Here are 15 of the most successful LPGA players to graduate from the Epson Tour since 1999, including two Hall of Famers
As the Epson Tour sets to begin its 2023 season this week in Winter Haven, Florida, it’s a good time to look back on some the great champions who have earned their LPGA cards through the official qualifying tour.
Just last Sunday, Epson Tour alumna Lilia Vu broke through with her first victory at the Honda LPGA Thailand. The former UCLA standout won three times in 2021 to earn her LPGA card.
A total of 172 players have graduated from the Epson Tour since 1999. From 1999 to 2002, a total of three cards were handed out each season. That jumped to five in 2003 and beginning in 2008, that number increased to 10, which is where it currently stands.
Here are 15 players who graduated from the Epson Tour and found success on some of the biggest stages in golf:
Inbee Park
Inbee Park is met by So Yeon Ryu and a spray of champagne after wrapping up a win at the 2013 U.S. Women’s Open.
LPGA Hall of Famer Inbee Park initially appealed to go straight to the LPGA at age 17 but was denied. She enrolled at UNLV for a hot second but ultimately turned pro and joined what’s now known as the Epson Tour after the age limit was lowered to 17. She finished third on the money list to earn her card and two years later won the first of seven career majors.
Lorena Ochoa
Lorena Ochoa laughs on the practice green prior to the start of the 2005 MasterCard Classic at Bosque Real Country Club in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo: Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
Lorena Ochoa never missed a beat when she transitioned from a stellar career at the University of Arizona to the pro ranks. The Mexican star left college after two years and won three of 10 starts in the 2002 Futures Tour season, topping the money list and earning Player of the Year honors in the process. She’s now in the LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame.
Nelly Korda
Nelly Korda at the 2018 Honda LPGA Thailand at Siam Country Club in Chonburi, Thailand. (Photo: Thananuwat Srirasant/Getty Images)
Nelly Korda transitioned from junior golf straight to the pros, joining the Epson Tour in 2016 at age 17. She won her first professional title at the Sioux Falls Greatlife Challenge and finished ninth on the tour’s money list at season’s end to earn her card. She’s now a major winner and former No. 1.
Grace Park
Grace Park watches a drive during the first round of the 2012 Evian Masters.
Grace Park topped the money list in 1999, becoming part of the first graduating class to the LPGA. She won five of 10 starts that season and was named Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year. She’d go on to win six times on the LPGA, including a major.
Mo Martin
Mo Martin won the 2014 British Open.
Mo Martin began her professional career on the Epson Tour in 2006 and played on that tour for five seasons before finally earning her LPGA card in 2011 when she finished third on the money list. Three years later, Martin won the AIG Women’s British Open at Birkdale with one of the most memorable eagles in major championship history.
Hannah Green
Hannah Green celebrates after winning the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine National Golf Club. (Photo: Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports)
Australian Hannah Green joined the Epson Tour in 2017, winning three times to finish second on the money list and earn her LPGA card. Two years later, she won the KPMG Women’s PGA at Hazeltine. Green has now won twice on the LPGA.
Patty Tavatanakit
Patty Tavatanakit jumps into Poppie’s Pond after winning the 2021 ANA Inspiration at Rancho Mirage Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California. (Photo: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports)
Former UCLA standout Patty Tavatanakit won three times in eight starts on the 2019 Epson Tour circuit and was named Rookie of the Year. She won the 2021 Chevron Championship for her first LPGA title, defeating Lydia Ko by two strokes.
Birdie Kim
Birdie Kim with the U.S. Women’s Open trophy in 2005.
Birdie Kim earned her LPGA card through the Epson Tour in 2003 by finishing fourth on the money list. She played as Ju Kim until 2004, when she changed her name to distinguish herself from the rest of the South Korean players with the surname Kim.
After making only three cuts in her first 20 events as an LPGA rookie, Kim went back to Q-School to retain her card and then entered U.S. Women’s Open lore when she holed a bunker shot on the 72nd hole to win at Cherry Hills and break the hearts of then amateurs Morgan Pressel and Brittany Lang, who took a share of second.
Mi Jung Hur
M.J. Hur tees off at the State Farm Classic.
South Korea’s Mi Jung Hur turned joined the Futures Tour in 2008 and finished fourth on the money list to earn her card. Her first victory on the LPGA came the following season when she defeated Suzann Pettersen and Michele Redman in a playoff at the Safeway Classic. Hur has won four times on the LPGA, her most recent coming in 2019. Last year Hur gave birth to her first child, a son, named Ji-An Wang.
Seon Hwa Lee
Seon Hwa hits a shot during the first round of the 2012 RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup at the JW Marriott in Phoenix. (Photo: Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
After a successful stint on the Korean LPGA, Seon Hwa Lee came to the Futures Tour in 2004. She topped the money list on that tour in 2005 to earn her LPGA card, winning the 2005 Albany Futures Pro Golf Classic. On the LPGA, Lee won four times from 2006 to 2008.
Christina Kim
Christina Kim reacts to her caddie during the third round of the 2021 ANA Inspiration at the Dinah Shore course at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California. (Photo: Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Now a three-time winner the LPGA, Christina Kim graduated from the Epson Tour in 2002 in the same class of three as Ochoa and Miriam Nagl. Kim missed only one cut in 18 starts that season, notching 12 top-10 finishes. She won the Hewlett-Packard Garden State Futures Summer Classic by defeating Ochoa on the sixth playoff hole.
Celine Boutier
Celine Boutier smiles as she walks from the second tee during the third round of the 2022 Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open at Dundonald Links Golf Course in Troon, Scotland. (Photo: Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)
France’s Celine Boutier won twice on the Epson Tour in 2017, becoming the third member of the 2017 graduating class to exceed $100,000 in single-season earnings. Now a two-time winner on the LPGA, the Duke grad is also a stalwart for Team Europe, amassing a 5-1-1 record in the Solheim Cup.
Ally Ewing
Ally Ewing poses with the trophy after winning the 2022 Kroger Queen City Championship at the Kenwood Country Club in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo: Albert Cesare/The Cincinnati Enquirer)
After graduating from Mississippi State, Ally Ewing earned conditional status on the LPGA for the 2016 season but played mostly on the Epson Tour. She finished runner-up four times that season and placed second on the money list behind Madelene Sagstrom. She has since won twice on the LPGA,
Stacy Prammanasudh
Stacy Prammanasudh hits her tee shot on the 12th hole during the second round of the 2012 Kraft Nabisco Championship at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California. (Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
Former Tulsa standout Stacy Prammanasudh won 10 times at the collegiate level before earning non-exempt status on the LPGA for the 2003 season. Prammanasudh played on both the LPGA and Futures Tours in 2003, winning twice on the developmental circuit along with nine additional top-10 finishes. She won POY honors that season on the Futures Tour and went on to win twice on the LPGA in 2005 and 2007.
Marina Alex
Marina Alex watches her drive on the 1st tee during the singles on the third day of the 2019 Solheim Cup at Gleneagles in Scotland. (Photo: Andy Buchanan/AFP via Getty Images)
New Jersey’s Marina Alex, a former Vanderbilt player, spent two seasons on the Epson Tour before earning her card for the 2014 season. Alex finished third on the money list in 2013. She has since won twice on the LPGA, most recently at the 2022 Palos Verdes Championship.
