Lindblad among qualifiers who will pass on Q-Series, return to school

Despite dominating the field with a four-shot lead at Stage II of LPGA Q-School, Ingrid Lindblad’s qualifying journey has come to an end.

Instead of competing in the six-round Q-Series, which begins on November 30th in Mobile, Alabama, the fifth-year senior from LSU has decided to finish her last semester of eligibility with the Tigers. LPGA rules implemented last year state that players must turn professional in order to pursue an LPGA card through Q-Series. However, if players choose to remain amateur, they have the option to defer the Epson Tour status they have earned by advancing through the second stage.

“At the beginning of the year, I thought I would go through the entire Q-Series and then move on,” Lindblad explained on Friday. “However, after speaking with my coaches, I realized that I really enjoy being at LSU. Our coaches are amazing, and we have a strong team this year. So, I want to give it a chance to win another SEC championship and maybe even a national championship.”

Lindblad, the number one ranked player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, was one of eight current college players who finished among the top 40 and ties at the second stage, which took place at Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Florida. The other players, in order of WAGR rank, include Charlotte Heath from Florida State (13), Amari Avery from USC (14), Maddison Hinson-Tolchard from Oklahoma State (35), Jennie Park from Texas A&M (67), Briana Chacon from Oregon (105), Savannah Iqbal from Colorado (116), Savannah Grewal from Clemson (124), and Lilly Thomas from Tulsa (276).

Golf Channel has confirmed that at least five of these eight players will defer their Epson status and return to their respective schools. It is not yet known what the plans of Iqbal, Grewal, and Thomas are, as all amateurs have until November 17th to decide whether or not to participate in Q-Series.

Avery is the only underclassman among this group. The 18-year-old junior enrolled a semester early two springs ago. In her absence, along with the absence of Christine Wang who missed at the second stage, the Trojans, the reigning national runners-up, won the Stanford Intercollegiate tournament last week.

Last year, five college players advanced to Q-Series, with three of them – Ashley Lau from Michigan, Valery Plata from Michigan State, and Nataliya Guseva from Miami – choosing to turn professional and give up their remaining college eligibility.

Out of these three players, Plata is the only one who earned LPGA status. She has played in 13 events this season and is currently ranked 184th in the Race to the CME Globe. Guseva finished the season in 14th place in Epson points, while Lau ended up in 56th place.