-Round Recap Comfort Zone Jaclyn Sweeney (@JaclynSweeney22) and Giulia Molinaro (@GMolinaroGolf) currently stand at 6-under to lead the Friends of Mission Charity Classic following the completion of round two. Fifty-three players returned to The Country Club of Asheville this morning to finish their round after play was suspended for darkness Saturday at 8:15 p.m. Treviso, Italy native Molinaro was able to finish her second round Saturday night just before dark but Sweeney was forced to return Sunday morning to finish her remaining two holes. The former LPGA Tour member birdied her first two holes right out of the gate then began to experience a wave of nerves heading into the ninth hole. Sweeney turned to her father, who also serves as her caddy, to help calm her nerves and he instantly began discussing the news with his youngest daughter. “I birdied one and two,” said Sweeney. “I somehow ended up between the hazard and the little bridge on three, I thought I was in the bunker, and got up-and-down. I had a good putt from 63-feet on four and just went around because I got a little nervous and tight.” “I told my dad that on the ninth tee and he started talking to me about random stuff in the news,” Sweeney added. “I hit a 9-iron 126 on nine to about five feet and made nice downhill, side hill putt for birdie.” Sweeney recorded two additional birdies on the par-5 11th and par-3 13th but began to rush towards the end of her round in an effort to get done prior to darkness. “I missed a four-footer on 10 for birdie, made a six-footer on 11 for birdie, then missed a four-footer on 12 for par but made a four-footer on 13 for birdie,” said Sweeney. “I kind of bounced around at the beginning of the back-nine but settled down. I rushed the last few holes because I didn’t want to come back this morning to play this morning. But you can’t control that type of stuff and it is what it is.”   The former Arizona State University Sun Devil is looking to record her second Symetra Tour victory of the season and the third of her career. While Sweeney has experienced being in the winner’s circle, Molinaro is hunting for her first Symetra Tour win. The duo currently holds a 1-stroke lead over Courtney Massey, Birdie Kim, Angela Buzminski, Tracy Stanford, and Fiona Puyo heading into today’s final round which is scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m. A total of 71 players made the 36-hole cut which fell at 3-over-par 147. Comfort zone… The nerves of holding a lead heading into the final round can often times be overwhelming but this isn’t the case for second round co-leader Jaclyn Sweeney who will be playing alongside a familiar face on Sunday. Sweeney shares the second-round lead of the Friends of Mission Charity Classic with fellow former Arizona State University golfer, Giulia Molinaro. The duo played together two seasons at Arizona State University where they helped lead their team to the 2009 Pac-10 and NCAA National Championship titles. While Sweeney already has two Symetra Tour victories under her belt, she has never held the lead heading into the final around. The Bradenton, Fla. native admitted after finishing her second round Sunday morning the pairing will help keep her comfort level high. “I’m pretty sure I’m going to play with Guilia and she was my teammate at Arizona State so it should be a comfortable round,” said Sweeney. “I’ve played in the final group a few times before and I think it’s just about staying loose and not forcing it. I’m just going to go out and have a good time, I’ve played two solid rounds of golf. It’s going to be a comfortable round, I don’t know who’s going to be the third but hopefully experience helps. I’ve never really been in this position because I don’t think I’ve ever had the lead going into the final round so it’s a new experience but it should be a comfortable round with Giulia so it should be fun.” Sun, 19 May 2013 09:01:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/ashevill-complete-second-round-recap.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/chella-choi-lead-mobile.aspx Chella Choi shot her second-consecutive 6-under 66 on Saturday to push her to 17-under par and takes a one-shot lead at the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic. Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist broke the tournament and course record with an 11-under 61 and is in a tie for second with Jessica Korda at 16-under par. LPGA and World Golf Halls of Famer Karrie Webb sits in solo fourth at 15-under par and trails the lead by two. Choi marks the fourth different leader this week in Mobile and holds the lead heading into the final round for the first time in her career. After her seven birdie, one bogey performance on Saturday, Choi said her confidence is at an all-time high and for the first time in her career has had no problem looking at the leaderboard to size up competing scores. “I never before this week because if I see leaderboard, a little bit nervous or like I don't have confidence,” said Choi. “So like this week I started just to look at the leaderboard, just first round Thursday, starting Thursday, every hole watching leading score, so I think much better, mentally better than before.” The South Korean hit every fairway on Saturday and missed only two greens in regulation. Her only dropped shot of the day came on the par 4 9th hole when she hit her tee shot into a divot in the middle of the fairway which set up her for a difficult approach. She failed to convert on the up and down but said it had no effect on her rhythm. “Yeah, but I make four more birdies on back nine, so it was okay,” said Choi. “That course is every hole, tee shot in fairway, every hole birdie chance because I know my shots,” said Choi. “So I think just confidence and focus on just teeing ground, it's no problem.” Nordqvist stole the show on Saturday with her record-breaking performance and was the second player this week to rewrite the record books. Sydnee Michaels posted a 10-under 62 in Friday’s second round, but Nordqvist one-upped her on a day that included 10 birdies, an eagle and one bogey. She put together a run on the front nine that included five-consecutive birdies on Nos. 3 through 7. No surprise the Swede said she couldn’t stop smiling throughout the round. “Today was a lot of fun,” said Nordqvist. “I started out with a couple birdies, hit a lot of good shots, and I think I missed one green.  And then I made that bunker shot and it was just like, I couldn't stop smiling, couldn't stop laughing.”  The two-time LPGA Tour winner and major champ, whose last win came back in 2009 at the LPGA Tour Championship Presented by Rolex, said it felt good to have all parts of her game finally click. “But it's one of those days where you feel like all your hard work and your patience is paying off,” said Nordqvist. “You look back in the day you see yourself with a lot of confidence and know you can do it and believe in yourself.” The round marked a career-best for Nordqvist by a four-stroke margin and was also the lowest round on the LPGA Tour this season. Jessica Korda kept herself in contention despite an up-and-down day on Saturday. The 20-year old had five birdies, an eagle, two bogeys and a double bogey to close out at 3-under 69. She’s playing for her second-career win, but doesn’t necessarily have it on the front of her mind. “I mean, I'm not really thinking about that right now,” said Korda. “It's more of just, you know, having fun out there and putting shots away like I know I can.  If you have a round like today, you're going to have a couple bad holes here and there, but it's going to happen to everybody.  I haven't had a bogey in 36 holes, so I think I've been pretty fortunate on that aspect.”    Sun, 19 May 2013 07:19:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/chella-choi-lead-mobile.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-second.aspx Friends of Mission Charity Classic The Country Club of Asheville PARTIAL Second-Round News & Notes May 18, 2013 Play Suspended Partial Second-Round Recap In the Zone Taking it Slow Words of Wisdom Darkness forced the suspension of second-round play at the Friends of Mission Charity Classic at 8:15 p.m. on Saturday. A total of 53 players will return to The Country Club of Asheville at the 7:30 a.m. on Sunday to complete their second round Giulia Molinaro (@GMolinaroGolf) is the leader in the clubhouse at 6-under-par after firing rounds of 68-70 at the suspended Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Inclement weather rolled-in the Asheville, N.C. area early on Saturday forcing a three hour and 50 minute delay of the second round. The lengthy delay made it particularly difficult for the Italian to gain momentum early in the round and recorded only her second bogey in 26 holes at the par-4 eighth. “I started very slow and I don’t know if it was the slow start of the day or just my game,” said Molinaro. “I 3-putted on eight and went 1-over without making any putts on the front-nine and not getting balls close to the pin like I did yesterday.” Currently in her rookie season on the Symetra Tour, Molinaro didn’t let the slow start phase her as she responded on the back-nine with three birdies beginning at the par-5 11th. Molinaro went on to record two additional birdies at the par-4 15th and sank a 6-foot birdie putt at the par-4 18th. “I just kept on going and on back-nine I had a birdie on 11 and got some momentum going and had a very, very good birdie on 16,” said Molinaro. I just missed a birdie on 17 then got one on 18.” The Arizona State University graduate continued her solid ball striking from Friday’s first round hitting every fairway and missing only one green in regulation during the second round. “My ball striking got better and my putting was good but they just weren’t dropping because I wasn’t getting it to the hole. I just kept on going and it got better. I’m really happy to be done so I can go to sleep. Molinaro currently holds a one-stroke lead over a group of players including Courtney Massey, Birdie Kim, Angela Buzminski, Tracy Stanford, and Fiona Puyo who all finished their second round. In the zone… Being far away from home can be quite the adjustment for anyone, but for Gold Coast, Australia native Courtney Massey, she is finally finding her comfort zone traveling throughout the United States on the Road to the LPGA. This year, the second year Symetra Tour member has recorded two top-10 finishes including a tied for second at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic where she shot a final-round 6-under 66 to skyrocket up the leaderboard. Part of Massey’s success could be attributed to the presence of her mom who made the lengthy journey from the Land Down Under to the Sunshine State. “In Florida’s Natural I guess I was a little more relaxed because I had my mom there and only being there for a week, I had a few weeks of being home to feel comfortable again,” said Massey. “Now I’m over here for five months and have had to work on my own but the last few events I have been doing what I can and working with what I have.” Massey is coming off a tied for sixth finish at last week’s Symetra Classic and finds herself near the top of the leaderboard again at this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic after rounds of 71-68. While Massey attributes her success in Asheville, N.C. to The Asheville Country Club, she also relies heavily on bonding with her host housing each week on the Symetra Tour. “I try to get along with the housing and I’ve been fortunate to have some really friendly people so that comes in handy,” said Massy. “I’ve also made a few friends since I’ve been back over here so I’m just doing what I can and try to get by and just have fun. I’m on the other side of the world, so why not.” Taking it slow… While most people would not view 32-years-old as old, according to Birdie Kim, she is practically ancient. The 2005 U.S. Women’s Open champion frequently shows her charming sense of humor when discussing her age amongst her fellow Symetra Tour joking that she quite a bit older than the large contingent of young 20-year-olds on the Symetra Tour.   The Seoul, South Korea native has always had a dedicated work ethic but the further along she gets in her career, she admits she has to learn to let it go at times. “I’m not that young so I always just do my best then if it happens, it happens,” said Kim. “When I was young, I was really tough and worked really hard and just tried to win the tournament. But like my age, even in my situation, sometimes I just try too hard and it’s going to be really bad.” Kim, who’s hobbies include sleeping and eating off the course, was a bit abnormal during the three hour and 50 minute delay of the second round of the Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Rather than wasting time conversing with her peers, Kim found it was best to just listen and conserve her energy. “I just like to go take a shower and sleep,” said Kim. “I need time to recover my power back. When I’m done playing golf I just like to eat well and sleep well. Even this morning I got too tired waiting around so I needed a pick-up. During the delay I just kept eating to stay busy. A lot of people kept talking but I just listened because I knew it was going to be a long day. The weather was really bad so I thought if I got lucky I would play a little over 10 holes but I finished somehow. I’m really happy that I’m finished. I’m not under 25 so I need some more time to recover.” Words of wisdom… Experience has proved to be on Elisa Serramia’s side this week and that experience has come in the form of three-time LPGA Tour winner, Wendy Doolan. Doolan has stepped-in to caddy for Serramia and the two have teamed-up to fire rounds of 72-69 at the Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Doolan works side-by-side with the Barcelona, Spain native on her mental game when Serramia returns to her home in Miami, Fla. “We work together,” said Serramia. “She is kind of helping me out with my head and we have worked together now for a few years. I see her once a week basically when I’m down in Miami so that’s good and obviously she is somebody who has been there and knows what she is talking about. I think for me, that’s very important.” This week, the duo has worked on improving Serramia’s commitment to the shot and rather than worry about the outcome, focus on the process. “For me, she’s trying to help me commit to the shot, which sounds a little awkward but that’s what we are working on,” said Serramia. “I just hit every shot, that’s my goal, it doesn’t matter where it goes so it makes it more fun because it’s not about the outcome, it’s about the process.” Sat, 18 May 2013 20:02:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-second.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/alum-suwannapura-mobile.aspx After recording back-to-back rounds of 67 in the first 36 holes this week in Mobile, Thidapa Suwannapura felt a sense of relief and happiness to be in contention for the first time at an LPGA event heading into the weekend. The Thailand product, who was a rookie last season but only made one start, admitted to having a tough time adjusting to competing with the level of talent on Tour. She earned full status for this season by finishing 4 th on the Symetra Tour money list last year and had her fair share of successes on the Road to the LPGA. “Pretty tough between the feelings between Symetra and here,” said Suwannapura. “In Symetra you play and you're still like Top 10, Top 20, but now everybody's playing good so you have to try harder.” She would get her first win last year at the Vidalia Championship and added five additional top-10 finishes in 2012. She led the Tour in scoring average and rounds under par. She said an ailing back, which started at the Kraft Nabisco, has also deterred her development this season. But has since made a strong recovery and hopes to keep her mistake-free play going into the final two rounds. “Yeah, keep everything the same, you know, I feel so comfortable now with my game,” said Suwannapura. “I like this course.” She hit every fairway on Friday and only missed one green en-route to her second 67 of the week. The score tied her career-best which she posted during the final round of ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open this season & second round at Kingsmill in 2012. She’s looking to improve on her career-best finish of T8 in Australia this year. Sat, 18 May 2013 07:32:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/alum-suwannapura-mobile.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/this-week-sheary.aspx Each week throughout the year we will spotlight one Symetra Tour player and provide an in depth look into her life - both on and off the course. Up next in "This week is all about..." series is Natalie Sheary. Sat, 18 May 2013 05:46:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/this-week-sheary.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/volvik-check-in-asheville.aspx With the Symetra Tour playing its fifth tournament of the 2013 season at this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic, the Volvik Race for the Card is beginning to heat up. This Symetra Tour annually awards LPGA membership to its top players on each officially money list dating back to 1999. This season marks the second year that 10 fully-exempt LPGA Tour cards will be awarded at the conclusion of the 15 tournament season. This week, the Road to the LPGA released its second video of the five part series highlighting the season-long race. The video featured Natalie Sheary, who currently stands No. 17 in the Volvik Race for the Card, discussing her comfort level on this year’s Symetra Tour and her goal of her earning her 2014 LPGA Tour card. “I feel a lot more comfortable this year, but I know the courses this year,” said Sheary. “I know how it is to be out there on my own and I know to enjoy it this year.” “To earn one of those top-10 spots would mean the world to me,” Sheary added. “It’s always been my goal to be on the LPGA Tour and that’s what I’ve worked for since junior golf so to have the opportunity this year to get everything done, would be perfect.”   Sat, 18 May 2013 05:37:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/volvik-check-in-asheville.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-first.aspx Friends of Mission Charity Classic The Country Club of Asheville First-Round News & Notes May 17, 2013 First-Round Recap Cool, Calm, and Collected Change of Pace Mighty Mom Happy As Can Be The Race is On! Tweet of the Day Tracy Stanford (@TRACYStanford) and Fiona Puyo (@fionapuyo) fired 6-under 66’s to grab ahold of the first-round lead at the inaugural Friends of Mission Charity Classic.  The duo holds a 2-stroke lead over Giulia Molinaro (@GMolinarogolf) and Ashli Bunch heading into tomorrow’s second round. Stanford, a graduate of Texas Tech University was feeling the rhythm and got off to a fast start with back-to-back birdies on the opening holes, then carded an additional birdie at the par-5 seventh to make the turn at 3-under-par. “It actually just felt like I had a really good rhythm,” said Stanford. “I just played pretty simple all day long, I had good numbers. I hit it well off the tee and hit every fairway so that was good. It just felt really easy.” Stanford maintained her momentum on the back-9 of The Country Club of Asheville as she reeled off four consecutive birdies beginning at the shot par-5 11th. “It started with the short par-5 (11th hole) then the other holes kind of played short. The next one (12th hole) played pretty short then the par-3 (13th hole) I hit it pretty close and then the next one (14th hole) I made a downhill sloping putt.” Stanford’s only blemish on the scorecard came with a bogey at the par-4 15th but the fourth year Symetra Tour member has put herself in contention to record her first victory on The Road to the LPGA. Puyo, a native of Frankfurt, Germany, began her round on the back-9 and immediate got to 2-under for the day with birdies at the par-5 11th and par-3 13th. “The front-nine was very good and the back-nine I just didn’t hit it as well but I got some fun shots to play off the trees,” said Puyo. “Like on hole number one, I hit the cart path and it came back left to the green so that’s how my day started and I was very excited to play.” Puyo, a graduate of the College of Charleston, ended her round in fashion with four consecutive birdies to grab a share of the first-round lead. “I actually hit it close on the par-3 (sixth), made the putt then reached the par-5 (seventh) in two and missed my eagle putt by a little,” said Puyo. “Then on eight, I hit it to 3-feet and made a good putt then on nine, I hit a little longer 6-foot putt but I didn’t realize how good I was playing. I was really enjoying it out there.” Trailing the duo by 2-strokes is Molinaro who didn’t waste any time getting into the red numbers early in her opening round. The Treviso, Italy native birdied the first two opening holes then recorded two additional birdies to make the turn at 4-under-par. “I started very well, I birdied one and birdied two,” said Molinaro. “I hit every single iron straight to the pin and I think I played a perfect game.” The Arizona State University graduate had the perfect day going with another birdie at the par-5 11th until a bogey at the par-5 16th dropped her to 4-under. “Towards the end putts started not dropping,” said Molinaro, “and I made stupid mistake on 16 but for the rest it was a perfect day.” Also tied for second with Molinaro is current LPGA Tour member, Bunch. A native of Morristown, Tenn., Bunch only missed one green in her opening round that included five birdies and one bogey. “I played good all around,” said Bunch. “I hit it good, I think I only missed one green and I putted well. I kept it in play and didn’t do anything crazy stupid so I played good all the way around from start to finish.” Bunch has only played in one Symetra Tour event this season but credits overcoming a lengthy putting slump for her success during Friday’s opening round. “I’ve finally gotten out of about an eight or nine year putting slump,” said Bunch. “I don’t know but since the beginning of the year I have been putting a ton better and that’s really what’s held me back for 15 years. I’ve hit the ball well but putting has just killed me. I don’t know what the secret is but I’m actually making putts now. It’s been a long, long, long slump so now I’m not afraid of making one instead of not three putting.” Cool, Calm, and Collected… Frankfurt, Germany native Fiona Puyo (@fionapuyo) can be looked at as the epitome of laid-back. Despite her cool, calm, and collected demeanor on the golf course, the second year Symetra Tour members admits it is quite the opposite once she gets inside the ropes. “I think internally I’m very nervous with golf but I have worked hard on trying to get my outside personality to be the same on the course,” said Puyo. “Today I was able to really go there and take what was what out there and not try to put it close.” Puyo utilized her newfound demeanor on the links to open with 6-under 66 at the Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Aside from her attitude on the golf course, Puyo also relied heavily on her 16-year-old local caddie as she made her way to the top of the leaderboard on Friday. “My caddie is very young, he’s 16 and in high school,” said Puyo. “He has a great personality, he asked me yesterday how I wanted the day to go. I asked him a couple times for some advice on putts and shots. He knew what to say and I think we are a good team for the week.” Change of Pace… The Country Club of Asheville has not only become infamous amongst players this week for its breathtaking views and first-class golf course, but it has also become well-known for its steep hills. While the majority of players have turned to caddies for this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic, Tracy Stanford (@TRACYstanford) has decided to take a break from the norm and forgo a caddy for the fifth event of the season. Stanford typically has her boyfriend on her bag each week but after a 2013 season that has produced four made cuts, the Midland, Texas native is doing things on her own this week. “Well normally my boyfriend caddies for me, which is really nice,” said Stanford. “But also when it’s just me I enjoy it, I was looking forward to this week just doing it by myself. It was fun.” The change proved to pay off for Stanford on Friday as she fired a first-round 6-under 66 to take the lead at the Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Stanford, who graduated from Texas Tech University, not only got off to a blazing start but she admitted after her round, the hills never seemed to plague the third year Symetra Tour member. “I actually feel a lot better than I thought I would,” said Stanford. “It’s really just the back-nine up a few hills but you have enough resting time so that’s good.” Mighty Mom… Being a professional golfer can be a demanding career but add full-time mom to the resume and it can be downright daunting. Ashli Bunch has been a member of the Symetra Tour since 1997 and a member of the LPGA Tour since 1999 but this year the Morristown, Tenn. native has had to put her career on the backburner. Bunch is the mother of seven-year-old Gracie and five-year-old Jake who both sport the same signature southern accent as their mom.  With both of her kids out of school at the moment, Bunch has only played in one Symetra Tour event this year which came at the season-opening VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club where she missed the cut. “The kids are out of school now so I’m kind of part-time right now,” said Bunch. “My schedule is their schedule so I haven’t really been playing any.” Despite only playing a limit schedule this season, Bunch got off to a blistering start at the Friends of Mission Charity Classic where she fired a first-round 4-under-par 68. While most people would struggle with not competing each week, Bunch admitted to enjoying the much needed break from the links. “I’m trying to get back into it but I don’t know how much I’ll play this summer just because they are out of school,” said Bunch. “Jake, my youngest, goes to kindergarten in the fall so I’ll have a little more time. With him being out of school and just going to school twice a week he’s at home so it’s hard to get out and play. I’ve enjoyed kind of taking a break, it’s been nice and I appreciate it more when I get out and play.”   Happy As Can Be…. Giulia Molinaro (@GMolinaroGolf) is currently in her first year on the Symetra Tour but the Traviso, Italy native isn’t your typical rookie on the Road to the LPGA. A graduate of Arizona State University (ASU), Molinaro comes into this season with an extensive amount of experience already under her belt. During her senior season at ASU, Molinaro notched eight top-10 finishes and never finished outside the top-20. She was also named the 2012 Pac 12 Player of the Year, 2012 First Team All-American, and was a 2012 PAC 12 First Team selection. While Molinaro admits she is still trying to improve, she is also relying heavily on already gained success during her first year on Tour. “I’m just aware of what my game can do,” said Molinaro. “I try my best and I’m aware that I can play well. I had a very good senior year in college so I’m coming off a good year. I just try to get better every day.” The always upbeat and energetic Italian seems to be fitting in quite nicely amongst her peers on what is referred to as the pipeline to the LPGA. Rarely seen without a smile that could light-up a room, Molinaro is relishing in the opportunity of doing what she loves for a loving. “I’m having a great time,” Molinaro said of her time on the Symetra Tour. “I’ve been meeting new people, I like traveling, and I really like playing golf so I’m doing what I love and I’m really happy.” The Race is On! With the Symetra Tour playing its fifth tournament of the 2013 season at this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic, the Volvik Race for the Card is beginning to heat up. This Symetra Tour annually awards LPGA membership to its top players on each officially money list dating back to 1999. This season marks the second year that 10 fully-exempt LPGA Tour cards will be awarded at the conclusion of the 15 tournament season. This week, the Road to the LPGA released its second video of the five part series highlighting the season-long race. The video featured Natalie Sheary, who currently stands No. 17 in the Volvik Race for the Card, discussing her comfort level on this year’s Symetra Tour and her goal of her earning her 2014 LPGA Tour card. “I feel a lot more comfortable this year, but I know the courses this year,” said Sheary. “I know how it is to be out there on my own and I know to enjoy it this year.” “To earn one of those top-10 spots would mean the world to me,” Sheary added. “It’s always been my goal to be on the LPGA Tour and that’s what I’ve worked for since junior golf so to have the opportunity this year to get everything done, would be perfect.” Click here to view the complete video: http://www.symetratour.com/media-library/videos/2013/players/2013/st13-volvik-race-for-the-card_personality-piece_natalie-sheary_broadband.aspx Tweet of the Day… “ Friends of Mission Charity Classic 1st yr tournament is being run like a 5th yr event. Great volunteers!!!” – Katy Harris (@KatyHarrisGolf) Of Note… Melissa Eaton, currently ranked No. 1 in the Volvik Race for the Card, fired a first-round 3-over 75 and currently stands T89... Last week’s Symetra Classic winner, Laura Kueny, opened with a 2-over 74 and sits at T73…A total of 45 players shot under-par rounds on Friday. Fri, 17 May 2013 18:20:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-first.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/allie-white-blog-may.aspx Allie White, rookie on the Symetra Tour, is sharing her adventures throughout the season.  Be sure to read all her blogs. February March April     Carolina: A Friend of the Symetra Tour - May 16, 2013 Last week 144 of the Symetra Tour’s finest golfers teed it up in Charlotte, NC at Raintree Country Club for a great event. A big congratulations is due to the victor Laura Kueny with her stellar 6-under par. Charlotte is not far from my home base in Cary, North Carolina so it was no problem for me to take a hop skip and jump over from Cary in order to caddy for my teammate Catherine O’Donnell. Besides, some minor pin sheet errors… “Catherine, I thought hole number two was plus 5… this looks minus”… “Allie we are on hole number 11,” and a few “Wow I really thought it would break more there whoops…” I think I was perhaps the best caddy ever. But this week is a whole different story. Fortunately for me and my other friends on the alternate list, not too many folks made it over to Asheville for the second and final Symetra tour event in North Cackalacky. Apparently the LPGA event in Mobile needed a few Symetra gals to step in. And so just like that a whole bunch of us found our way into our first Symetra Tour event of the year. Exciting right?… I’m actually playing golf this week in real tournament! I’m a real professional. Thank goodness folks told me to check the alternate list to see if I had moved up because that would have been a missed opportunity… You would think that as a real professional I would have driven over immediately from Charlotte to start preparing for the tournament here at the beautiful Country Club of Asheville. But knowing how I can only handle so many days in a hotel… I opted to spend a few nights at home in Cary. Heck, I caught Iron Man 3, did a little substituting for 10th and 11th grade English, watched the debacle at Sawgrass, and even drug my roommate’s boyfriend to a rodeo… And golfed of course! So, I woke up Wednesday and headed to Asheville. I had to stop at Mt. Mitchell because I’ve never been, it’s only a mere 45 minutes from the course and at 6,684 feet it is the highest point on this side of the Mississippi. And wow what a view- the Black Mountains. Apparently somedays you can see as far as 85 miles to Charlotte off to the southeast. (I’ll go ahead and claim that I could see an obviously back pin placement on Raintree number two!) To the southwest of Mitchell lays North Carolina’s famous artistic, eclectic, musical, mountain town Asheville. And bear with me hear while I get sentimental. It is funny how a place can be your friend. I imagine most folks have a few places in their hearts that they might feel this way about. Having spent my college years and this past year largely in Carolina, to me she has presented herself always as alive and real. From the romantic coasts along the Outer Banks, to the competitive research Triangle, to the rolling mountains driving down 77, to the rodeo, to the dance clubs, to Pinehurst No. 2, to Finley Golf Club, to the Dean Dome for some basketball she has a lot to explore. And unlike popular belief, although the sky is usually Carolina blue there are certainly days for everyone when it isn’t. But as I’ve said before, for me Carolina has always been a real friend; one that brings out your best and your worst, one that challenges you and then comforts you, one that talks with you and plays with you, and one that sometimes you don’t want but you just need. Friday, I hopefully get to have former LPGA player and former Carolina Women’s head golf Coach Sally Austin on the bag. Coach Sally coached both Catherine and I our Freshmen year at Carolina. Now all three of us will be out on the course this weekend representing the Heels… but mostly we will be extending the friendship of Carolina to all the folks at the tourney. I know North Carolina will bring out the best in all the competitors here this week! Go Heels! U.S. Women's Open Time - May 7, 2013 U.S. Women's Open Qualifiers can go one of two ways. You can either make it to the U.S. Women's Open or fail to make it to the U.S. Women's Open.  I have given it a go five times now, and I am looking forward to attempt number six. The first time was exciting and I almost made it. The second time I don’t even remember what happened so I am guessing that it was not good. Fortunately, the third time was a charm. It was the last year that the Women’s Open Qualifier would be two stages rather than just one. There was one cut after 18 holes and a final cut after 36 holes. I played my first 18 holes at a club in Sanford, North Carolina. I remember the day well. I had asked a college friend to carry my bag for me. I figured it would be entertaining to see one of my non-golf friends out on the course. She was a sports fan so I thought it would be a fun growing experience for both of us. Well, at the very least it was an experience. My caddy was coming off a long party weekend with another college friend. Incredibly enough we got out the door at about 5:00 a.m. in order to complete a two hour drive before my 8:00 a.m. tee time. She wondered why I needed so much time to warm up. Then the golf began. We made it to about hole number two in the stifling 95 degree Carolina heat before she was thirsty and hungry. After she drank all my water, she then put her hat on backwards and wandered off to play with the fish in the pond. There was not a country club bone in her body. And I do not think she thinks much of golf as a sport to this day. In fact, one of my playing opponents was very pregnant. For my caddy the idea that a pregnant woman was able to compete ruled out the possibility that golf could ever be considered athletic. I disagreed and found my pregnant opponent quite incredible on all accounts. I played a miserable front nine. Despite the rough start, my caddy and I turned in a solid even par on the back. Our turning point came on about number eleven when my bag fell right before I hit my 40 foot putt. My caddy grimaced with a look that said, “Sorry I thought I had it set up right.” I gathered myself and made the 40 footer. It must have been fate, because we qualified for the next stage by one stroke. Needless to say I am grateful to my vagabond caddy. Win or lose, for better or for worse, she did wake up at 4:30 a.m. just to do the job. Stage two of qualifying was more of the same good fortune and good play. Sticking with the comeback theme, I started off with a less than stellar first 18 holes. I would need a very good second round to make it. With my dad on the bag, we delivered that very good round. We fired a 68 to clench the final spot from our section into the 2009 U.S. Women’s Open. It was one of the best sports moments of my life. Golf can lift you up like that but it will also drop you right back down to earth again. Two years later I found myself in a playoff to go to another U.S. Women's Open. After sitting around for a couple of hours waiting for the scores to come in, I found out that there would be five of us battling it out in a playoff for one spot. So at 7:30 p.m., after 36 holes of golf, we all teed it up for some more. On the first hole, I watched a European professional falter while I sunk an eight footer to hang around. Four golfers left. The next hole I sunk a five footer while two other gals fell by the wayside. Two golfers left. It was getting dark. They offered to let us play the next day but we had airplanes to catch: Professional Jackie Sweeney and I said, “Let’s play on”. By the time we made it to the 18th green, what would be our final playoff hole, people were turning on the lights of their cars so we could see our putts. She made a three footer and I missed a four foot slider. I hit a good putt. I went to the locker room and hung my head for an appropriate length of time. I guess in the end, make it or miss it, you have got to give it a go. I mean, come on, it’s the U.S. Women's Open. Allie White Thu, 16 May 2013 13:14:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/allie-white-blog-may.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/five-things-laura-kueny.aspx Laura Kueny might be the Symetra Tour player riding the most momentum coming into this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic as she is coming off a victory at last week’s Symetra Classic. The Michigan State University headed into the week 48th on the Volvik Race for the Card standings but her first trip to the winner’s circle on the Symetra Tour jumped inside the top-10 at No. 5. Below are five things you might not have already known about Kueny… 1. Laura battled leukemia at the young age of four. 2. Growing up Laura didn’t always want to be a professional golfer. Instead, she aspired to be a pediatrician. 3. The best piece of advice Laura has ever received was from her mother who gave her the famous quote, "Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it”. 4. Laura is known amongst her friends as Little Lou. 5. The two things Laura considers herself to be good at are sports and babysitting. Thu, 16 May 2013 10:15:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/five-things-laura-kueny.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-pretournament-notes.aspx Friends of Mission Charity Classic The Country Club of Asheville Pre-Tournament News & Notes May 16, 2013 Tournament Preview Notable First-Round Pairings Five Things You Didn’t Know About…Laura Kueny On the Big Screen Wedding Bliss On a Mission The Symetra Tour has already seen its fair share of excitement this year with four different winners in four events and a constantly changing Volvik Race for the Card, but the season is about to ramp up even further as the Tour stops in Asheville, N.C. this week for the Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Set to take place May 17-19 at the Country Club of Asheville, the 144-player event offers a purse of $100,000 and will award $15,000 to the tournament winner after three days of competition. Highlighting this year’s list of players scheduled to compete is Melissa Eaton, who currently holds the No. 1 ranking in the Volvik Race for the Card standings. Eaton claimed her first professional victory in dramatic fashion at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic as she recorded an eagle on the final hole to claim the win. Also scheduled to compete this week are a trio of upcoming Big Break Mexico contestants including Stefanie Kenoyer, Taylor Collins, and Emily Talley. Golf Channel’s highly touted reality series airs each Monday at 9:00 p.m. ET on Golf Channel. General admission for the tournament is $10 per day or $25 for all three. A clubhouse three day pass is also available for purchase for $50 which allows access to the Country Club of Asheville’s clubhouse amenities. Children 10 and under are admitted free and fans can purchase tickets at the Country Club Asheville and the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce/Visitors Center.   Notable First-Round Groups… Group #14 (8:30 a.m. off #10) Melissa Eaton (@MelEaton_golf): Currently No. 1 on the Volvik Race for the Card, Eaton notched her first Symetra Tour victory at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic. Mary Narzisi (@NarzTastic):  A graduate of the University of Minnesota, Narzisi is coming off a season-best T36 at last week’s Symetra Classic. Jean Chua (@JeanChuaGolf):  Currently No. 21 on the Volvik Race for the Card, Chua has finished inside the top-25 at all four tournaments this year. Group #32 (12:50 p.m. off #10) Eileen Vargas (@VargasEileen): Vargas was a standout collegiate golfer at Pepperdine University where she recorded two victories and finished fourth individually at the 2006 NCAA Women’s Golf Championship. Samantha Richdale (@SRichdaleLPGA): This year, Richdale has posted two top-10 finishes on the Symetra Tour and currently stands No. 16 on the Volvik Race for the Card. Richdale is also coming off a victory at the season-opening event on the 2013 CN Canadian Women’s Tour. Courtney Massey:  Currently in her second season the Symetra Tour, Massey stands No. 8 on the Volvik Race for the Card standings. This year, Massey has finished inside the top-15 in three Symetra Tour events including a season-best tied for second at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic. Group #35 (1:10 p.m. off #1) Jaye Marie Green (@JayeMGreen):  A rookie on this year’s Symetra Tour, Green has posted two top-five finishes and currently stands No. 11 on the Volvik Race for the Card. Stephanie Kono (@stephaniekono):  A former member of the LPGA Tour, Kono recorded a season-best tied for third finish at the VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club. Wei-Ling Hsu:  A rookie on this year’s Symetra Tour, Hsu is coming off a season-best tied for sixth finish at last week’s Symetra Classic.   Five Things You Didn’t Know About…Laura Kueny Laura Kueny might be the Symetra Tour player riding the most momentum coming into this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic as she is coming off a victory at last week’s Symetra Classic. The Michigan State University headed into the week 48th on the Volvik Race for the Card standings but her first trip to the winner’s circle on the Symetra Tour jumped inside the top-10 at No. 5. Below are five things you might not have already known about Kueny… 1. Laura battled leukemia at the young age of four. 2. Growing up Laura didn’t always want to be a professional golfer. Instead, she aspired to be a pediatrician. 3. The best piece of advice Laura has ever received was from her mother who gave her the famous quote, "Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it”. 4. Laura is known amongst her friends as Little Lou. 5. The two things Laura considers herself to be good at are sports and babysitting.   On the Big Screen… With several current Big Break Mexico cast members also competing at this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic, they had the unique opportunity to see their faces on the big screen at a viewing party on Monday in Asheville, N.C. The 19th season of Golf Channel’s highly acclaimed reality competition, premiered Monday night and featured four current Symetra Tour members including Taylor Collins, McKenzie Jackson, Stefanie Kenoyer, and Emily Talley. While Jackson is not competing in this week’s event in North Carolina, Collins, Kenoyer, and Talley attended Monday night’s viewing party where they watched the season-premiere with several fellow Symetra Tour members, Tour staff, and Asheville, N.C. natives. Cast members were given an advance copy of the first episode but according to Kenoyer, it was still a different feeling seeing her face plastered on several different televisions. “It was fun,” said Kenoyer. “It was interesting for sure, it was a little different. It’s kind of like that feeling when you hear your voice and you aren’t sure if that’s really what you sound like. It’s a lot of fun though, I’m really looking forward to the season and getting to watch it. I had seen that episode the week before but all the other episodes I will be watching for the very first time so I will be on the edge of my seat just like everybody else.” “It was good, it was really fun,” added Kenoyer. “They had it had it at Pack’s Tavern and rented out a little room and had it on all 15 tvs. It was different seeing my big face all up there everywhere but it was good for everyone to come out and support us girls.” Kenoyer’s team emerged victorious in the show’s opening glass breaking competition allowing them to bypass the dreaded elimination challenge. The victory shortened Kenoyer’s appearance on the first show which was a bit of a disappointment to her family who hosted their own viewing party in Florida. “My parents actually threw a little party at home even though I couldn’t be there they had some friends over,” said Kenoyer. They actually called me and were like that was so boring, we only got to see you for like 10 minutes of the show. But I told her mom, boring is good on this thing, if you make it to the next show you aren’t on it that much. They are enjoying it and loving it, my extended family has been extremely supportive and I’ve gotten like a million Facebook messages in the last week.”   Wedding Bliss… The past couple weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind for newlywed Jackie Stoelting (@JackieBGolf) (formerly Barenborg) who got married on May 4th. While the fifth year Symetra Tour member admits her wedding day was the happiest day of her life, the exhaustion of the week seemed to carry over into last week’s Symetra Classic. Immediately following the wedding festivities which lasted over a four day period, Stoelting hit the road to Charlotte, N.C. with fellow Tour player, Alexandria Buelow. “Alex (Buelow), who was in my wedding, we drove up to Charlotte all day Monday and then got to the course and played on Tuesday,” said Stoelting. “Then I played nine Wednesday morning and I was okay Thursday and Friday and made the cut, which I was proud of after having a crazy week, then I hit a wall on Saturday. I was pretty exhausted so it finally caught up with me but I wouldn’t change it for anything. It was a great week and the wedding was awesome.” While the newlyweds have not seen each other since their wedding, Travis will make his way to Asheville, N.C. on Thursday to caddy for his wife in the Fiends of Mission Charity Classic. Immediately following this week’s event, the couple will set off for their honeymoon in Myrtle Beach, S.C. “I’m so excited,” said Stoelting. “I haven’t seen him since two days after the wedding. He went into work after and told everyone that his wife left him for a tournament. I’m excited for him to come-up and caddy then go on our honeymoon so I’m really looking forward to that.”   On a Mission… On Tuesday of this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic, Calle Nielson and Carly Werwie took time out of their busy practice schedules to get a behind the scenes tour of Mission Hospital’s Women’s Health Center in Asheville, N.C. The duo got a tour of the Women’s Surgical Unit and the Maternity Ward where they met will several patients including a family who just had twins and a mother and her two-day-old baby. “I think it’s awesome,” said Werwie of her experience. “I didn’t know there was a facility solely geared towards women and I think it’s great. Any time you go in a hospital it can be uncomfortable but it is very welcoming here and you can feel really relaxed after a hard time. I think it’s great and I think that being a professional woman golfer the money is going right back to them.” This year’s tournament proceeds will directly benefit Mission Women’s Health. Mission Women’s Health provides women of Western North Carolina with all the necessary tools to keep them healthy through all the stages of life with specific services with a range of specialties and award-winning programs. Thu, 16 May 2013 09:54:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-pretournament-notes.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/st-lpga-alum-mobile.aspx After a week off, the LPGA is set to rev up again this week as the Tour heads to the Gulf Coast for the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic. The LPGA returns to the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail for the fifth playing of the event on The Crossings golf course at Magnolia Grove in Mobile, Alabama. The RTJ Golf Trailwill welcome 144 of the top women golfers in the world competing for a total purse of $1.2 million. Among the 144-player field are 16 current Symetra Tour members who competed in last week’s Symetra Classic in Charlotte, N.C.  including Alena Sharp. Sharp had the Symetra Classic trophy within reach until an untimely double-bogey at the par-4 17 th landed her in a tie for second. The tournament marked Sharp’s second of the year as she finished runner-up at the season-opening VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club. The New Mexico State University alum currently stands inside the top-10 on the Volvik Race for the Card at No. 6. Also in this week’s Mobile Bay LPGA Classic field is current Symetra Tour member Katie Burnett. The LPGA Tour rookie and second-year Symetra Tour member is coming off a career-best T12 finish at the Kingsmill Championship where she recorded rounds of 68-70-71-72. Burnett has only competed in one Symetra Tour event this season at the VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club where she finished T42. Wed, 15 May 2013 16:10:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/st-lpga-alum-mobile.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tweet-of-the-day-stoelting.aspx Jackie Stoelting had today's Tweet of the Day.  You think she's excited about the Junior Clinic, just wait until everyone gets there for a great day of learning!  Thank you to all the players that volunteer to teach the youth the great game of golf during these Junior Clinics each week. Ready for a junior clinic with @ road2lpga and @ buelowgolf #givingback #golfzilla twitter.com/JackieBGolf/st… — Jackie Stoelting (@JackieBGolf) May 15, 2013 Wed, 15 May 2013 15:53:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tweet-of-the-day-stoelting.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/quick-18-with-sheary.aspx 1. Describe the best meal you’ve had while on the road and where you had it? Any sushi venue! Always have to try and get sushi at each event! 2. If a song was played at the first tee what song would be played for you? Did it on em -Nicki Minaj 3. What is your favorite home-cooked meal? Stir-fry 4. What is your favorite season? Fall! The trees turn my favorite color... orange!!! 5. What story does your family always tell about you? People like to comment about how much gel or hairspray I use. It always gets mentioned that my hair is potentially flammable, when I was young a bit was even singed while blowing out my birthday candles! Lol! 6. Three things you would bring on a deserted island and why? A filtration water bottle system, a friend and a tent... I wouldn't bring a boat or anything. I mean, why would I want to leave??! It would be practically a permanent vacation!! 7. Is there anything you are addicted to or can’t live without? My music  8. If you had to pick up one animal to describe you, what would it be and why? Any animal that is fairly reserved. I'm always around, but I stay pretty quiet... 9. What is the weirdest thing you have ever eaten? Conch or alligator. 10. Tell us something you hate doing. Why? Taking on the phone. I'd much rather text someone! 11. As a child, what did you wish to become when you grew up? A doctor or professional athlete. 12. If given a complete freedom to start afresh, what profession would you choose and why? Exactly what I'm doing now! Golf! 13. What’s your favorite club in your bag? 60 degree wedge 14. What's the best piece of advice you have ever received? Have fun 15. Name two things you consider yourself to be really good at? Memorizing and critical thinking. 16. What movie do you watch again and again? The Blind Side, I really like Sandra Bullock  17. If you get lost while driving, do you stop for directions, make a phone call or just try and figure it out? Use maps on my iPhone, although that's usually the reason I get lost in the first place. My goodness Siri...  18. What is always stocked in your refrigerator? Eggs Wed, 15 May 2013 15:40:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/quick-18-with-sheary.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/sheary-feels-the-beat.aspx When you step on site at a Symetra Tour event, your eyes might be instantly drawn to the member standing out with bright, vibrant orange shirts or her ears covered with the popular Beats headphones. Natalie Sheary is just that player and once you speak to her, you instantly realize her love for golf and music. Sheary fell in love with golf at the age of 12 when her father surprised her with lessons at Rockledge Country Club. From the first time a club hit Sheary’s hands, she was addicted to the game that would later become her career. “My dad surprised me with a golf lesson at our local public golf course, Rockledge CC, when I was 12,” said Sheary. “I loved it from the very beginning!” In 2003, Sheary joined the elite junior golf tour, the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA), and went on to record 13 top-10 finishes, including four wins. As with any junior golf whose career blossoms, it quickly became time for Sheary to narrow down her choices of colleges to attend. Sheary, who is always methodical and precise with any decision, printed the Golfweek top-10 college rankings and took several different criteria into consideration when determining a university. Ultimately, Sheary narrowed her decision of colleges down to Wake Forest University or Duke University and decided to become a Demon Deacon. “In high school I printed out the Golfweek top-ten college rankings,” said Sheary. “I took into consideration location, enrollment size and academic prestige and went from there. It was a toss-up between Wake and Duke. I liked them both equally but Wake offered me much earlier (fall of junior year). I am very happy with my choice.” Sheary’s game continued to flourish at Wake Forest University where she recorded 16 top-10 finishes, including three wins. She was also named the 2007 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Freshman of the Year for women’s golf, the 2009 ACC Player of the Year for women’s golf, and was a three-time NGCA All-American Honorable Mention selection and All-ACC Team selection (2008, 2009, 2011). While still in the midst of her senior season at Wake Forest University, Sheary tried her hand at Symetra Tour Q-School. The Hartford, Conn. native took full advantage of her opportunity and not only earned full-status on the Symetra Tour but earned medalist honors at the event over current LPGA Tour member, Jessica Korda. “It was a great learning experience,” said Sheary of her win at Q-School. “I knew for a long time that I wanted to play golf after college. Winning Q-school solidified the fact that I could compete at the next level.”  Currently in her third season on the Symetra Tour, Sheary posted a career-best, runner-up finish at the 2008 Cigna Golf Classic in her home state of Connecticut which came prior to her joining the Tour when she had just finished her sophomore year at Wake Forest There is no doubt the 23-year-old is currently living out her dream of playing professional golf but Sheary is also fortunate enough to have a special someone alongside her on the Road to the LPGA, her father. Sheary’s dad frequently comes out to support his daughter at various Symetra Tour stops throughout the year and even goes as far as serving as her caddie. “It's awesome,” said Sheary. “No one knows my game better than my father. We get along really well and he knows exactly the right thing to say when I need a push out there. I feel very comfortable with my dad on the bag and my mom spectating. It's great to be able to experience "the dream" with my family by my side.”  While Sheary has an undeniable love for the game of golf, her passion for music comes in a close second as she is typically seen blasting the latest hip-hop or R&B chart toppers out of her Beats headphones. “I love my beats,” said Sheary. “They provide the perfect amount of bass for the Hip-Hop and rap that I listen to! Drake, Nicki Minaj, Usher and Chris Brown are some of my favorite artists”  Sheary was able to mix her love music and golf last year when the Symetra Tour made a stop in Fishers, Ind. which is located just a short drive from Indianapolis. One of Sheary’s favorite artists, Drake, happened to be in town performing and she took full advantage to see the popular artists live and in-person. While Sheary doesn’t get much down time competing on the Symetra Tour, she admits to wanting to see how a song is produced in person.  “Many rappers don't write their lyrics down before they record them,” said Sheary. “It would be awesome to see how a song is produced from start to finish. Just imagining the beat blasting and one of my favorite rappers laying down a verse based on what feelings pop into their head from the beat would be a really cool thing to experience.”   Wed, 15 May 2013 14:46:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/sheary-feels-the-beat.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/asheville-otr-on-a-mission.aspx On Tuesday of this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic, Calle Nielson and Carly Werwie took time out of their busy practice schedules to get a behind the scenes tour of Mission Hospital’s Women’s Health Center in Asheville, N.C. The duo got a tour of the Women’s Surgical Unit and the Maternity Ward where they met will several patients including a family who just had twins and a mother and her two-day-old baby. “I think it’s awesome,” said Werwie of her experience. “I didn’t know there was a facility solely geared towards women and I think it’s great. Any time you go in a hospital it can be uncomfortable but it is very welcoming here and you can feel really relaxed after a hard time. I think it’s great and I think that being a professional woman golfer the money is going right back to them.” This year’s tournament proceeds will directly benefit Mission Women’s Health. Mission Women’s Health provides women of Western North Carolina with all the necessary tools to keep them healthy through all the stages of life with specific services with a range of specialties and award-winning programs. Wed, 15 May 2013 13:09:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/asheville-otr-on-a-mission.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tuesday-top-10-sheary.aspx Tuesday's Top-10 is weekly player feature to give you, the fans, an opportunity to gain further insight into your favorite player's life and each week SymetraTour.com will highlight ten questions answered by one player.  This week's edition of the “Tuesday's Top-10” features Natalie Sheary’s Top-10. 1. How did you spend your off-season? I lived with a host family in Vero Beach, Florida! It was great to be down in southern Florida at a really nice golf course called Hawks Nest! 2. If you could pick the dream pairing who would it be? Will Smith, Phil Michelson and Nick Faldo 3. Where is your favorite place to travel? And why? I actually like being at home in West Hartford, Connecticut. There's nothing like being at home with family and friends since I spend most of the year traveling for golf!  4. What is the biggest weakness of your game? It is hard for me to realize when I am trying too hard thus I tend to try and force things to happen. 5. What is the biggest strength of your game? I think one of my biggest strengths is my creative shot making ability. 6. What do you wish someone would have told you about Tour life your first year on Tour? Manage your time, don't over exert yourself when there are four and five week stretches of tournaments ahead of you. 7. What advice would you give to the incoming class of rookies? Enjoy yourself, take advantage of host housing, and explore the different locations that the Tour will take you. 8. What is your best travel tip? Don't over pack, you never know when a friend might need a lift to the next tournament stop :) 9. Tell me something most people don't know about you? I love to challenge myself and try new and exotic things. 10. What is the most pressure you’ve ever felt in tournament golf? Probably when I won Q-School my senior year of college to secure my professional status. Tue, 14 May 2013 11:52:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tuesday-top-10-sheary.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tweet-of-the-day-harris.aspx Today's Tweet of the Day goes to Katy Harris.  The views from the course are pretty amazing. Love, love, LOVE the golf course this week! #AshvilleCC #1894 @ meleaton_golf @ road2lpga @ road2lpga_truck twitter.com/KatyHarrisgolf… — Katy Harris (@KatyHarrisgolf) May 14, 2013   Tue, 14 May 2013 11:20:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tweet-of-the-day-harris.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-storylines.aspx Week of May 13, 2013 Friends of Mission Charity Classic Country Club of Asheville   Top Storylines   Hometown Gals… With the Symetra Tour set to make its debut in Asheville, N.C. for the Symetra Classic, several members with North Carolina ties are scheduled to tee-it-up in the Tar Heel State. Sarah Almond of Albemarle, N.C. is currently in her third season on the Symetra Tour. While the Friends of Mission Charity Classic will serve as her first tournament this season, she played in three events on the Road to the LPGA last year. As an amateur, Almond competed in two U.S. Women’s Amateur Championships, the 2009 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship, and the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open Championship. Michele Low is a rookie on this year’s Symetra Tour and played collegiate golf at Belmont Abbey College in Charlotte. While at Belmont Abbey College, Low received numerous accolades including 2008 Conference Freshman of the Year, 2010 and 2011 Conference Carolina Player of the Year, and 2010 and 2011 First Team All-Conference. This year, Low currently ranks fifth on tour in putts per greens in regulation (47.4 percent). Briana Vega ( @BriVega) played collegiate golf at North Carolina State University where she majored in Sports Psychology and was a two-time winner of the North Carolina State Most Valuable Player Award in 2003 and 2004. Vega joined the Symetra Tour in 2005 and recorded a career-best tie for second at the 2008 Aurora Health Care Championship. This year, Vega has played in four tournaments and notched a season-best T17 at last week’s Symetra Classic Don’t be surprised if you recognize Vega as she was the winner of Golf Channel’s 2006 Big Break VI: Trump National series. Catherine O’Donnell will return to North Carolina next week after playing collegiate golf at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill where she majored in Exercise and Sports Science. During her time at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, O’Donnell recorded three victories, was named the 2008 ACC Freshman of the Year, and was a three-time All-American Honorable Mention selection. Currently in her rookie season on the Symetra Tour, O’Donnell heads into next week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic looking to make her first cut since turning professional. Ashley Tait played collegiate golf at the University of North Carolina-Wilimington where she recorded seven top-10 finishes. Tait had a stand-out amateur career winning the individual title at the 2007 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Conference Women’s Golf Championship and the 2008 Colorado Women’s Golf Association (CWGA) Stroke Play Championship. After turning professional in 2011, Tait went on to record two wins on the Grasshopper Tour, won the 2011 Texas Women’s Open and finished runner-up at the 2011 Michigan Women’s Open. This year on the Symetra Tour, Tait has played in four events and recorded a season-best T46 at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic. Jean Chua (@Jeanchuagolf), who calls Malaysia home, played collegiate golf at Wake Forest University where she recorded one win and finished fifth individually at the 2009 Atlantic Coast Conference Women’s Championship. Chua is currently in her third season on the Symetra Tour and recorded a career-best tie for second at the 2012 Riviera Nayarit Classic. This year, Chua has notched three top-25 finishes in three events and posted a season-best T12 at last week’s Symetra Classic.   Winning Ways… With four tournaments already concluded on this year’s Symetra Tour, the Road to the LPGA has already seen four different winners as players jockey to land inside one of the top-10 spots on the Volvik Race for the Card. Jaclyn Sweeney got off to a hot start this season with a win at the season-opening VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club where she fought back from a two-stroke deficit after round-two to claim her second Symetra Tour victory. Sweeney followed-up her win with a T17 at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic and stands in second on the Volvik Race for the Card. After recording four top-10 finishes and a win at the Credit Union Challenge in 2012, Sweeney finished 13th on the season-ending Volvik Race for the Card standings and narrowly missed earning her LPGA Tour card for this season. As a freshman at Oklahoma State University, Sweeney experienced immediate success and was named a Golfweek First Team All-American and Big 12 Newcomer of the Year. Sweeney then transferred to Arizona State University where she was a member of the 2009 Pac-10 and NCAA Championship Team and was named a 2010 Second Team All-Pac 10 and Pac-10 All-Academic Honorable Mention. Melissa Eaton had to wait four years to notch her first Symetra Tour victory but after an eagle on the 54th hole of the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic, the Louisiana State University (LSU) graduate experienced her first trip to the winner’s circle.  The win was good enough to propel the 28-year-old to the top of the Symetra Tour money list and inched her one step closer to obtaining her LPGA Tour card for the 2014 season. Despite missing last week’s Guardian Retirement Championship at Sara Bay, Eaton still holds the top spot in the Volvik Race for the Card standings heading into next week’s event. During her time playing collegiate golf at LSU, Eaton recorded 10 top-10 finishes and was a 2005 Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Conference First-Team selection. In addition, Eaton was also named the Louisiana Sportswoman of the Year from 2005-2007 and recorded one win on the 2006 Collegiate Players Summer Tour in Louisiana. It took Christine Song nearly three years to return to the winner’s circle but the Fullerton, Calif. native did it in dramatic fashion winning in a two-hole playoff at the Guardian Retirement Championship at Sara Bay. Song fired rounds of 68-72-71 and birdied the second playoff hole to defeat Isabelle Boineau. Song’s victory catapulted her up the Volvik Race for the Card standings to No. 3 as she hopes to return to the LPGA Tour. Song earned her LPGA Tour card through the Volvik Race for the Card in 2009 but finished at No. 6, earning her conditional LPGA status for the 2010 season. She then decided to primarily focus on the Symetra Tour in 2010 and won two events which proved to be good enough to land her third on the season-ending Volvik Race for the Card standings earning her full-status on the 2011 LPGA Tour. Along with her impressive victory, this season Song has also played in the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic where she missed the cut. Laura Kueny found her way to the winner’s circle for the first-time in her career at last week’s Symetra Classic. The Michigan State University graduate headed into Sunday’s final round trailing by  two strokes but fired a 1-under 71 to take home the trophy. This year, Kueny has competed in three out of the first four events on the Symetra Tour schedule but the win was good enough to move her to No. 5 on the Volvik Race for the Card standings with $21,845. The Symetra Classic wasn’t the first time Kueny found herself in the winner’s circle of a professional event as she won the 2011 Michigan PGA Women’s Open Championship. Kueny also recorded three victories in collegiate competition while at Michigan State University and also won the 2007 Women’s Trans National Amateur Championship. The Race is Underway… The Volvik Race for the Card kicked-off at the season-opening VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic and Longbow Golf Club and will continue at this week's Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Beginning in 1999, The Symetra Tour annually awards LPGA membership to its top players on each official season money list. This year marks the second season that the top-10 money winners will receive full, equal status for the following season on the LPGA Tour. With more than 500 alumnae including Lorena Ochoa, Cristie Kerr, and last year’s Rolex Player of the Year Stacy Lewis moving on to the LPGA, former Symetra Tour players have won a total of 371 LPGA titles, including 40 major championships. At the conclusion of the Symetra Classic, players moving into the top 10 spots on the money list are as follows: 1. Melissa Eaton of Port Shepstone, S. Africa, $20,540; 2. Jaclyn Sweeney of Bradenton, Fla., $17,990; 3. Christine Song of Fullerton, Calif., $17,947; 4. Sue Kim of Langley, British Columbia, $16,916; 5. Laura Kueny of Whitehall, Mich., $16,585; 6. Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ontario, $16,489; 7. Caroline Westrup of Ahus, Sweden, $12,859; 8. Courtney Massey of Gold Coast, Australia, $12,813; 9. Amelia Lewis of Jacksonville, Fla., $12,713; 10. Isabelle Boineau of Marseille, France, $12,055   Big Breakers… The cast of Golf Channel’s Big Break Mexico was recently unveiled and a trio of Symetra Tour members including Taylor Collins (@1taylorcollins) , Stefanie Kenoyer (@stefkenoyer) , and Emily Talley (@emtal) will be contestants on the 19th season of the reality competition series. Big Break Mexico will feature a total of 12 professional golfers – both men and women -- and is scheduled to premiere May 13th at 9:00 p.m. ET on Golf Channel. During her rookie season in 2012, Taylor Collins played in 15 events, made three cuts and posted a career-best tie for fifth at the Riviera Nayarit Classic. As a collegiate golfer at Nova Southeastern University, Collins won three tournaments and was a three-time member of the NCAA Division II National Championship team (2009-2011). Collins also was the individual winner of the 2011 NCAA Division II National Championship and was named a 2011 NGCA All-American First-Team selection. A member of the Symetra Tour since 2011, Stefanie Kenoyer is coming off a 2012 season that included seven made cuts in 15 events and a season-best T17 at the Sara Bay Classic. As an amateur, Kenoyer competed in four U.S. Women’s Amateur Championships and the 2009 U.S. Women’s Open. While playing collegiate golf at Furman University, Kenoyer was the two-time individual winner of the Southern Conference Women’s Golf Championship (2008, 2009), a four-time All-Southern Conference Team selection (2008-2011), and a two-time winner of the Southern Conference Player of the Year Award (2009, 2010). A rookie on this year’s Symetra Tour, Emily Talley comes into this season with a great deal of experience under her belt. While at the University of Colorado, Talley was named the 2012 University of Colorado Athlete of the Year, a 2012 NGCA and Golfweek All-American Honorable Mention selection and received the 2012 University of Colorado Career Athletic Achievement Award. As an amateur, Talley was the winner of the Norgescup and California Women’s Amateur Championship and represented Team USA at the 2011 World University Games.   Throwing Heat! Stephanie Connelly and Briana Vega will trade their golf balls for a baseball Tuesday night as they will be throwing out the first pitch at the Asheville Tourists baseball game. Connelly will throw out the first pitch between approximately 6:50-6:55 p.m. at the game against the Charleston RiverDogs. An avid Baltimore Orioles fan, Connelly is currently in her fourth season the Symetra Tour. Connelly posted a career-best tied for second finish at last year’s Daytona Beach Invitational in Daytona Beach, Fla. Vega comes into this week’s Friends of Mission Charity Classic with momentum on her side as she is coming off a season-best T17 at the Symetra Classic. Vega is currently in her eighth season on the Symetra Tour and is a graduate of North Carolina State Universiy. Prior to turning professional, Connelly played collegiate golf at the University of Central Florida where she recorded three top-10 finishes, including one win. She also emerged victorious at the 2006 Maryland Women’s Amateur Championship. Tue, 14 May 2013 10:33:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-storylines.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tools-of-a-winner-kueny.aspx Laura Kueny fired a final-round 1-under 71 to capture her first Symetra Tour victory at the second-annual Symetra Classic. The Michigan State University graduate headed into Sunday’s final round at Raintree Country Club trailing Alena Sharp by 2-strokes but fought back recording two birdies and one bogey to take home the trophy. See what tools she had in her bag to help her achieve success.  Driver     Ping G15  Fairway woods    Ping G20  Irons    Ping i15  Wedges    Edel  Putter    Edel  Ball    Nike 20xi  Grips    Golf Pride  Bag    Ping  Shoes    Variety (Nike, Callaway, TipTee Toe, & True linkswear)  Glove    Nike  Spikes    Soft Spikes  Eyewear    Peak Vision  Apparel    Royal & Awesome  Visor    Ping Tue, 14 May 2013 08:04:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/tools-of-a-winner-kueny.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/quick-18-with-laura-kueny.aspx 1. Tell me something most people don't know about you. I'm a cancer survivor. 2. Describe the best meal you've had while on the road and where you had it. The best meal I've had on the road took place in Middletown, Maryland. My housing treated me to some famous Maryland Blue Crabs. I had to be instructed on how to eat one, because I had never experienced eating a whole crab before. Once I got past the texture of the gills and innards... it was a very delicious experience. 3. What's your favorite club in your bag? Right now, my putter. 4. What is your favorite season? Fall in Michigan. 5. Is there anything you are addicted to or can't live without? I'm obsessed with my cat BooBoo. 6. What is the weirdest thing you have ever eaten? Branston Pickle - it's a British jarred pickle relish. Doesn't look appetizing but it's SO good! Olivia Jordan-Higgins introduced me to it. 7. Tell us something you hate doing. Why? Making my bed... what's the point if you're just going to get back into it. No one really sees the bed anyways. Everyone has their own opinion about this, so no judging :) 8. As a child, what did you wish to become when you grew up? A pediatrician. 9. What's the best piece of advice you have ever received? My mother introduced me to a famous quote after a bad day, "Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it." Attitude is everything! 10. What movie do you watch again and again? Titanic and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. 11. What is always stocked in your refrigerator? Eggs and milk. 12. Name two things you consider yourself to be really good at. Sports and babysitting. However, I can never get kids to sleep - I'm just that fun! 13. Do you have any nicknames? Little Lou. 14. What story does your family always tell about you? Nothing good ever happens after midnight. This was lectured over and over again when my sister and I complained about a curfew. 15. If given a complete freedom to start afresh, what profession would you choose and why? I wouldn't trade professions... I love what I do. 16. Describe yourself in one word. Complex. 17. What is your favorite home-cooked meal? My Mom's Mac n' Cheese. 18. If you had to pick one animal to describe you, what would it be and why? A deer, because I'm quiet, observant, and thoughtful. Mon, 13 May 2013 10:07:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/quick-18-with-laura-kueny.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-preview.aspx DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA, May 13, 2013 – The Symetra Tour has already seen its fair share of excitement this year with four different winners in four events and a constantly changing Volvik Race for the Card, but the season is about to ramp up even further as the Tour stops in Asheville, N.C. this week for the Friends of Mission Charity Classic. Set to take place May 17-19 at the Country Club of Asheville, the 144-player event offers a purse of $100,000 and will award $15,000 to the tournament winner after three days of competition. Highlighting this year’s list of players scheduled to compete is Melissa Eaton, who currently holds the No. 1 ranking in the Volvik Race for the Card standings. Eaton claimed her first professional victory in dramatic fashion at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic as she recorded an eagle on the final hole to claim the win.  Also scheduled to compete next week are a trio of upcoming Big Break Mexico contestants including Stefanie Kenoyer, Taylor Collins, and Emily Talley. Golf Channel’s highly touted reality series is scheduled to premiere the 19 th season of the reality competition Monday, May 13 th at 9:00 p.m. ET. This year’s tournament proceeds will directly benefit Mission Women’s Health. Mission Women’s Health provides women of Western North Carolina with all the necessary tools to keep them healthy through all the stages of life with specific services with a range of specialties and award-winning programs. Mon, 13 May 2013 10:04:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/asheville-preview.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/fn-sheridan-moms-blog.aspx In this month's Florida's Natural Moms Blog, we look at Sophia Sheridan, a new mom on Tour. Sheridan takes a moment while "Marisa" is down for her afternoon nap for a Quick Q&A with SymetraTour.com. Did you miss playing golf once you took time off while pregnant? Not only golf but actually doing any physical activity. My last tournament was the 2012 Mobile Bay LPGA Classic due to my backache and I had to stop practicing last summer in June, because I had really low pressure and would get dizzy. For the last four months of my pregnancy I didn't do much...and I'm definitely not a woman who likes to just sit around ;)! Tell us about your little girl? Her name is Marisa, we named her after my mother-in law who passed away 11 years ago. She's seven months old, eats all kinds of baby food and loves playing with her toys while sitting up! She puts all of them into her mouth! She's a very happy baby and she never really cries.  How long after you had Marisa did you get back into golf? I had a C-section so I had to wait a little, but I started hitting balls two months after having her and then I started to work out right at the three month mark.  What has changed with your game? Not much really except I do hit it 7 yds. shorter :( but I know I will get it back with time and workouts.  How do you juggle family time and golf time? I had to cut out some practice hours...I do everything (practice and work out) between 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. and everything after 2 p.m. is now family time. When I'm practicing she either stays with the nanny or with my mom. Family now takes priority number one in my life so if I have to sacrifice practice hours I do it. I've learned how to relax and play with what I have!  Do you plan to bring Marisa along on the road? I do!!!! Unfortunately due to my LPGA status I only bring her if I have gotten into the tournament otherwise she stays with my mom during the week and my husband on the weekends!  What will be the hardest part about traveling now? Leaving her behind for sure! That's why I am really focusing on qualifying and improving my status; that way she can travel with me all the time! Also, I think my husband will miss her a lot if I bring her along too often so hopefully he will be able to come a few times too! What advice have other moms on tour given you?   My good friend from Tour, Danah Bordner, had a baby just a month after me so we definitely discuss a lot of stuff. It's great to have someone so close to me that's going through the same stuff. Face time is a must use App and my husband and mom send me pics all the time all day! Pretty much I've been told there's no recipe, you just do it, but make sure family always comes first! Sat, 11 May 2013 19:59:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/fn-sheridan-moms-blog.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/volvik-race-charlotte.aspx The highly anticipated Volvik Race for the Card continued at the conclusion of the Symetra Classic. Each year since 1999 players have been playing their way onto the LPGA Tour through the Symetra Tour’s Volvik Race for the Card by finishing atop the season-ending money list. The Volvik Race for the Card spotlights movement on the Tour’s 2013 season money list as players jockey for position among the top-10 money winners. This year marks the second year 10 players will receive fully-exempt status on next year’s LPGA Tour. Caroline Westrup found herself faced with a difficult decision at the beginning of the 2013 season, to play the Symetra Tour or head back home to stay on the Ladies European Tour (LET). Westrup has been a member of the Symetra Tour since 2010 but the Ahus, Sweden native decided to spend the past two years traveling throughout Europe on the LET. With the Symetra Tour serving as the only direct pipeline to the LPGA Tour, Westrup is now devoting her 2013 season traveling on the Road to the LPGA. The Florida State University graduate headed into this week’s Symetra Classic No. 16 on the Volvik Race for the Card. It wasn’t until a tie for second in Charlotte, N.C. that Westrup climbed into the coveted top-10 at No. 7 and inched her way closer to achieving her dream of playing on the LPGA Tour. “It means everything,” said Westrup of her move inside the top-10. “That has been a dream of mine since I was little, to play on the LPGA, and that’s the reason why I did not continue to play on the European Tour this year. I think that’s a good decision that I made and that’s the main goal for the year so I’m just going to keep putting myself in a good position every week.” At the conclusion of the Symetra Classic, players moving into the top 10 spots on the money list are as follows: 1. Melissa Eaton of Port Shepstone, S. Africa, $20,540; 2. Jaclyn Sweeney of Bradenton, Fla., $17,990; 3. Christine Song of Fullerton, Calif., $17,947; 4. Sue Kim of Langley, British Columbia, $16,916; 5. Laura Kueny of Whitehall, Mich., $16,585; 6. Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ontario, $16,489; 7. Caroline Westrup of Ahus, Sweden, $12,859; 8. Courtney Massey of Gold Coast, Australia, $12,813; 9. Amelia Lewis of Jacksonville, Fla., $12,713; 10. Isabelle Boineau of Marseille, France, $12,055 Sat, 11 May 2013 19:42:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/volvik-race-charlotte.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-final-recap.aspx Laura Kueny fired a final-round 1-under 71 to capture her first Symetra Tour victory at the second-annual Symetra Classic. The Michigan State University graduate headed into Sunday’s final round at Raintree Country Club trailing Alena Sharp by 2-strokes but fought back recording two birdies and one bogey to take home the trophy. “I’m at a loss for words right now,” said Kueny after her dramatic win. “I’m speechless. I just played solid all week and not once, besides that last putt was I a little nervous. I really wasn’t nervous at all this week. Everything just went my way and I kind of knew this was my week no matter if I won or not but I was going to have a good finish.” Paired in the final group with Sharp, the LPGA Tour veteran held the driver’s seat throughout Sunday despite recording her first blemish on her scorecard for the week with a double-bogey on the par-4 third hole. Kueny admitted after the round that despite solid ball striking throughout the day, she was plagued by a cold putter throughout her opening nine. “My ball striking was probably the best it had ever been,” said Kueny. “I hit either 16 or 17 greens today but I really couldn’t get the putter going on the front-nine. I had a lot of opportunities, I really could have walked away with this but I did what I had to do, made nine pars and two birdies on the back and that was enough.” It wasn’t until the final group reached the par-4 17th hole that Sharp’s lead would slip away after notching her second double-bogey of the day. “I hit 3-wood off the tee and had 180 downwind; it was like the shot I hit yesterday,” said Sharp. “I took a 7-iron and just tried to kill it probably and blocked it into the bunker. I was in the face of the bunker and hit it fat, there was a lot of sand in there, more than I thought there was and didn’t get it on the green. Then I chipped it to 3-feet and missed the putt.” After the untimely double-bogey by Sharp on the 17th hole, Kueny found herself heading to the tricky par-3 18th hole with a lead for the first-time during the final round. Despite only holding a 1-stroke lead over Sharp, Izzy Beisiegel, and Carolina Westrup, Kueny displayed nerves of steel as she calmly knocked her tee-shot safely on the center of the green. The third year Symetra Tour member lagged her approach putt to 18-feet before draining the 18-inch par putt for the win. Patience proved to be key for the petite golfer, known amongst her peers as Little Lou, who pointed one finger up to the sky after her victory. “I knew eventually one of them was going to have to fall,” said Kueny. “I didn’t want to wait until 16 but I wasn’t worried. The other two girls weren’t shooting lights-out so I just had to stay patient and eventually everything started clicking and putts will start dropping. Patience is important in golf.” Kueny relied heavily on her experience at the 2011 Michigan Open as she prevailed with a 1-stroke victory over Sharp, Beisigel, and Westrup. “It’s not my first professional win, it’s my first Symetra Tour win,” said Kueny. “I won the Michigan Open and I had about a 2-shot lead going into the final day and I just used a lot of experience from there to finish it off here today.” Sat, 11 May 2013 17:42:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-final-recap.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-final-notes.aspx Symetra Classic Raintree Country Club Final-Round News & Notes May 11, 2013 Final-Round Recap Volvik Race for the Card Continues Jean Chua Wins Tifosi Optics Sunglasses for Final Round Low Score Laura Kueny fired a final-round 1-under 71 to capture her first Symetra Tour victory at the second-annual Symetra Classic. The Michigan State University graduate headed into Sunday’s final round at Raintree Country Club trailing Alena Sharp by 2-strokes but fought back recording two birdies and one bogey to take home the trophy. “I’m at a loss for words right now,” said Kueny after her dramatic win. “I’m speechless. I just played solid all week and not once, besides that last putt was I a little nervous. I really wasn’t nervous at all this week. Everything just went my way and I kind of knew this was my week no matter if I won or not but I was going to have a good finish.” Paired in the final group with Sharp, the LPGA Tour veteran held the driver’s seat throughout Sunday despite recording her first blemish on her scorecard for the week with a double-bogey on the par-4 third hole. Kueny admitted after the round that despite solid ball striking throughout the day, she was plagued by a cold putter throughout her opening nine. “My ball striking was probably the best it had ever been,” said Kueny. “I hit either 16 or 17 greens today but I really couldn’t get the putter going on the front-nine. I had a lot of opportunities, I really could have walked away with this but I did what I had to do, made nine pars and two birdies on the back and that was enough.” It wasn’t until the final group reached the par-4 17th hole that Sharp’s lead would slip away after notching her second double-bogey of the day. “I hit 3-wood off the tee and had 180 downwind; it was like the shot I hit yesterday,” said Sharp. “I took a 7-iron and just tried to kill it probably and blocked it into the bunker. I was in the face of the bunker and hit it fat, there was a lot of sand in there, more than I thought there was and didn’t get it on the green. Then I chipped it to 3-feet and missed the putt.” After the untimely double-bogey by Sharp on the 17th hole, Kueny found herself heading to the tricky par-3 18th hole with a lead for the first-time during the final round. Despite only holding a 1-stroke lead over Sharp, Izzy Beisiegel, and Carolina Westrup, Kueny displayed nerves of steel as she calmly knocked her tee-shot safely on the center of the green. The third year Symetra Tour member lagged her approach putt to 18-feet before draining the 18-inch par putt for the win. Patience proved to be key for the petite golfer, known amongst her peers as Little Lou, who pointed one finger up to the sky after her victory. “I knew eventually one of them was going to have to fall,” said Kueny. “I didn’t want to wait until 16 but I wasn’t worried. The other two girls weren’t shooting lights-out so I just had to stay patient and eventually everything started clicking and putts will start dropping. Patience is important in golf.” Kueny relied heavily on her experience at the 2011 Michigan Open as she prevailed with a 1-stroke victory over Sharp, Beisigel, and Westrup. “It’s not my first professional win, it’s my first Symetra Tour win,” said Kueny. “I won the Michigan Open and I had about a 2-shot lead going into the final day and I just used a lot of experience from there to finish it off here today.”   Volvik Race for the Card… The highly anticipated Volvik Race for the Card continued at the conclusion of the Symetra Classic. Each year since 1999 players have been playing their way onto the LPGA Tour through the Symetra Tour’s Volvik Race for the Card by finishing atop the season-ending money list. The Volvik Race for the Card spotlights movement on the Tour’s 2013 season money list as players jockey for position among the top-10 money winners. This year marks the second year 10 players will receive fully-exempt status on next year’s LPGA Tour. Caroline Westrup found herself faced with a difficult decision at the beginning of the 2013 season, to play the Symetra Tour or head back home to stay on the Ladies European Tour (LET). Westrup has been a member of the Symetra Tour since 2010 but the Ahus, Sweden native decided to spend the past two years traveling throughout Europe on the LET. With the Symetra Tour serving as the only direct pipeline to the LPGA Tour, Westrup is now devoting her 2013 season traveling on the Road to the LPGA. The Florida State University graduate headed into this week’s Symetra Classic No. 16 on the Volvik Race for the Card. It wasn’t until a tied for second in Charlotte, N.C. that Westrup climbed into the coveted top-10 at No. 7 and inched her way closer to achieving her dream of playing on the LPGA Tour. “It means everything,” said Westrup of her move inside the top-10. “That has been a dream of mine since I was little, to play on the LPGA, and that’s the reason why I did not continue to play on the European Tour this year. I think that’s a good decision that I made and that’s the main goal for the year so I’m just going to keep putting myself in a good position every week.” At the conclusion of the Symetra Classic, players moving into the top 10 spots on the money list are as follows: 1. Melissa Eaton of Port Shepstone, S. Africa, $20,540; 2. Jaclyn Sweeney of Bradenton, Fla., $17,990; 3. Christine Song of Fullerton, Calif., $17,947; 4. Sue Kim of Langley, British Columbia, $16,916; 5. Laura Kueny of Whitehall, Mich., $16,585; 6. Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ontario, $16,489; 7. Caroline Westrup of Ahus, Sweden, $12,859; 8. Courtney Massey of Gold Coast, Australia, $12,813; 9. Amelia Lewis of Jacksonville, Fla., $12,713; 10. Isabelle Boineau of Marseille, France, $12,055   Jean Chua Wins Tifosi Optics Sunglasses for Final Round Low Score For her final-round low score of 6-under 66, Jean Chua of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was awarded a pair of Tifosi Optics Sunglasses, an enthusiastic eyewear company, providing technically advanced eyewear to enthusiasts of all sports and outdoor activities. The "Exclusive Sunglasses of the Symetra Tour," Tifosi Optics will provide sunglasses for the season-long promotion Sunday Low Round award. Chua’s round moved her from T61 to T12. Sat, 11 May 2013 17:34:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-final-notes.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-final-results.aspx Final round scores and money Saturday in the Symetra Tour's $100,000 Symetra Classic at the 6393-yard, par 36-36 - 72, Raintree Country Club. (a-denotes amateur): 1   Laura Kueny   (Whitehall, Mich.) 68-71-71 - 210 (-6)    $15,000     T2   Izzy Beisiegel   (St. Hilaire, Quebec) 70-72-69 - 211 (-5)    $7,122       Caroline Westrup   (Ahus, Sweden) 68-73-70 - 211 (-5)    $7,122       Alena Sharp   (Hamilton, Ontario) 69-68-74 - 211 (-5)    $7,122     5   Tiffany Joh   (San Diego, Calif.) 69-70-73 - 212 (-4)    $4,255     T6   Courtney Massey   (Gold Coast, Australia) 73-71-69 - 213 (-3)    $2,577       Wei-Ling Hsu   (Chinese Taipei) 72-71-70 - 213 (-3)    $2,577       Jenny Suh   (Fairfax, Va.) 70-72-71 - 213 (-3)    $2,577       Martina Gavier   (Cordoba, Argentina) 68-74-71 - 213 (-3)    $2,577       Alejandra Llaneza   (Mexico City, Mexico) 71-70-72 - 213 (-3)    $2,577       Marita Engzelius   (Oslo, Norway) 71-69-73 - 213 (-3)    $2,577     T12   Jean Chua   (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) 70-78-66 - 214 (-2)    $1,651       Nicole Vandermade   (Brantford, Ontario) 74-68-72 - 214 (-2)    $1,651       Sue Kim   (Langley, British Columbia) 72-69-73 - 214 (-2)    $1,651       Emma De Groot   (Coffs Harbour, Australia) 71-70-73 - 214 (-2)    $1,651       P.K. Kongkraphan   (Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand) 73-68-73 - 214 (-2)    $1,651     T17   Macarena Silva   (Santiago, Chile) 71-74-70 - 215 (-1)    $1,231       Calle Nielson   (Nashville, Tenn.) 76-69-70 - 215 (-1)    $1,231       Mallory Blackwelder   (Versailles, Ky.) 75-70-70 - 215 (-1)    $1,231       Emily Talley   (Napa, Calif.) 73-71-71 - 215 (-1)    $1,231       Briana Vega   (Andover, Mass.) 70-73-72 - 215 (-1)    $1,231       Giulia Molinaro   (Treviso, Italy) 72-71-72 - 215 (-1)    $1,231       Min Seo Kwak   (Seoul, South Korea) 70-72-73 - 215 (-1)    $1,231       Hannah Jun   (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) 75-67-73 - 215 (-1)    $1,231     T25   Jean Reynolds   (Newnan, Ga.) 73-73-70 - 216 (E)    $961       Stefanie Kenoyer   (Lighthouse Point, Fla.) 71-74-71 - 216 (E)    $961       Renee Skidmore   (Everett, Wash.) 73-72-71 - 216 (E)    $961       Paz Echeverria   (Santiago, Chile) 75-70-71 - 216 (E)    $961       Brianna Do   (Lakewood, Calif.) 69-75-72 - 216 (E)    $961       Katie Kempter   (Albuquerque, N.M.) 69-75-72 - 216 (E)    $961     T31   Christine Song   (Fullerton, Calif.) 70-77-70 - 217 (+1)    $787       Marina Alex   (Wayne, N.J.) 71-75-71 - 217 (+1)    $787       Catherine Matranga   (Fort Worth, Texas) 71-75-71 - 217 (+1)    $787       Anya Alvarez   (Tulsa, Okla.) 74-70-73 - 217 (+1)    $787       Melissa Eaton   (Port Shepstone, S. Africa) 70-73-74 - 217 (+1)    $787     T36   Mary Narzisi   (Omaha, Neb.) 74-74-70 - 218 (+2)    $623       Molly Aronsson   (Shelburne, Vt.) 71-76-71 - 218 (+2)    $623       Kaitlin Drolson   (San Diego, Calif.) 70-75-73 - 218 (+2)    $623       Jessi Gebhardt   (Bellingham, Wash.) 73-72-73 - 218 (+2)    $623       Victoria Park   (Irvine, Calif.) 72-72-74 - 218 (+2)    $623       Amelia Lewis   (Jacksonville, Fla.) 75-69-74 - 218 (+2)    $623       Isabelle Boineau   (Harseille, France) 67-75-76 - 218 (+2)    $623       Cara Freeman   (Chandler, Ariz.) 71-71-76 - 218 (+2)    $623     T44   Samantha Richdale   (Kelowna, British Columbia) 76-71-72 - 219 (+3)    $483       Ashley Knoll   (The Woodlands, Texas) 71-74-74 - 219 (+3)    $483       Kelly Jacques   (Longmont, Colo.) 71-74-74 - 219 (+3)    $483       Kendall Dye   (Edmond, Okla.) 73-72-74 - 219 (+3)    $483       Tracy Stanford   (Midland, Texas) 72-72-75 - 219 (+3)    $483       Kirby Dreher   (Fort St. John, B.C.) 75-69-75 - 219 (+3)    $483       Sadena Parks   (Scottsdale, Ariz.) 74-67-78 - 219 (+3)    $483     T51   Lacey Agnew   (Jonesboro, Ga.) 78-70-72 - 220 (+4)    $402       Shannon Fish   (Spring, Texas) 73-74-73 - 220 (+4)    $402       Tara Goedeken   (Dodge City, Kan.) 72-73-75 - 220 (+4)    $402       Lisa Ferrero   (Lodi, Calif.) 73-72-75 - 220 (+4)    $402       Blair O'Neal   (Scottsdale, Ariz.) 69-75-76 - 220 (+4)    $402       Rachel Rohanna   (Waynesburg, Pa.) 74-70-76 - 220 (+4)    $402     T57   Garrett Phillips   (St. Simons Island, Ga.) 74-74-73 - 221 (+5)    $351       Eileen Vargas   (Ibague, Colombia) 75-73-73 - 221 (+5)    $351       Inhong Lim   (Melbourne, Australia) 73-74-74 - 221 (+5)    $351       Birdie Kim   (Seoul, South Korea) 74-72-75 - 221 (+5)    $351     T61   Mitsuki Katahira   (Tokyo, Japan) 71-77-74 - 222 (+6)    $318       Elisa Serramia   (Barcelona, Spain) 72-76-74 - 222 (+6)    $318       Victoria Alimonda Lovelady   (Sao Paulo, Brazil) 75-73-74 - 222 (+6)    $318       Juliana Murcia Ortiz   (Bogota, Colombia) 71-74-77 - 222 (+6)    $318       Victoria Tanco   (Buenos Aires, Argentina) 73-72-77 - 222 (+6)    $318       Jaye Marie Green   (Boca Raton, Fla.) 75-70-77 - 222 (+6)    $318     67   Kendra Little   (Eugene, Ore.) 74-74-75 - 223 (+7)    $301     68   Fiona Puyo   (Frankfurt, Germany) 74-74-76 - 224 (+8)    $296     T69   Angela Buzminski   (Oshawa, Ontario) 76-72-77 - 225 (+9)    $286       Jackie Stoelting   (Vero Beach, Fla.) 75-72-78 - 225 (+9)    $286       Taylor Collins   (Davie, Fla.) 75-71-79 - 225 (+9)    $286     72   Jessica Wallace   (Langley, British Columbia) 75-73-79 - 227 (+11)    $280     73   Amy Eneroth   (Spokane, Wash.) 74-74-83 - 231 (+15)    $278     --- Missed 36-Hole Cut --- Megan McChrystal   (Stuart, Fla.) 73-76      - 149 Olivia Jordan-Higgins   (Jersey, Channel Islands UK) 73-76      - 149 Alexandria Buelow   (Palm City, Fla.) 73-76      - 149 Tiffany Tavee   (Tempe, Ariz.) 72-77      - 149 Madeleine Sheils   (Boise, Idaho) 76-73      - 149 Carling Nolan   (Middletown, Ohio) 77-72      - 149 Selanee Henderson   (Temecula, Calif.) 79-70      - 149 Kristie Smith   (Perth, Australia) 72-77      - 149 Tanya Dergal   (Durango, Mexico) 72-77      - 149 Ki-Shui Liao   (Windermere, Fla.) 77-72      - 149 Carly Werwie   (Kenosha, Wis.) 74-75      - 149 Alexandra Braga   (Pleasanton, Calif.) 76-73      - 149   Dawn Shockley   (Estes Park, Colo.) 73-77      - 150 Nikki Hadd-Gray   (Crestview, Fla.) 71-79      - 150 Jamie Hullett   (Mesquite, Texas) 77-73      - 150 Hye-Joo Han   (Seoul, South Korea) 72-78      - 150 Stephanie Connelly   (Pasadena, Md.) 78-72      - 150   Marina Choi   (Los Angeles, Calif.) 74-77      - 151 Shasta Averyhardt   (Flint, Mich.) 75-76      - 151 Mary Mattson   (Ijamsville, Md.) 75-76      - 151 Britney Hamilton   (Lake Orion, Mich.) 76-75      - 151 Jacey Chun   (Seoul, South Korea) 76-75      - 151 Britney Choy   (Wahiawa, Hawaii) 77-74      - 151 Jennifer Hong   (Granger, Ind.) 71-80      - 151 Ginger Howard   (Bradenton, Fla.) 79-72      - 151 Marissa Steen   (West Chester, Ohio) 77-74      - 151 Candace Schepperle   (Birmingham, Ala.) 77-74      - 151 Stephanie Kono   (Honolulu, Hawaii) 77-74      - 151 Jenni Jenq   (Saratoga, Calif.) 77-74      - 151 Perrine Delacour   (Saint-Cloud, France) 76-75      - 151   Marcela Leon   (Monterrey, Mexico) 73-79      - 152 Jordan Hardy   (Sylacauga, Ala.) 77-75      - 152 Katy Harris   (Houston, Texas) 77-75      - 152 Hye-Min Kim   (Seoul, South Korea) 80-72      - 152 Rachael Schmidt   (Elk River, Minn.) 71-81      - 152 Danielle Mills   (Pointe-Claire, Quebec) 78-74      - 152   Emma Jandel   (Dayton, Ohio) 73-80      - 153 Michelle Shin   (Cape Coral, Fla.) 75-78      - 153 Jessica Shepley   (Oakville, Ontario) 77-76      - 153 Ulrika Van-Niekerk   (Cape Town, South Africa) 79-74      - 153 Cydney Clanton   (Concord, N.C.) 77-76      - 153   Jenna Pearson   (Wheaton, Ill.) 75-79      - 154 Michele Low   (Ipoh, Perak) 77-77      - 154 Jaclyn Sweeney   (Bradenton, Fla.) 79-75      - 154 Joanna Coe   (Mays Landing, N.J.) 80-74      - 154 Frances Bondad   (Greystanes, Australia) 79-75      - 154 Jessy Tang   (Daytona Beach, Fla.) 74-80      - 154   Caitlin McCleary   (The Dalles, Ore.) 76-79      - 155 Sehee Son   (Seoul, South Korea) 77-78      - 155   Catherine O'Donnell   (Ponte Verda, Fla.) 80-76      - 156 Lalita Patipaksiri   (Cypress, Calif.) 82-74      - 156 Aimee Neff   (Carmel, Ind.) 78-78      - 156 Lisa Meldrum   (Montreal, Quebec) 77-79      - 156   Joy Trotter   (Chino Hills, Calif.) 76-81      - 157 Sara Brown   (Tucson, Ariz.) 80-77      - 157 Erika Malik   (Hinsdale, Ill.) 79-78      - 157   Seul-Ki Park   (Northbrook, Ill.) 83-75      - 158 Brittany Johnston   (Akron, Ohio) 80-78      - 158   Alexandra Casi   (East Palestine, Ohio) 77-82      - 159 Ashley Tait   (Littleton, Colo.) 83-76      - 159 Lili Alvarez   (Durango, Mexico) 81-78      - 159 Jordan Ontiveros   (Alamo, Calif.) 80-79      - 159   Rebecca Samuelsson   (Gothenburg, Sweden) 82-78      - 160   Tanya Wadhwa   (McKinney, Texas) 79-82      - 161 Kristin Walla   (Aspen, Colo.) 85-76      - 161 Emily Stinson (a)   (Charlotte, N.C.) 81-80      - 161   Therese Koelbaek   (Copenhagen, Denmark) WD Ayaka Kaneko   (Honolulu, Hawaii) WD Kitty Hwang   (Guayaquil, Ecuador) WD Natalie Sheary   (West Hartford, Conn.) WDI Jordan Rose   (San Angelo, Texas) WDI Sat, 11 May 2013 17:02:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-final-results.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/five-things-engzelius.aspx 1. Marita isn’t only a rookie on the Symetra Tour this year but she is also a rookie on the LPGA Tour. 2. If she could eliminate one thing from her daily schedule it would be sleep because she could practice more, be with her friends more, and do other things like watch TV or play other sports. 3. What is Marita’s favorite sport to watch besides golf? Winter sports. 4. The most memorable moment in Marita’s career is making it through Q-School. 5. She admits the person most frequently dialed in her cell phone is her boyfriend. Fri, 10 May 2013 19:50:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/blogs/2013/5/five-things-engzelius.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-rd-2-recap.aspx Canada native Alena Sharp made a surge up the leaderboard on Friday to take a two shot lead heading into the final round at the Symetra Classic. Sharp is bogey-free so far this week, carding three birdies on the first day followed by four more on Friday to take the lead at 7-under par. She holds a two stroke lead over UCLA alum Tiffany Joh and Michigan State’s Laura Kueny. Sharp, who also plays part-time on the Cactus and LPGA Tours, put herself in contention earlier this year at the VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at  Longbow Golf Club in Arizona but finished second to Jaclyn Sweeney. Sharp has yet to make a cut in four starts this year on the LPGA Tour, but a few adjustments to her swing last week might be the key to earning her first-career Symetra Tour win. “I just started a new swing move last week and have just been working on that,” said Sharp. “I’m doing more follow through than backswing so I just have a lot of energy going through the target and it’s really straightened my shots out. I’m putting well, I haven’t missed many greens and if I have, I’m putting. It’s been really good, consistent.” The par-5 16 th hole has played in Joh’s favor this week as she carded her second eagle on the hole during Friday’s round. With two bogeys and two birdies through 15 holes, Joh’s eagle helped her jump up the leaderboard to sit a tie for second. Having only played the Raintree Country Club just this week, she says she felt comfortable placing the ball where it needs to be on the hole. “It was really the 16 th hole that saved me today but other than that I was hitting it alright,” said Joh on her round. “I think it was playing a little harder today because the winds were very switchy. “But the 16 th hole, you don’t even have to really hit driver off the tee, you just have to hit something that goes 220 so I just hit three wood,” said Joh. “It’s all placement on that hole, you just have to keep it left of the bunker then it will take that hill. I had about a 217 yard downhill shot so I just took 5-wood and told myself not to chunk it and I didn’t. Then I hit it to about 6-feet and made that for eagle.” Kueny’s name has only touched the leaderboard a few times throughout her career, owning only one top-10 finish during her four-years on the Road to the LPGA. But this week, she has found consistency in her game that has kept her only a few strokes off the leader’s pace.    “It feels great to be up there,” said Kueny. “It’s been a struggle since wrist surgery two years ago. I finally feel like my game is finally coming back together. Whatever happens, happens tomorrow. I’m just very excited to have the opportunity to win. God will take care of it.”   Norway native and LPGA Tour rookie Marita Engzelius sits three strokes behind Sharp after carding a 3-under 69 on Friday, taking her two-day total to 4-under par. Fri, 10 May 2013 19:40:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-rd-2-recap.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-2.aspx Symetra Classic Raintree Country Club Second-Round News & Notes May 10, 2013 Second-Round Recap Let it Be New Routine? Sleep Walking Five Things You Didn’t Know About…Marita Engzelius Cheers to the Weekend! Tweet of the Day Canada native Alena Sharp made a surge up the leaderboard on Friday to take a two shot lead heading into the final round at the Symetra Classic. Sharp is bogey-free so far this week, carding three birdies on the first day followed by four more on Friday to take the lead at 7-under par. She holds a two stroke lead over UCLA alum Tiffany Joh and Michigan State’s Laura Kueny. Sharp, who also plays part-time on the Cactus and LPGA Tours, put herself in contention earlier this year at the VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at  Longbow Golf Club in Arizona but finished second to Jaclyn Sweeney. Sharp has yet to make a cut in four starts this year on the LPGA Tour, but a few adjustments to her swing last week might be the key to earning her first-career Symetra Tour win. “I just started a new swing move last week and have just been working on that,” said Sharp. “I’m doing more follow through than backswing so I just have a lot of energy going through the target and it’s really straightened my shots out. I’m putting well, I haven’t missed many greens and if I have, I’m putting. It’s been really good, consistent.” The par-5 16 th hole has played in Joh’s favor this week as she carded her second eagle on the hole during Friday’s round. With two bogeys and two birdies through 15 holes, Joh’s eagle helped her jump up the leaderboard to sit a tie for second. Having only played the Raintree Country Club just this week, she says she felt comfortable placing the ball where it needs to be on the hole. “It was really the 16 th hole that saved me today but other than that I was hitting it alright,” said Joh on her round. “I think it was playing a little harder today because the winds were very switchy. “But the 16 th hole, you don’t even have to really hit driver off the tee, you just have to hit something that goes 220 so I just hit three wood,” said Joh. “It’s all placement on that hole, you just have to keep it left of the bunker then it will take that hill. I had about a 217 yard downhill shot so I just took 5-wood and told myself not to chunk it and I didn’t. Then I hit it to about 6-feet and made that for eagle.” Kueny’s name has only touched the leaderboard a few times throughout her career, owning only one top-10 finish during her four-years on the Road to the LPGA. But this week, she has found consistency in her game that has kept her only a few strokes off the leader’s pace.    “It feels great to be up there,” said Kueny. “It’s been a struggle since wrist surgery two years ago. I finally feel like my game is finally coming back together. Whatever happens, happens tomorrow. I’m just very excited to have the opportunity to win. God will take care of it.”   Norway native and LPGA Tour rookie Marita Engzelius sits three strokes behind Sharp after carding a 3-under 69 on Friday, taking her two-day total to 4-under par. Let it Be… A member of the LPGA Tour since 2005, Alena Sharp (@AlenaSharp) is where she feels most comfortable this week, and that is on the Symetra Tour. Sharp failed to gain entry into the first four tournaments on this year’s LPGA Tour so instead, the Hamilton, Ontario native set her sights on the Symetra Tour where she recorded a runner-up finish at the season-opening VisitMesa.com Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club. This week’s Symetra Classic falls during a break on the LPGA Tour and Sharp is using it as a tune-up for next week’s Mobile Bay LPGA Classic. “That’s exactly why I wanted to play, just to get in a groove,” said Sharp. “I sat out a lot this spring because I wasn’t in Phoenix and I wasn’t in Australia so I didn’t really start until April. It’s nice to keep playing, I’m happy about just playing four or five weeks in a row because it hasn’t happened in a while.” Sharp admitted after her second consecutive bogey free round on Friday that her confidence level has held her back significantly on the LPGA Tour. “I really feel like that’s another reason I came here, to get some more confidence,” said Sharp. “I don’t feel very confident out on the LPGA and it shouldn’t be any different. I was thinking about that walking the fairways today like what is so different, it shouldn’t be. It’s my mindset so I just need to take my mindset I have out here and when I play the Cactus Tour and bring it out on the LPGA.” While Sharp admits she tries to force it too much on the LPGA Tour, it is quite the opposite for the New Mexico State University graduate on the Road to the LPGA as she is letting it be this week. “I’ve tried to force it too much probably and out here I just let it happen,” said Sharp. “It’s a matter of letting it be and if it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be, instead of forcing it. We all know you can’t play well when you try to force it or make a putt when you try to force it in.” New Routine? It’s been nearly two years since Laura Kueny notched her first and only top-10 finish on the Road to the LPGA at the 2011 Island Resort Championship. Although she has touched the leaderboard a few times since then, she hasn’t been able put the pieces together to stay in contention. This week she may have found a new pre- and post-round ritual that could play an integral part in her success this week. “The past few days I’ve been watching (the movie) Due Date,” said Kueny. “I could probably quote the whole movie line-for-line. I’ve been watching it in the mornings, too. It kind of takes my mind off golf.” The Michigan State grad says the comedy has helped her maintain a balanced mindset heading into each round and plans to watch it again tonight, with a famed burger to go along with it. “I just try to stay busy and try not to think about what I have to do tomorrow,” said Kueny. “I’m going to have some Five Guys tonight for dinner. So, maybe that will help me get ready for tomorrow.” Sleep Walking… It has been quite a busy past couple weeks for current LPGA Tour member Tiffany Joh (@TIFFJOH) who played in last week’s Kingsmill Championship before skirting up to Baltimore to play in the U.S. Women’s Open Qualifier. Not even downpours or torrential rain could stop the UCLA grad from qualifying for the prestigious U.S. Women’s Open as she fired rounds of 72-72 to make it on the number. Forced to carry her own clubs in the qualifier, Joh made a stop at a convenience store prior to her round to purchase a trash bag to repel the rain from her small carry bag. “Honestly, I’m actually super tired,” said Joh. “On Sunday I drove from Kingsmill to Baltimore to play in the Open Qualifier then played 36 on Monday, in the rain, with this bag which is not really water resistant. I stopped by 7-11 on the way to the golf course and got one of those plastic garbage bags and stuck them in the garbage bag.” On Tuesday, Joh hopped on a plane to fly from Baltimore to Charlotte, N.C. for this week’s Symetra Classic. Despite failing to participate in a practice round on the tricky Raintree Country Club prior to the start of the tournament, Joh was able to figure out the ins-and-outs of the course during yesterday’s opening-round. “On Tuesday I took a flight out here but I haven’t seen this course before and it’s kind of one of those courses that you want to play in more than just pro-am. I think yesterday I was still trying to figure out what I was hitting off the tee and what my lines were. Then today I was a little more comfortable.” This year, Joh has played in four events on the LPGA Tour, and despite spending the majority of her time out there, she admits most of her friends still embark on the Road to the LPGA with the Symetra Tour. “I actually like being out here,” said Joh. “I think I actually know, well I don’t know if they would say they were my friends, but I think they are my friends. I think I have a lot more friends out here.” Five Things You Didn’t Know About…Marita Engzelius 1. Marita isn’t only a rookie on the Symetra Tour this year but she is also a rookie on the LPGA Tour. 2. If she could eliminate one thing from her daily schedule it would be sleep because she could practice more, be with her friends more, and do other things like watch TV or play other sports. 3. What is Marita’s favorite sport to watch besides golf? Winter sports. 4. The most memorable moment in Marita’s career is making it through Q-School. 5. She admits the person most frequently dialed in her cell phone is her boyfriend. Cheers to the Weekend! A total of 73 players made the 36-hole cut at 2-over par 148 and will continue onto Saturday’s final round. Tweet of the Day… Talked to coachie last night she told me I need to go to my candyland :) so today is all about playing to play – Candace Shepperle (@shepcandace) on her talk with Auburn University Women’s Golf Coach, Kim Evans, who was recently diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Fri, 10 May 2013 18:28:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-2.aspx http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-1.aspx Symetra Classic Raintree Country Club First-Round News & Notes May 9, 2013 First-Round Recap From Point A to Point B Familiar Place Million Dollar Smile A Rockin’ Good Time Tweet of the Day France native Isabelle Boineau fired the low-round of the day at 5-under 67 to take the first-round lead at the Symetra Classic in Charlotte, N.C. Sweden’s Caroline Westrup, Argentina’s Martina Gavier and Michigan State’s Laura Kueny trail Boineau by one stroke heading into Friday’s second round. Boineau, who is a rookie on the Symetra Tour this year, produced a blemish-free round on Friday opening with three consecutive birdies on the front nine, with two more following on the back nine. With 26 putts on the Raintree Country Club, Boineau said her comfort on the greens helped her deliver a flawless round. “I made everything under 9-feet,” said Boineau. “I would just get on the green and be so confident then make the putts. I started well with a birdie on two then on three with making a chip off the green. I wasn’t very confident about the chip but it was perfect, it went in. Then the next par-5 I made a birdie again so I was 3-under after four but I tried not to think about it and just keep on playing. I didn’t hit or strike the ball very well but I just tried to hit my safe zones and the putting was really well.” Westrup tee’d off on the No. 10 tee this morning and carded six-straight pars before her first birdie came on the par-5 16 th hole. She made the turn after carding a bogey on the par-3 18 th hole but it didn’t take long for her to shake off a three-putt. “I was in between two clubs there and I hit the longer one,” said Westrup said of the 18 th hole. “I ended up long and had a really hard putt sliding down grain and downhill. I feel like I should have been under on the front nine but I missed a lot of birdie putts. But I came back on one and made a 30-footer for birdie.” Gavier got off to a hot start on Thursday posting four birdies and an eagle on the par-4 9 th hole to put her at 6-under before the turn. But three bogeys coming on Nos. 11, 13, and 15 cost her an outright lead on the day-one. A birdie on the par-4 17 th hole brought her to a tie for second along with Westrup and Kueny at 4-under 68. Gavier said the excitement on the front nine caused her to feel pressure heading into the back nine. “When I start playing well, I get a little anxious and get a little nervous,” said Gavier. “I’m trying to learn again to stay in the moment and just take it one shot at a time. I got a little frustrated so I lost focus and my energy went down but my caddy really helped me to get my focus and energy back.” Kueny can’t complain after a carding four birdies on her front nine, but couldn’t quite drop the birdie putts on the back nine. With no bogeys or birdies on the back nine, Kueny says she’s content with her round after catching a few breaks. “I started out with a birdie on the first hole so that set the tone for the rest of the day,” said Kueny. “I actually had a lot of great misses and bounces today that I took advantage of. I had 28 putts, so the putter was rolling pretty nicely especially on the front nine but on the back nine I had 9 straight pars. They were all stress-free too so that was nice. Overall, I felt really comfortable today and felt pretty solid and relaxed.” Sitting two-strokes off Boineau’s lead is a group of five that include Brianna Do, Tiffany Joh, Blair O’neal, Katie Kempter and Alena Sharp. From Point A to Point B… Every Symetra Tour player tee’s it up at the beginning of the year with one goal in mind, to make it to the LPGA Tour. While Isabelle Boineau (@IsabelleBoineau) shares the same dream, she is also aware of the process it takes to achieve her lifelong goal. “The goal is the LPGA but it’s just a goal,” said Boineau. “You have to think about the process, it’s not ‘oh my goal is to make it to the LPGA so I’m going to get there.’” A graduate of the University of Arizona, Boineau has relied heavily on the Point A method introduced by her by her coach, Susie Meyers. The technique is designed to help her stay in the present and remain focused on the process at hand. A four-time winner in collegiate competition, Boineau’s professional game has blossomed in recent months as she is coming off a runner-up finish at the Guardian Retirement Championship at Sara Bay where she lost in a two-hole playoff to Christine Song. While Boineau is beaming from her recent success, she remains focused with the Point A method as there are still 11 tournaments remaining on this year’s Symetra Tour schedule.  “I just need to think about Point A and stay in the present all the time and shot after shot,” said Boinean. “If I play well then I’m going to get there but if I don’t then we’ll see. There are still a lot of tournaments to go. I’m not thinking like oh yeah, I’ve been playing well for two weeks; I’m going to make it. I’m still in the process, I don’t want to think ahead and get too excited because when I get too excited I make mistakes.” Boineau is a rookie on this year’s Symetra Tour and after carding a 5-under 67 during the first-round of the Symetra Classic, she admitted the tour has far exceed her expectations. “It’s been fun, I like it,” said Boineau. “I mean, I want to get to the LPGA as soon as I can, that’s the goal but it’s a really good tour. It’s actually a lot better than what I thought it was. Through the years the Symetra Tour has grown and gets a lot of good players.” A Familiar Place. At the end of first-round play of the Symetra Classic, Caroline Westrup found herself in a position that produces a certain incentive that helps her maintain a competitive mindset. The Florida State University alum, who won five tournaments as a Seminole, says she seems enjoys chasing the lead. “A lot of my wins I had in college I was not leading into the final round,” said Westrup. “Sometimes I was even three-stroke behind but you know I always thought it was doable, possible. I don’t think I was actually leading one tournament in tournament, and I won five. I like to be behind. I think it’s easier because you’re not the one being chased.” Westrup, a proclaimed leaderboard watcher, says she tends to take more risks when she’s fighting for the lead. “I like to know where I’m at on the leaderboard,” said Westrup. “Like on 18 I looked to see where I was at and if I see I’m one stroke behind the lead I’m going to go straight at the pin and not play it safe.”   Million Dollar Smile… When you see Martina Gavier on-site at a Symetra Tour event it is not out of the norm to see her showcasing her pearly whites smiling from ear-to-ear. After Thursday’s first-round of the Symetra Classic, the Cordoba, Argentina donned a smile bigger than usual after carding a 4-under 68 to find herself one-shot off the lead. “It’s awesome,” Gavier said of her opening round. “That’s what I’ve been wanting because I’ve been playing well the second or third round so I can’t get into contention. This round today, if I can put together a good one tomorrow that’s right where I want to be so it’s a good start and it’s the first time I’ve done it out here.” In her second year on the Symetra Tour, Gavier is looking to improve on a career-best T10 which came at the 2012 Florida’s Natural Charity Classic. The Kent State University graduate is looking to lean on the experience she gained from last year’s rookie season to improve her game this season. “For sure, I’m a lot more comfortable with my game,” said Gavier. “I realized after last year that I wasn’t ready for the LPGA and I needed to develop certain areas of my game and I did. I worked hard this season off season so hopefully, God willing, it will pay off.”   A Rockin’ Good Time… When the Raintree Country Club is a rockin’, don’t bother knockin’, but that is exactly what eight Symetra Tour professionals and eight amateurs Wednesday night of this week’s Symetra Classic. The practice putting green of Raintree Country Club played host to the second-annual Rock the Putt competition which featured a five-hole putting course filled with several obstacles atypical of even a normal putt-putt course including electric guitars, drums and a microphone. Hye-Joo Han emerged victorious over Eileen Vargas in the four round elimination challenge to win a cash prize of $500. Rock the Putt wasn’t the only fun activity taking place Wednesday night as junior golfers arrived in droves for the Daddy/Daughter and First Tee Clinics. Charlotte, N.C. resident and the National President of LPGA’s Teaching and Club Professionals Dana Rader was joined-by Symetra Tour professionals Madeleine Sheils, Stephanie Connelly, Jordan Ontiveros, and Jordan Rose to provide instruction at the Daddy/Daughter Clinic, while Stephanie Kono, Briana Do and Kirby Dreher assisted with the First Tee Clinic. Tweet of the Day… Fist tourney as a Stoelting # excited to play at 1:10 in the # SymetraClassic – Jackie Stoelting (@JackieBGolf) on her playing in her first tournament since getting married last week to Travis Stoelting. Thu, 09 May 2013 18:49:00 GMT http://www.symetratour.com/golf/news/2013/5/symetra-classic-1.aspx