BC's Yeji Kwon Ready To Play For A Spot On LPGA Tour
(December 2, 2024) - Yeji Kwon sailed through her first qualifying school test and now hopes she can ace the final exam.
That would be the final stage of the LPGA Tour’s Qualifying Series, which goes Dec. 5-9 in Mobile, Ala. The 18-year-old Port Coquitlam resident earned her spot in the final stage back in late October when she tied for 10th at second-stage qualifying.
That finish has earned her good Epson Tour status for 2025, but the former Canadian Junior Girls champion doesn’t want to settle for that.
“I am super-excited and I’m really looking forward to it. I have already played both of the courses. We drove up there recently to play some practice rounds.”
Kwon hopes she can draw upon the success she had at second stage in Venice, Fla., where a brilliant second-round 64 helped relieve some of that Q-school pressure. “Playing at the second stage was honestly a really good experience,” Kwon said. “I had the chance to compete alongside some really talented golfers and it really pushed me to get the best out of myself. I also learned a lot about myself and my game — areas of strength and areas I could improve on.
“Just being confident about every shot and being focused and being in the moment I feel were the important things I learned at second stage and being composed and playing your own game because sometimes you can start thinking about a lot of other things.”
“Honestly, golf has been my passion ever since I first started playing the game and I have always had the dream of playing on the LPGA Tour,” she said. “Playing on the WAPT just helped build my confidence to pursue professional golf.”
The final stage is a 90-hole event with a cut after 72 holes. The top 25 players and ties will earn their LPGA Tour cards for 2025. Kwon knows it won’t be easy and neither are the two courses — the Crossings and Falls courses at Magnolia Grove Golf Club — playing host to the event.
“Both courses are pretty slopey, with lots of elevation changes. They kind of remind me of Pinehurst a little. They are tree-lined with a few doglegs and they play long, 6,600 or 6,700 yards, and in wet conditions they are very long. In dryer conditions it was do-able, but I still was hitting a lot of long irons into many of the greens.”
Kwon will have her dad, Andy, on her bag as caddie. “He helps me with a lot of my decision-making,” she said of her dad. “He has been really helpful measuring the wind and giving me my yardages, so I really rely on him for that. And he is also always trying to keep it positive after a bad shot.”