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Belleville, IL - In the first USGA area Qualifier of the year, we saw 69 young women take their shot to get into the U.S. Women’s Open presented by Ally field. Golfers had to complete 36 holes in one day and be one of the top two finishing players to earn their place at Erin Hills. Play began at 7:30am at St. Clair Country Club. It was a full day of golf with sunny skies and windy conditions. There were 8 professionals in this year’s qualifier field, leaving 61 amateurs hoping to prove they were just as good. This was a relatively young group of golfers, with an average age of 20 and approximately 30 universities and colleges represented. 
 

As the day kicked off, players tried to take advantage of the nice weather conditions and post a good first round score to sit in a comfortable position going into the afternoon. Following the first round, there were many golfers within three strokes of the lead. Abbey Schutte of Goodyear, Arizona and University of Arkansas golfer, held the number one spot on the leaderboard at Even (E) par. Four players sat behind her at one-over (+1) par. These four players were Ava Merrill of Johns Creek, Georgia and Vanderbilt University, Kendall Todd of Litchfield Park, Arizona and University of Arkansas, Patience Rhodes of Bath, England and Arizona State University, and Lauren Nguyen of Houston, TX and Texas A&M. Three Missouri golfers were two-over (+2) par and tied for fifth. This included Brooke Biermann of Wildwood, MO and Michigan State, Audrey Rischer of Columbia, MO and University of Oklahoma, and Reagan Zibilski of Springfield, MO and University of Arkansas. Joining them at two-over was Maelynn Kim of Katy, Texas and a University of Houston golfer. Five golfers sat tied for ninth at three-over (+3) par following round one. This five were Nanami Nakashima of Manhattan, Kansas and Kansas State University, Lyla Louderbaugh of Buffalo, MO and Kansas University, Pimkwan Chookaew of Ames, Iowa and Iowa State University, Ellie Roth of Plano, Texas and the University of North Texas, and Brielle Mapanao of Quakers Hill, Australia and University of Illinois. 

 

The players quickly grabbed some food to eat and got back out on the course for round two. As the day moved forward, the wind continued to pick up and play a role in the game of these golfers. With only two qualifying spots available, players knew they would need to manage their game and minimize mistakes. Brookie Biermann did just that. Biermann improved upon her first round to post a second round score of one-under par. This brought her total to one-over (+1) par. She then had to sit and wait to see if anyone on the course could match or beat her score. A few got close, but none were able to shake Biermann off the top. Three players came in behind at two-over (+2) par. These players were Lauren Nguyen, Patience Rhodes, and Ava Merrill. The three had to go into a playoff to determine who would claim the final qualifying spot, first alternate, and second alternate positions. On the first playoff hole, Nguyen made a birdie while the other two players made par to clinch the final qualifying spot. Rhodes and Merrill continued on. On the fourth playoff hole with the daylight barely hanging on, Merill came out on top to earn the first alternate position, leaving Rhodes with the second alternate position. 

 

Heading to the U.S. Women’s Open presented by Ally is qualifying Medalist and Low Amateur Medalist Brooke Biermann along with qualifier Lauren Nguyen. Should there be a player unable to attend, Ava Merrill followed by Patience Rhodes will be the alternates that can be called upon to fill the position.

Final Results
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