With the LPGA season about half complete I would like to take a look at how the rookies are faring so far this year. I will do this again a final time at the end of the season.

These ratings are strictly based on how they fared in LPGA events only. Any successes or failures on other tours (except the Epson Tour), are not considered here. My main objective here is to analyze the chances of these rookies retaining their LPGA cards for next season.

Depending on the player’s priority ranking, some have played up to 14 events this year, others have played as little as two.

You might think that some of these grades I have given are harsh, but this is the big time now, and these players have to take advantage of every opportunity, or risk losing their cards. 

Ideally, you would like to finish in the top 100 in the Race to the CME Globe. That will guarantee you a priority list ranking good enough to compete in all full-field events (last year’s No.100 was No. 133 on the LPGA’s 2022 Priority List).  If a player finishes outside the top 100, the chances of playing in more than a few tournaments in 2023 is very unlikely (Last year’s No. 101 was #190 on the Priority List). Those players are very likely to go back to Q-School with hopes of being successful there so they can play in more events in 2023.

If you are wondering why I take into account the results of the Epson Tour (formally the Symetra Tour), it is because if you finish in the top ten on that tour’s money list in 2022 you will get to play in full field events on the LPGA Tour in 2023. So if a player here has not been successful so far on the LPGA Tour, I still might give them a high mark because they have a chance of retaining their playing privileges for 2023 because of their stellar play on the Epson Tour.

Let’s take a look at how the LPGA rookies are doing so far this year:

Please keep in mind that all stats were compiled before this past week’s Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.

In alphabetical order (SA = scoring average, RCME = Race to the CME Globe):

Na Rin An (26 years old) – One of the big favorites to contend for top rookie honors, she has not been a factor as of yet as she is currently running sixth. She is though, having a fine rookie season. She is currently 41^st in the RCME and has two top ten finishes. Her SA is 71.95 which is 77^th on tour. She has made 8 of 12 cuts this year, but has tailed off sharply in recent weeks. She has failed to register a top twenty in her last seven starts, with four missed cuts. Her status for 2023 is safe. Grade B

Hye-Jin Choi (22) – A star on the LPGA Tour, there is no apparent weakness in her game. She already has seven top tens, has made all thirteen cuts, and sports a SA of 70.00 which is 6^th on tour. She is 9^th in the RCMA, and is running second in the Rookie of the Year race. Grade A

Allisen Corpuz (24) – Arguably the biggest surprise of the bunch. Her 71.13 SA ranks her 31^st on tour. She has six top 25 finishes with her best being third place. She is currently in 4^th place for rookie honors. She has made eight of ten cuts this year, and is 50^th in the RCME. Grade B+

Olivia Cowan (26) – Has only teed it up four times this year, but as I said previously, there are no excuses here as you have to take advantage of your opportunities or lose your playing card. Olivia has not done that as she has missed all four cuts, and has a SA of 74.13 which ranks 151^st. Her driving average of just 239 yards won’t cut it here. Grade F

Casey Danielson (27) – She has made just 1 cut in 9 events. Her SA is 73.40 which is 138^th on tour. Her best finish is 71^st place. No sense throwing more bad stats out there. Grade F

Karis Davidson (24) – Has only teed it up twice this year and made one cut (finishing 42^nd). Her SA of 72.90 isn’t bad and is ranked 90^th on tour. She has played 5 events on the Epson Tour and is 70^th on that tour’s money list. Must take advantage of her few future opportunities. Grade D-

Amanda Doherty (24) – Has a good chance of retaining her card as she has played decently this year. She has made the cut in half of her ten starts, and is currently 90^th in the all-important RCME. Her best finish this year was 14^th, and she sports a SA of 72.50. Grade C+

Ayaka Furue (22) – Most of us picked her as this year’s Rookie of the Year. With a strong finish it could still happen, but she is currently way behind in fifth place. She does have a second place finish, but her next best finish is 18^th. Her SA of 71.20 ranks a solid 35^th, which shows she can win out there. She is 28^th in the RCME, and has only missed two cuts in 14 events this year. Grade B+

Linn Grant (23) – Has not played a single round on the LPGA Tour this year. She has been playing the Ladies European Tour where she has won three times and ranks second for that tour’s player of the Year. That’s all well and good, but this is about retaining her LPGA Card. Grade F

Haylee Harford (25) – Has made just one cut this year in seven tries. Her 73.25 SA ranks 135^th on tour and is currently 155^th in the RCME. She has played fairly well on the Epson Tour (42^nd), but not well enough to obtain her 2023 playing privileges. Grade F

Lauren Hartlage (24) – Has made just 2 cuts this year in 6 tries. She is 151^st in the RCME. She has played some on the Epson Tour, but has missed 3 of 5 cuts there. Grade F

Yaeeun Hong (19) – Has had plenty of opportunities as shown by her 11 starts. Unfortunately, she has made just 4 cuts. Her 72.20 SA is not terrible, and she has managed a 20^th place finish this year. An excellent putter, her 29.04 average ranks 8^th on the LPGA Tour. She still has a chance to retain her 2023 playing card as she is currently 94^th in the RCME. Grade C

Vivian Hou (21) – She has played 6 tournaments this year….and missed all six cuts. Her SA of 76.00 ranks dead last on the LPGA. Enough said. Grade F

Yu-Sang Hou (22) – She has teed it up six times this year making just one cut, and that was a 74^th place finish. Her SA of 74.21 ranks 151^st on tour and she is currently 170^th in the RCME. Grade F

Gina Kim (22) – Her LPGA stats are decent across the board. She has made 3 of 7 cuts, has a SA of 72.05 (87^th), is 113^th in the RCME. Her best finish this year was 18^th place at the Meijer LPGA Classic. The reason why she will get a very good grade here is that she has won on the Epson Tour this year and is currently 6^th on that tour’s money list, making it very likely she will retain her playing privileges for 2023. Grade B

Stephanie Kyriacou (21) – A star on the Ladies European Tour, she is currently ranked in the top 100 of the world rankings. She has also played quite well on the LPGA Tour this year. She recently finished 10^th at the KPMG Women’s LPGA Championship. Her SA of 72.30 ranks 94^th and she is currently 83^rd in the RCME. She should be a full time LPGA player in 2023. Grade B-

Agathe Laisne (23) – Has made just one cut this year in nine tries, but that was a 16^th place finish. That finish gives her an outside chance of retaining her playing card for next season. Her SA is 73.50 which ranks just 140^th. She still has much work to do as she is currently 124^th in the RCME. Grade D-

Brooke Matthews (23) – One of the real bombers on the LPGA tour averaging 274 yards off the tee which ranks her 6^th on tour. It hasn’t helped her. She has made just one cut in 7 tries and ranks 168^th in the RCME. She has failed to make a cut on the Epson Tour. Grade F

Morgane Metraux (25) – Morgane has teed it up 10 times this year and has made 4 cuts. Her 12^th place finish at the ShopRite Classic has given her a real chance to make it to next year. She is currently ranked 101^st in the RCME. Already a winner on the Ladies European Tour, look for her to retain her card on the LPGA Tour also. Grade C

Sanna Nuutinen (31) – A mainstay on the Ladies European Tour for quite a few years, she has 15 top ten finishes on that tour. An LPGA rookie this year at the age of 31, she has played quite well when she has gotten the opportunity. She has missed just 2 cuts in her 6 events this season. Her scoring average of 71.65 (59^th), tells us that she belongs here. She moved way up on the LPGA Priority List during the last reshuffle, meaning she will get in to all full field events the rest of this year. Grade C+

Kaitlyn Papp (23) – Her stats are hard to make sense of. They are very good across the board, but they haven’t translated into good finishes. She has made 5 of 9 cuts, and her scoring average of 71.78 (68^th) is very good. Yet, her best finish this year is 42^nd. Her current ranking of 141^st in the RCME tells us she is going to have to do something very good in the second half of the season or lose her card. The stats tell us she has the talent to do just that. Grade D

Jessica Peng (28) – Jessica has only managed to get into three events this year making just one cut (7^th place). Her SA is 73.29 (137^th), and she ranks 164^th in the RCME. She has played mainly on the Epson Tour but ranks 96^th on that money list. Grade F

Pauline Roussin (22) – Another of the real bombers on tour, she has played quite well in her rookie season.  She has teed it up 11 times and has made 6 cuts. She got her first top ten when she finished ninth at the LPGA Drive On. Her SA of 72.34 is respectable and she currently is a solid 76^th in the RCME. She will be here next year. Grade B-

Sophia Schubert (26) If the season ended now she would be safe for next year as she is 93^rd in the RCME. Unfortunately for her there is still more golf to play and she still may need to do more. She has made the cut in half of her ten starts and sports a 72.57 SA (112th). Her 12^th place finish at the Lotte Championship is her best to date. Grade C

Hinako Shibuno (23) – Known on the tour as the Smiling Cinderella, her stats this year would make anyone smile. She has already amassed 3 top tens with a second place finish at the Lotte Championship being her best. Her only negative stat is that she has missed four cuts. Her SA of 71.29 ranks 42^nd on tour and is currently 3^rd in the Rookie of the Year standings. She is 29^th in the RCME. Grade B+

Maddie Szeryk (25) – Her season so far has been nothing short of a disaster. She has missed the cut in all of her 6 tournaments to date. She hasn’t fared much better on the Epson Tour, making only 1 of 5 cuts there. Grade F

Atthaya Thitikul (19) – The prize so far of the bunch. She leads all rookies in just about everything, which is why she is first in the Rookie of the Year standings. She is the only rookie to win on the  LPGA Tour this year, and has made the cut in all 14 tournaments she has played in. Her SA of 69.84 is fantastic and is 4^th on the entire tour, and she is 6^th in the RCME. She also has four top five finishes. She is only 19 years of age. A superstar for years to come. Grade A+

Savannah Vilaubi (28) – Has not finished better than 76^th in any of her six starts. She ranks 155^th in SA and is 162^nd in RCME. Has not fared well at all on the Epson Tour either. Grade F

Dewi Weber (26) – Has made the cut in half of her 10 starts with a best finish of 21^st place. Her SA is 72.76 (119^th) and she is **120^th in the RCME. Still fighting to keep her card. Grade C-

** Dewi finished in 6^th place at the Dow this past weekend greatly improving her grade and chances of keeping her card for 2023. The above stats were compiled before that tournament was played. She has since moved all the way up to 94^th in the RCME.

Ruoning Yin (19) – Still a teenager, she has struggled for the most part this year recording six missed cuts in 8 tournaments. Her best finish was a tie for 26^th. Her scoring average of 72.50 isn’t horrible but must come down some. She ranks 125^th in the RCME and still has a chance to be back next year with a better second half. Grade D

Katie Yoo (20) – Has not made a cut in her three chances on the LPGA Tour this year. Her SA is 75.17 (159^th). She hasn’t fared well in her eight tournaments on the Epson Tour either, managing a placement of 122^nd on that tour’s money list. Grade F

Wei Wei Zhang (25) – Has not fared well this year making just 1 of 4 cuts. Her SA of 74.50 ranks 156^th on tour, and is 171^st in the RCME. Why am I not giving her a failing grade in her attempt to retain her card? It’s because she has been concentrating on the Epson Tour where she has made six of eight cuts, with three top tens, and has a fair shot of finishing in that tour’s top ten. A top ten finish there would give her full time playing privileges next year. Grade C-

There you have it. We will revisit this again at season’s end.

Feature photo is of Hyejin Choi at the 2022 US Women’s Open. All photos by Ben Harpring.