As the band Europe made famous, it’s “The Final Countdown.”

This week is the last opportunity for players to qualify to represent their countries in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. And miles away from Japan, in the suburbs of Atlanta, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship awaits 156 players looking to for a final push up the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings and in turn, the Women’s Olympic Golf Rankings. The qualification period for eligible players ends June 28th, with the official event accruing August 4-7.

With her second win of the 2021 season, Nelly Korda rose to No. 3 in the world, solidifying her spot as the probable top American come this year’s Games. With Danielle Kang (No. 6) and Lexi Thompson (No. 7) potentially joining Korda due to their current Ranking position, the battle for the fourth spot will go into the final week of qualification. With up to four participants per country ranked in the Top 15 of the Rolex Rankings eligible for Tokyo, Jessica Korda would appear to be a shoo-in at No. 13 to join her sister on Team USA. But lurking five spots back is Ally Ewing (No. 18), and Jennifer Kupcho (No. 24), Austin Ernst (No. 26) and Amy Olson (No. 29) all within the top 30. A high finish could lead to an exponential increase in their Rankings, which means all eyes will be on the Americans come Sunday.

Though she isn’t in the KPMG Women’s PGA field, Mariajo Uribe, ranked No. 295 in the Rolex Rankings, looks to represent not only her home country of Colombia but the #LPGAMoms contingent with a space in the 2020 Games. Uribe, who is No. 55 in the Olympic Golf Rankings out of 60, returned to Tour action at the LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship for the first time since giving birth to her son, Luca. Her focus has been on returning to the Olympics after her T19 performance in 2016. Uribe finished T77 at the MEDIHEAL Championship but did not play last week at the Meijer LPGA Classic. She’ll tee it up next at the Marathon LPGA Classic as she looks to prepare for competition halfway across the world.

“That's the only reason I'm here. I probably would have taken the whole year off, but since the Olympics are happening, it's really important for Columbia for me to go, so my country doesn't have that many athletes that qualify, so I'm, that's my whole goal this year,” said Uribe back in Daly City. “I'm just going to play a couple tournaments before then and get in the rhythm and then go in August and hopefully play well.”

For more information on the Olympic Golf Rankings and an updated Women’s Reallocation Reserve List, click here: https://www.igfgolf.org/tokyo-2020-olympic-golf-rankings

Sprint To The Finish

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