MOBILE, Ala. — The last time Anne Chen teed it up competitively in the final round of the Epson Tour Championship, everything was on the line. Would she pick up her first Epson Tour title? Would she gain her LPGA Tour card? Would she have to battle at Final Qualifying for 2026 LPGA Tour status?

But after a thrilling five-hole playoff on Sunday at Indian Wells Golf Resort, Chen not only walked away with her first career Epson Tour victory but also with her LPGA Tour card in hand. The Duke University alum climbed 19 spots in the season-long Race for the Card to find herself at No. 11 on the final points list, guaranteeing her Category 16 status on the LPGA Tour for the 2026 season.

Since Oct. 5, Chen has taken a much-needed trip abroad to reward herself for the grueling seven-month-long Epson Tour season. Adding world traveler to her personal resume, she made pit stops in Spain, Portugal, Japan and China on her well-deserved vacation, something that has settled her down from her post-win high at the Epson Tour Championship.
The 24-year-old was happy to recover a bit from the tiresome pressure and energy needed to be a professional athlete at the highest level and felt like her hiatus from golf was valuable for her mental preparedness coming into her final competitive stretch of the 2025 golf season.

“I think this time off has kind of taken my mind off golf a little bit,” Chen said ahead of play in Lower Alabama. “Sometimes, when you play a lot of golf, you kind of get sick of it, and it messes with you a little bit. So this time off was super helpful in that way, just to get away from the game and come back to it refreshed.”

And even though Chen is just looking to improve the status she has already earned this week at Final Qualifying, the Sugar Land, Texas native is eager to get back on the links and tap into her mental toughness in hopes finishing inside the top 25 and ties in at RTJ Golf Trail – Magnolia Grove.

“Definitely come down a little bit just because, different conditions, different golf course, different part of the country right now,” Chen explained. “I'm playing with no pressure because I got my card already, and this is just a bonus if I'm able to get through.

“Definitely feels a lot better, and knowing that I don't have anything to lose, but I think it's just going to be a free five rounds of golf, no pressure. Just go out there, see what can happen, and go along with it.”

Keep an eye out for the Epson Tour graduate as Chen looks ahead to the cold and wet forecast that’s in store for herself and the rest of the 116-player field this week at the Final Qualifying portion of the 2025 LPGA Qualifying Series in Mobile, Ala.

Anne Chen’s Hard-Fought Epson Tour Championship Win Fuels a Pressure-Free Return to Final Qualifying

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