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Kuehne, Wie, Thompson Lead U.S. Women’s Open Qualifiers
June 9, 2008
U.S. Women’s Open Sectional Qualifying
Far Hills, N.J. – USGA champions Kelli Kuehne and Michelle Wie and 13-year-old Alexis Thompson all earned spots in the 156-player field via sectional qualifying Monday for the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open Championship, which will be played June 26-29 at Interlachen Country Club in Edina, Minn.
Seventy-one players were fully exempt into the championship, leaving 84 spaces open in the field for qualifiers. One spot is still being held open for the winner of next week’s LPGA Tour event, should that winner not already be fully exempt into the Women’s Open.
Kuehne, the 1994 U.S. Girls’ Junior and 1995 and 1996 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, earned medalist honors at the sectional qualifier in Maryland by a stroke over the 18-year-old Wie, who in 2003 became the youngest winner of an “adult” USGA championship when she won the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links at age 13.
Thompson, of Coral Springs, Fla., who a year ago became the youngest U.S. Women’s Open qualifier in history, will return for the 2008 championship after earning a spot at the qualifier at Loblolly Pines Golf Course in Hobe Sound, Fla. Sharing medalist honors at Loblolly were 14-year-old amateur Victoria Tanco of Bradenton, Fla., and 18-year-old professional Amy Yang of Korea.
At The Farms Golf Club in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., 1988 U.S. Women’s Open champion Liselotte Neumann of Sweden earned medalist honors to qualify for her 22nd U.S. Women’s Open. Three other USGA champions qualified in California: 2006 U.S. Girls’ Junior winner Jenny Shin, 15, of Torrance, Calif., and two reigning champions: Mina Harigae, 18, of Monterey, Calif. (2007 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links) and Kristen Park, 15, of Buena Park, Calif. (2007 Girls’ Junior).
They will be joined in the field by four other USGA champions: Silvia Cavalleri (1997 Women’s Amateur); Marcy (Newton) Hart (1995 Girls’ Junior; 2000 Women’s Amateur); Jill McGill (Women’s Amateur; 1994 Women’s Amateur Public Links); and Virada Nirapathpongporn (2003 Women’s Amateur).
Michele Redman of Minneapolis will play in the Women’s Open in her home state, as will Martha Nause of Inner Grove Heights, who at 53 will be the oldest player in the 2008 field.
Teenagers will again be well represented at the U.S. Women’s Open. Joining Harigae, Park, Shin, Tanco, Thompson, Wie and Yang in the field via qualifying are: Sarah Almond, 16, of Albermarle, N.C.; Cydney Clanton, 18, of Concord, N.C.; Courtney Ellenbogen, 17, of Blacksburg, Va.; Shanshan Feng, 18, of the Peoples Republic of China; Ha-Na Jang, 16, of Korea; Jessica Korda, 15, of Bradenton, Fla.; Erynne Lee, 15, of Silverdale, Wash.; Joanne Lee, 19, of San Carlos, Calif.; Tiffany Lua, 17, of Rowland Heights, Calif.; Sydnee Michaels, 19, of Temecula, Calif.; Angela Oh, 19, of Maple Shade, N.J.; Ji-Young Oh, 19, of Korea; Cyd Okino, 14, of Honolulu, Hawaii; Ashleigh Simon, 19, of South Africa; and Jennifer Song, 18, of Korea.
Stacy Lewis of The Woodlands, Texas, won the sectional qualifier at Eastern Hills Country Club in Garland, Texas, by four strokes. Lewis, who recently helped lead the USA Curtis Cup to victory on the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland, turned professional prior to playing her sectional qualifier.
The U.S. Women’s Open is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the USGA. Other championships include the U.S. Open, the U.S. Senior Open, and 10 national amateur championships.
A list of the players who qualified for the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open, including qualifying sites and scores, follows:
Key
(a) – amateur
A – alternate
(qualifying score in parentheses)
6/9/08 – Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (The Farms Golf Club)
Liselotte Neumann, Sweden (146)
(a) Jenny Shin, Torrance, Calif. (147)
(a) Mina Harigae, Monterey, Calif. (148)
(a) Paola Moreno, Colombia (148)
(a) Sydnee Michaels, Temecula, Calif. (149)
(a) Joanne Lee, San Carlos, Calif. (149)
(a) Jennie Lee, Henderson, Nev. (150)
(a) Ha-Na Jang, Korea (151)
Aiko Yoshida, Japan (152)
(a) Tiffany Lua, Rowland Heights, Calif. (152)
(a) Jennifer Song, Korea (152)
Vanessa Brockett, Los Angeles, Calif. (153)
Chieko Amanuma, Japan (153)
(a) Kristen Park, Buena Park, Calif. (153)
A – (a) Erica Moston, Belmont, Calif. (153)
A – (a) Lizette Salas, Azusa, Calif. (154)
6/9/08 – Hobe Sound, Fla. (Loblolly Pines Golf Course)
(a) Victoria Tanco, Bradenton, Fla. (145)
Amy Yang, Korea (145)
(a) Alexis Thompson, Coral Springs, Fla. (146)
Nicole Hage, Coral Springs, Fla. (149)
(a) Jessica Korda, Bradenton, Fla. (149)
Lynn Valentine, East Lyme, Conn. (150)
A – (a) Jennifer Pandolfi, Navarre, Fla. (152)
A – Vicky Hurst, Melbourne, Fla. (152)
6/9/08 – Glencoe, Ill. (Skokie Country Club)
Katrina Leckovic, Canada (149)
Leah Wigger, Louisville, Ky. (149)
Ashleigh Simon, South Africa (150)
Sunny Oh, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (150)
(a) Kathleen Ekey, Sharon, Ohio (150)
Kristen Samp, Moberly, Mo. (150)
Rachel Bailey, Australia (150)
Virada Nirapathpongporn, Thailand (151)
Na Ri Kim, Korea (151)
Gina Umeck, Redlands, Calif. (152)
Martha Nause, Inner Grove Heights, Minn. (152)
Jeanne Cho-Hunicke, Longwood, Fla. (152)
Janell Howland, Boise, Idaho (152)
Jamie Fischer, Gurnee, Ill. (152)
Whitney Wade, Glasgow, Ky. (153)
Sin Ham, Torrance, Calif. (153)
Bomi Suh, Korea (153)
(a) Emily Powers, Quincy, Ill. (154)
Danah Ford, Indianapolis, Ind. (154)
A – Jean Reynolds, Newnan, Ga. (154)
A – Milena Savich, Carmel, Ind. (154)
6/9/08 – Rockville, Md. (Woodmont Country Club (South Course)/Manor Country Club)
Kelli Kuehne, Dallas, Texas (136)
Michelle Wie, Honolulu, Hawaii (137)
(a) Angela Oh, Maple Shade, N.J. (138)
Jill McGill, San Diego, Calif. (138)
Michele Redman, Minneapolis, Minn. (138)
Eva Dahllof, Sweden (139)
Meena Lee, Korea (139)
Moira Dunn, Utica, N.Y. (139)
Shanshan Feng, Peoples Republic of China (139)
Carri Wood, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (140)
Il Mi Chung, Korea (140)
Alena Sharp, Canada (141)
Ji-Young Oh, Korea (141)
Charlotte Mayorkas, San Diego, Calif. (142)
Diana D'Alessio, Flanders, N.J. (142)
Heather Young, Fort Worth, Texas (142)
Helen Alfredsson, Sweden (142)
Janice Moodie, Scotland (142)
Patricia Meunier-Lebouc, France (142)
Karin Sjodin, Sweden (143)
Sherri Turner, Greenville, S.C. (143)
Anna Grzebien, Narragansett, R.I. (144)
Candy Hannemann, Brazil (144)
Giulia Sergas, Italy (144)
Heather Daly-Donofrio, Jupiter, Fla. (144)
Jennifer Rosales, Philippines (144)
Katherine Hull, Australia (144)
Kim Hall, San Antonio, Texas (144)
Miriam Nagl, Longboat Key, Fla. (144)
Silvia Cavalleri, Italy (144)
Hee Young Park, Korea (145)
Linda Wessberg, Sweden (145)
Wendy Doolan, Australia (145)
(a) Alison Walshe, Westford, Mass. (145)
Carin Koch, Sweden (145)
A – Hye Jung Choi, Korea (145)
A – Lorraine Ballerano, Myrtle Beach, S.C. (145)
6/9/08 – Pinehurst, N.C. (Forest Creek Golf Club)
(a) Lauren Doughtie, Suffolk, Va. (139)
(a) Cydney Clanton, Concord, N.C. (140)
(a) Sarah Almond, Albermarle, N.C. (142)
Marcy Hart, High Point, N.C. (142)
(a) Courtney Ellenbogen, Blacksburg, Va. (142)
A – Ashli Bunch, Morristown, Tenn. (143)
A – (a) Garrett Phillips, St. Simons Island, Ga. (144)
6/9/08 – Garland, Texas (Eastern Hills Country Club)
Stacy Lewis, The Woodlands, Texas (142)
Laurie Brower, Lubbock, Texas (146)
(a) Erynne Lee, Silverdale, Wash. (148)
(a) Tara Goedeken, Dodge City, Kan. (149)
A – Taylor Leon, Dallas, Texas (151)
A – (a) Megan Vaughn, Lake Village, Ark. (151)
6/9/08 – Kahuku, Hawaii (Turtle Bay Resort)
(a) Cyd Okino, Honolulu, Hawaii (142)
A – (a) Margarita Ramos, Phoenix, Ariz. (156)
A – (a) Anna Jang, Aiea, Hawaii (157)
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