6 days ago
Gina Kim won her third Epson Tour title. Here's why she won't be promoted to the LPGA
On the same day amateur Lottie Woad made her leap onto the LPGA, Gina Kim won for a third time on the Epson Tour this season.
In the past, that would've garnered Kim a midseason LPGA card. But the Epson Tour's so-called "battlefield promotion" went away after the 2018 season. Because players weren't getting many LPGA starts through the promotion, the tour felt it was somewhat of a false promise.
Woad, who officially accepted her card earlier this week, slides into the Category 13 spot on the LPGA Priority List, behind players who finished Nos. 81 to 100 on the previous season CME points list and ahead of those who have reshuffled in 2025.
The Englishwoman, who finished in a share of third at Evian, earned a spot in next week's ISPS Handa Women's Scottish Open by virtue of her recent win on the LET in Ireland. She's in the AIG Women's British Open field based on her top-10 finish last year at St. Andrews.
Woad's LEAP card then gets her into the next five LPGA events – starting in Portland – where she'll have a chance to play her way into the limited-field Asian swing.
Why can't three-time Epson Tour winners have that same opportunity? There might even be an argument for those players moving to a higher category than 13.
Three-time winners aren't unusual on the development circuit. Since the rule changed, five players have won three times in a single season.
Dating back to 2010, 11 players have done it. That list includes Cindy LaCrosse, Marissa Steen, Annie Park, Madelene Sagstrom, Nanna Koerstz Madsen, Hannah Green, Ruixin Liu, Patty Tavatanakit, Lilia Vu and Gabriela Ruffels.
The PGA Tour offers what it calls a three-victory promotion through the Korn Ferry Tour. Only 13 players have accomplished the feat since 1997, with Matt McCarty being the latest in 2024.
Kim, a 25 year-old Duke grad, won wire-to-wire at the Hartford HealthCare Women's Championship to move into the No. 1 spot in the Race for the Card ranking. There are eight events left on the Epson Tour schedule.
