LPGA Qualifying Tournament History 2004

2004 LPGA FINAL QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT
DAYTONA BEACH FL DEC. 1-5, 2004 PURSE: $50,000
LEGENDS COURSE, PAR: 36-36 YARDS: 6431 CHAMPIONS COURSE PAR: 36-36 YARDS: 6393

Round 4

Creamer rises at LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament, leads by three 71 players make 72-hole cut

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., Dec. 4, 2004 - Paula Creamer's amateur days may soon be numbered. The 18-year-old from Pleasanton, Calif., carded a fourth-round 1-under-par 71 to take a three-shot lead into the final round of the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament.

Creamer, who has shot under par all four rounds, stands at 9-under-par 207. She made a 10-foot putt to birdie the first hole, but was temporarily derailed with back-to-back bogeys on two and three.

"In the beginning I started off kind of rough," said Creamer, on a day that featured intermittent light showers and a temperature that did not get out of the 50s. "I think I was fussing around too much with my clothing. After that I started hitting the ball a little better."

Creamer bounced back with birdies on nine, 12 and 14 before a bogey on 15 knocked her back to 9-under-par. With 18-holes to play her eyes are not only set on an exempt LPGA Tour card, but also on a tournament victory.

"Tomorrow we are going to go out and try to go as low as we can and try to win the tournament," she said.

Creamer, one of two amateurs competing this week, made headlines last June when she tied for second at the ShopRite LPGA Classic. Her bid to become the youngest winner in Tour history and the first amateur to win an LPGA event since JoAnne Carner in 1969 came up one shot short as Cristie Kerr rolled in a birdie on 18 to win. She also garnered low amateur honors with Michelle Wie at the U.S. Women's Open conducted by the USGA with a tie for 13th.

Four-year LPGA Tour veteran Beth Bader and third-round leader Young Jo are three shots back tied for second at 282 (-6). Emily Bastel, who finished sixth on the Futures Tour season-ending list, and 2004 LPGA Tour rookie Celeste Troche are tied for fourth at 284 (-4).

Seventy-one players made the 72-hole cut at 294 (+6), while 23 players are under par.

Two LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournaments-one in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and the other in Venice, Fla.-were held to help determine the field for the Final LPGA Qualifying Tournament. The top-30 finishers and ties from each LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournament advanced to the final stage to join the 66 current LPGA Tour members who are trying to improve their playing status for 2005. The field is completed by the eligible players who finished sixth through 15th on the final 2004 Futures Tour money list. The top-five finishers on the Futures Tour money list automatically received their exempt card for 2005.

The 90-hole tournament, which is being contested on the Legends Course and Champions Course at LPGA International, concludes Sunday. The final round will be played on the Legends Course. A total of 30 exempt spots on the 2005 LPGA Tour are up for grabs this year, and a sudden-death playoff will be held to determine the 30th spot if needed. The next 35 finishers and ties will earn non-exempt status for 2005.

Round 2

Jo leads LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament by one Bauer, Creamer, Cherebetiu one back

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., Dec. 2, 2004 - Young Jo carded a second-round 6-under-par 66 to grab the lead at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament. Jo stands at 7-under-par 137 with three rounds to play. She leads 2002 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Beth Bauer, 18-year-old amateur standout Paula Creamer and Jordan Cherebetiu by one shot.

Jo, who finished 11th on the season-ending Futures Tour money list, played her second round on the Champions Course at LPGA International. She birdied two, five, six and nine to make the turn and 4-under-par, and then came home with birdies on 12 and 14 to complete her bogey-free round.

"My putting was really good today, and I did not miss any fairways," said Jo, who recorded eight top-10 finishes on the Futures Tour this year. "I had a good feeling this morning that I was going to play well."

Bauer shot 67 (-5) on the Champions Course to climb the leaderboard. She began her round on number 10 and started quickly with two straight birdies. She placed a 9-iron to four feet on 10 and almost holed out a 5-iron on 11, which resulted in an easy birdie putt from a couple inches.

"I hit the ball great today," said Bauer, who finished 100th on the season-ending ADT Official Money List to secure non-exempt status for 2005. "It was one of those days that could have been really low. If I get this putter rolling then it could have been real low today."

Bauer's putter didn't fail her much of the round as she drained a 12-foot putt on 18, a 10-foot putt on five and 15-foot putt on six for a bogey-free round.

Creamer, one of two amateurs competing, had a rollercoaster day that featured eight pars, six birdies, one eagle, two bogeys and one double-bogey.

"It was a little up-and-down out there," said Creamer, who via a sponsor exemption finished second at the ShopRite LPGA Classic this year. "I fought back when I made a mistake, so it was a good day."

Creamer, who also played the Champions Course, started with a 25-foot birdie putt on four and then holed out an 8-yard bunker shot on the par-5 fifth to get things going. She bogeyed seven before hitting her approach on nine to three inches for birdie. Creamer sunk a 25-foot birdie putt on 14 before double-bogeying 16 to fall back to 2-under-par. She finished strong with a 35-foot birdie putt on 17 and had a tap-in birdie on the par-5 18th.

Cherebetiu, of Rapid City, South Dakota, is also tied for second after her second consecutive round of 3-under-par 69.
Two LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournaments-one in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and the other in Venice, Fla.-were held to help determine the field for the Final LPGA Qualifying Tournament. The top-30 finishers and ties from each LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournament advanced to the final stage to join the 66 current LPGA Tour members who are trying to improve their playing status for 2005. The field is completed by the eligible players who finished sixth through 15th on the final 2004 Futures Tour money list. The top-five finishers on the Futures Tour money list automatically received their exempt card for 2005.

The 90-hole tournament, which is being contested on the Legends Course and Champions Course at LPGA International, continues with the third round Friday, and the 137-player field will be cut to the low 70 players and ties after the fourth round. The final round will be played on the Legends Course. A total of 30 exempt spots on the 2005 LPGA Tour are up for grabs this year, and a sudden-death playoff will be held to determine the 30th spot if needed. The next 35 finishers and ties will earn non-exempt status for 2005.

Round 1

Song, Bastel fire first-round 67s, lead LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament by two

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., Dec. 1, 2004 - Playing in the same group, Naree Song and Emily Bastel each carded 5-under-par 67s on the Champions Course at LPGA International to take a two-shot lead in the first-round of the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament.

They started on the 10th hole and both got things going early. Song, whose twin sister Aree is an exempt member on Tour, birdied her first hole and then climbed to 4-under-par with birdies on five, six and seven. She gave a shot back with a bogey on number 12, but bounced back with birdies on 13 and 14.

"One bogey, six birdies, it was a good day," said Song, who won The New Innsbrook C.C. FUTURES Golf Classic on the Futures Tour this year. "I putted really well today. I made some long putts, short putts and medium putts. It was a good score."
Bastel's round featured a clean scorecard showing five birdies against no bogeys. She birdied her second and third holes to start the round and followed with birdies on seven and eight to join Song at making the turn at 4-under-par 32. Her final birdie would come on her 14th hole, a 473-yard par-5.

"I was very consistent today," said Bastel, who finished sixth on the season-ending Futures Tour money list, one spot out of earning an exempt LPGA Tour card. "Lots of fairways, lots of greens. Getting the putter rolling early is what helped me and gave me confidence for the rest of the round."

Jordan Cherebetiu, of Rapid City, South Dakota, is in third place at 3-under-par 69, while seven players, including 18-year-old amateur Paula Creamer, are three shots back tied for fourth.

Two LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournaments-one in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and the other in Venice, Fla.-were held to help determine the field for the Final LPGA Qualifying Tournament. The top-30 finishers and ties from each LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournament advanced to the final stage to join the 66 current LPGA Tour members who are trying to improve their playing status for 2005. The field is completed by the eligible players who finished sixth through 15th on the final 2004 Futures Tour money list. The top-five finishers on the Futures Tour money list automatically received their exempt card for 2005.

The 90-hole tournament continues with the second round Thursday, and the 137-player field will be cut to the low 70 players and ties after the fourth round. A total of 30 exempt spots on the 2005 LPGA Tour are up for grabs this year, and a sudden-death playoff will be held to determine the 30th spot if needed. The next 35 finishers and ties will earn non-exempt status for 2005.

Stage is set for LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament-66 Tour pros in field of 137

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.-A field of 137 will tee it up this week at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament at both the Legends Course and Champions Course at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla., Dec. 1-5. All will be vying for the coveted 30 exempt spots available for the 2005 Tour season. It is a week when dreams come true or nightmares become reality.

It's not an overstatement to call this event the most stressful of the year. Play well for five days and the 2005 LPGA Tour season is yours for the taking. One wayward drive or a couple of putts left short, and a player can leave Daytona Beach wondering about next year. For 90 grueling holes it is all or nothing.

Two LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournaments-one in Rancho Mirage, Calif., and the other in Venice, Fla.-have been held to help determine the field for the Final LPGA Qualifying Tournament. The top-30 finishers and ties from each LPGA Sectional Qualifying Tournament advanced to the final stage and join 66 current LPGA Tour members who are trying to improve their playing status for 2005. The field is completed by the eligible players who finished sixth through 15th on the final 2004 Futures Tour money list. The top-five
finishers on the Futures Tour money list automatically received their exempt card for 2005.

Eighteen-year-old amateur sensation Paula Creamer, who tied for fifth at the California sectional, will garner a lot of attention this week. Creamer, who was a member of the 2004 U.S. Curtis Cup Team, is one of the youngest players in the tournament, but her golfing resume is anything but immature. Via sponsor's exemptions, she has been a fixture in LPGA events for the last two years, and this year just missed a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole of the ShopRite LPGA Classic to force a sudden-death playoff. Creamer was
attempting to become the youngest winner in the history of the Tour and the first amateur to win an LPGA event since JoAnne Carner in 1969.

Creamer also tied for 13th at the U.S. Women's Open conducted by the USGA to garner low amateur laurels with Michelle Wie, but it was another teenager who stole the first-round headlines of the biggest tournament of women's golf.

Brittany Lincicome was the surprise first-round leader at the U.S. Women's Open after an opening round 5-under-par 66. Lincicome would end up finishing 55th, but her debut on the sports grandest stage served notice that she could compete with the best in the world. The 19-year-old, who did not play in the California sectional, tied for fourth at the Florida
sectional to advance to the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament.

The LPGA is one of the most diverse sports associations in the world, but Hong Mie Yang is looking to add even more diversity. After claiming medalist honors by eight strokes at the Florida sectional, Yang is in position to become the first player from the People's Republic of China to compete on the LPGA Tour. Earlier this year, Yang became the first woman from mainland China to win a full-field professional golf tournament, capturing the IOS Futures Golf Classic, which was her first Futures Tour start. Li Ying Ye also of China is playing this week.

Other notables in the event include 2002 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year winner Beth Bauer; 2004 NCAA individual champion and U.S. Curtis Cup Team member Sarah Huarte; and 2004 U.S. Curtis Cup Team member Erica Blasberg. Sarah Jane Kenyon and Sae-Hee Son join Creamer as the only amateurs competing.

The field will be cut to the low 70 players and ties after 72 holes, and a sudden-death playoff will be held for the 30th exempt card in the event of a tie. The next 35 players and ties will receive non-exempt status for the 2005 season. The final round will be contested on the Legends Course.