VOLVIK RACE FOR THE CARD UPDATE
A career-best tied for third finish on Sunday at the PHC Classic in just her fourth career Epson Tour start moved Casey Danielson (Osceola, Wisconsin) 30 spots up in the Volvik Race for the Card to No. 49 to earn our “Move of the Week.”
“I’m very pleased with my finish at the PHC Classic, especially at an event in my home state,” said Danielson. “I played in the event last year, so I knew I’d be comfortable on the course. Moving up so far on the money list has given me confidence that I can be competitive with the other players on the Epson Tour.”
Rewind to the 2017 PHC Classic, where Danielson ended tied for 14th at Brown Deer Park Golf Course in her first career Epson Tour tournament. She would make one other start last season.
Her break for 2018 came as a sponsor exemption at the Island Resort Championship. She would record a tied for fourth result, good enough to reshuffle up the priority list. Now a second top-five in as many events has Danielson positioned to make a legitimate run at her objective.
“I am very thankful that I had the opportunity to play in the Island Resort Championship, as my finish there has allowed me to get into the rest of the Epson Tour events this season,” said Danielson. “My goal over the final stretch is still to make it into the top-10 and earn my full LPGA Tour card for 2019. It is a big goal since I will only be playing half the season, but it has given me extra motivation to play well.”
Meanwhile, the current top-10 in the Volvik Race for the Card saw no changes, except for an increase in several player’s season earnings. Dottie Ardina (Laguna, Philippines) holds a commanding advantage in the No. 1 position with $69,453 following a solo second finish last week in Milwaukee. Checking in at No. 2 is Stephanie Meadow (Jordanstown, Northern Ireland), who trails Ardina by $16,078.
From there it is Jenny Haglund (Karlstad, Sweden), Isi Gabsa (Munich, Germany), Elizabeth Szokol (Winnetka, Illinois) and Eun Jeong Seong (Yongin, Republic of Korea) maintaining their spots at Nos. 3-6, respectively. Haglund has accumulated $49,751 through nine starts and only $3,988 separates her from Seong.
Continuing down the rankings, Ruixin Liu (Dalian, China), Stephanie Kono (Honolulu, Hawaii), Karen Chung (Livingston, N.J.) and Min Seo Kwak (Seoul, Republic of Korea) round out the top-10. Liu is one of three players who has competed in all 14 events this year, earning $42,998 along the way. A difference of just $4,119 stands between Liu and Kwak.
Finally, another solid move in the rankings came from Carlie Carr (Casselberry, Florida). A Epson Tour career-best result of tied for third launched the former University of Auburn standout 24 places to No. 43.
“It feels great to finally see my game come back to where I want it to be,” said Carr. “That big jump really helps my confidence and I feel like I’m not going to be as stressed going into these last seven events. Knowing I can still score without hitting the ball perfect helps eliminate some doubt.”
Eight members of the top-10, as well as both Danielson and Carr, are in Battle Creek, Mich., this week for the FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship from Aug. 17-19 at Battle Creek Country Club.
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