Yealimi Noh was understandably emotional when leaving the scoring tent following Sunday’s final round. After starting the final round with a three-stroke advantage over Hannah Green, Noh played solid for her first 14 holes, stepping to the 15th tee at 3-under on the day and still three strokes ahead of Green. But as the tournament closed, Noh’s game faltered and two bogeys over her final three holes opened the door for Green to take the win.
If Noh had emerged victorious, she would have earned immediate LPGA Tour status and become just the third Monday Qualifier in Tour history to capture that week’s title. Instead, while Noh certainly made a name for herself in the golf world, she did not secure that elusive Membership and will instead need to rely on advancing through the LPGA’s Qualifying School.
“I played really solid and great,” said Noh, who was also in contention at July’s Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic, where she entered the final round one stroke off the lead and ultimately tied for sixth. “(Green) stayed really strong throughout, so congrats to her. Yeah, it sucks, but hopefully I'll come back next year after Q-School this year and play on the Tour next year.”
Noh is currently entered in Stage II of the LPGA’s Qualifying School, which takes place Oct. 12-17 at Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Fla. Noh said this week is her final LPGA Tour appearance of 2019, as she has other sponsor obligations and tournaments in Korea and Japan over the coming weeks. Should she play well in those other events and jump into the top 75 of the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, she could skip Stage II and go directly to LPGA Q-Series, a two-week final stage that will be held Oct. 23-26 and Oct. 30 to Nov. 2 at Pinehurst No. 6 and Pinehurst No. 9 in North Carolina.
GREEN GOOD AT THE BOUNCEBACK WIN
Hannah Green went to the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship fresh off missing the cut the previous week. She also came to the Cambia Portland Classic after missing last week’s cut.
Both of those tournaments ended the same way – with Green finding the winner’s circle. Green credited her calm personality and ability to move past those bad moments as keys to her new-found career success. The fact that she really likes Portland doesn’t hurt either.
“I guess I'm pretty good about not dwelling on past results, which is obviously really key in this type of job I guess,” said Green, who said she’s eaten out every night, enjoying Portland’s famed food scene. “Yeah, I actually really enjoy Portland, as well. So pretty much not really thought about golf once I leave the golf course, which I think is really important, too.”
PLAYER NOTES
Rolex Rankings No. 26 Hannah Green (64-63-73-67)
- She hit 11 of 14 fairways and 16 of 18 greens, with 27 putts
- This is Green’s second season on the LPGA Tour; she has one victory at the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
- This is Green’s 17th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; she won the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and three other top-20 finishes
- She is competing in her second Cambia Portland Classic; she missed the cut in 2018
Rolex Rankings No. 297 Yealimi Noh (65-68-64-71)
- She hit 10 of 14 fairways and 16 of 18 greens, with 27 putts
- Noh is playing in the seventh LPGA Tour event of her career; her best finish is a tie for sixth at the 2019 Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic, where she was one stroke off the lead heading into the final round
- Noh turned professional in January 2019 after winning the 2018 Girl’s Junior PGA Championship, U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship and Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship in consecutive weeks
- She earned a spot in the tournament via the Monday Qualifier; two Monday Qualifiers have won an LPGA Tour event – Brooke Henderson (2015 Cambia Portland LPGA Classic) and Laurel Kean (2000 State Farm LPGA Classic)
- Noh is playing as a non-Member of the LPGA Tour
CME GROUP CARES CHALLENGE –SCORE 1 FOR ST. JUDE
The CME Group Cares Challenge is a season-long charitable giving program that turns aces into donations. CME Group will donate $20,000 for each hole-in-one made on the LPGA Tour in 2019, with a minimum guaranteed donation of $500,000 to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, which is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases.
The Cambia Portland Classic saw two holes-in-one for a total of $40,000. There have been 23 made prior to the week and a total of $460,000 has been donated thus far in 2019.
LEADERS TOP 10 COMPETITION
The LEADERS Top 10 competition awards a $100,000 bonus to the LPGA player with the most top-10 finishes through the completion of the event held immediately prior to the CME Group Tour Championship. In the event of a tie in total top-10 finishes, the award will go to the player with the most official wins, followed by most second-place finishes, third-place finishes, etc., until the tie is broken.
With her tie for fourth at the Cambia Portland Classic, Brooke Henderson notched her 10th top-10 finish and moved into a tie for first with Jin Young Ko. Four players are tied for third with nine top-10s – Ariya Jutanugarn, Hyo Joo Kim, Jeongeun Lee6 and Nelly Korda.
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