The first week will be played on Pinehurst No. 6 and the second week on Pinehurst No. 9
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., October 22, 2019 – The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) returns this week to Pinehurst, N.C. for the second annual Q-Series presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. The revamped finale of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament will take place from Oct. 23 – Nov. 2, 2019 with 98 players competing for status on the LPGA Tour and for a $150,000 total purse.
Q-Series is the final stage of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament, which replaced Stage III (Final Stage) in 2018, to determine LPGA playing status for the 2020 LPGA season. The remaining 144 holes of qualifying are played over two 72-hole, stroke-play events held on consecutive weeks. Scores will be cumulative over the two weeks, with a cut after the sixth round (108 holes). The first week of competition will be held on the George and Tom Fazio-designed Pinehurst No. 6 from Oct. 23 – 26 and the second week will be staged on the Jack Nicklaus-designed Pinehurst No. 9 from Oct. 30 – Nov. 2.
“Championship women’s golf has a storied history at Pinehurst,” says Tom Pashley, Pinehurst Resort’s President. “Pinehurst has hosted the Women’s North & South Amateur every year since 1903, and past champions include legends such as Louise Suggs, Estelle Lawson Page and Peggy Kirk Bell as well as more recent major champions Yani Tseng, Brittany Lang, Morgan Pressel and Danielle Kang. We’re pleased the LPGA has chosen to return to Pinehurst for the Q-Series, and we’re excited to watch and follow the next great champions on the LPGA Tour.”
The 2019 Q-Series field consists of 98 players with a breakdown as follows: 2019 LPGA Tour Members ranked 101 to 150 on the LPGA Official Money List; 2019 Epson Tour Members ranked 11 to 35 on the season-ending Epson Tour Official Money List; players ranked within the Top 75 on the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings as of Aug. 12, 2019, and 38 qualifiers from Stage II, which concluded on Thursday, Oct. 17 at the Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Fla.
At a minimum, players in the top 45 and ties at the end of Q-Series will receive LPGA Membership in Category 14 on the 2020 LPGA Priority List. Competitors who finish outside of the top 20 will also receive Epson Tour Membership in Category C on the 2020 Epson Tour Priority List.
This is the second year of Blue Cross NC’s three-year agreement to be the presenting sponsor of the LPGA’s Q-Series.
“When women go after their dreams, they Live Fearless,” said Reagan Greene Pruitt, Blue Cross NC Vice President of Marketing and Community Engagement. “Blue Cross NC is proud to support these talented golfers in their LPGA pursuits, while inspiring women of all ages to Live Fearless whatever their passion may be.”
The inaugural Q-Series produced several 2019 LPGA rookies that went on to achieve success on Tour including Republic of Korea’s Jeongeun Lee6, winning medalist honors in 2018. Lee6 became a Rolex First-Time Winner when she won the U.S. Women’s Open and with five events left in the season, clinched the 2019 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year award with 1,273 points. Other star rookies that completed Q-Series are Kristen Gillman, Sarah Schmelzel, Pajaree Kupcho and Augusta Women’s Amateur champion Jennifer Kupcho and runner-up Maria Fassi.
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