Marina Alex is a player to watch this weekend at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup.
After a 6-under, 66 on Friday, she is just one off the pace. Alex is one of those players that has been on the verge of victory, but hasn’t quite been able to seal the hardware. She has 12 career top 10 finishes since 2013 including a tie for fifth at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open this year.
“It is the million dollar question,” said Alex in reference to learning how to win. “A lot of experience and learning from the mistakes you make when you're in a position like that. The things you don't do right, you try to correct that and just manage yourself the best you can.”
That’s exactly what Alex will try to do this weekend.
“I'm just learning to handle my emotions a little bit better and be patient and just really trust everything that I've been working on for the past three or four years with my putting, with my full swing,” explained the 27-year-old. “It's finally just coming together, which has been great.”
When Alex graduated from the Epson Tour to the LPGA in 2013, it took a few years to have a breakout season.
She finished 65th on the LPGA money list in 2014, 71st in 2015 and 65th in 2016.
Last year, she made a significant jump. She finished 27th on the money list with six top 10s including a T3 at the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open.
“I was really happy with how I finished in Australia,” said Alex, who is the 12th highest ranked American in the world at No. 48. “I kind of just picked away at the week. I went from not feeling good to start to a really strong weekend and that helped my confidence and my momentum. I’m trying to do the best I can at feeling comfortable in these situations and having faith in myself.”
Will this be the weekend she finds an answer to the million dollar question?
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