With the 2014 Epson Tour season scheduled to kick off next week in Arizona, all eyes will be focused on who can earn their LPGA Tour card through the Volvik Race for the Card. For four returning players, narrowly falling outside the Volvik Race for the Card top-10 could be just the motivation they need to hoist LPGA Tour cards at the conclusion of the 2014 season.
Olivia Jordan-Higgins
While the 2013 Epson Tour season ended in heartbreak for Olivia Jordan-Higgins, look for her to enter 2014 prepared and determined. Jordan-Higgins made her first trip to the winner’s circle in 2013 in Syracuse, N.Y. and looked poised to obtain her LPGA Tour card as she entered the season’s final event inside the top 10 on the Volvik Race for the Card. All that changed in the blink of an eye for Jordan-Higgins as she missed the cut in Daytona Beach, Fla. and finished in the dreaded 11th position on the season-ending Volvik Race for the Card standings. While 2013 brought disappointment for Jordan-Higgins, look for her to be in the mix in 2014 after coming off a career-best season that included five top-20 finishes.
Megan McChrystal
Megan McChrystal has proven to be a force to be reckoned with since joining the Epson Tour in 2011. While the Floridian picked up a victory in both 2012 and 2013, she has yet to finish inside the top 10 in the season-ending Volvik Race for the Card standings. Last season, McChrystal found her way to the winner’s circle at the season-ending Epson Tour Championship catapulting her to No. 18 on the money list and inside the top 10 in two additional categories including driving accuracy and putts per GIR.
Melissa Eaton
In 2013 Melissa Eaton picked up her first career Epson Tour victory in dramatic fashion eagling the 54th hole at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic. After spending the majority of the off-season in her home country of South Africa, look for Eaton to come out swinging in 2014. A former Louisiana State University (LSU) Tiger, Eaton’s statistics at the conclusion of 2013 could further prove there are great things ahead for her after finishing fifth in sand saves, seventh in birdies, and first in eagles.
Laura Kueny
In 2013 the petite golfer with a never-give-up attitude made her first way to the winner’s circle on the Epson Tour at the Epson Classic. The Michigan native narrowly missed claiming her second title after losing in a one-hole player at the Decatur-Forsyth Classic and went on to record two additional top-25 finishes. While 2013 was a breakout season for Kueny, six missed cuts left the former Michigan State University Spartan sitting in the 14th spot in the Volvik Race for the Card. Despite failing to hoist her LPGA Tour card at the end of the 2013 season, look for Kueny to come out firing at the start of the 2014 season in Arizona.
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