Bianca back in hunt
Bianca Pagdanganan put up a strong start and a stronger finish to get back into the mix with a 69 halfway through Week 1 of the LPGA Q-Series Friday but Dottie Ardina turned in a contrasting result to fall below the projected cutoff line for Week 2 hopefuls.
Pagdanganan flashed a superb long game to birdie two par-5s of the par-72 Crossings course of the Magnolia Grove in Dothan, Alabama.
She eagled the last, her 36-33 card lifting her from tied 101st to a share of 64th with a 144 total, the projected cut for the Top 70 plus ties who will move to the last of two 72-hole qualifiers for 2022 LPGA cards among 110 bidders.
Ardina stood just below the line with a 145 as she bogeyed two of the last four holes, also at Crossings, to squander a two-under card she had built after bucking a bogey on No. 2 with birdies on Nos. 6, 8 and 14.
But she failed to go up-and-down on No. 15 then missed the green again on the par-3 17th to end up with a 37 and a 72 after a 73 at the nearby Falls course Thursday.
In contrast, fellow ICTSI-backed Pagdanganan bounced back strong from a poor opening 75, also at Falls, as she birdied the first hole of Crossings, missed a chance on the first par-5 on No. 4 but gained a stroke on the next (No. 6).
Though she blew them just as quickly with bogeys on Nos. 7 and 9, she birdied the third par-5 (No. 13) then bucked another bogey on the 15th with an eagle on the next then knocked down another birdie on the 17th.
She gained a 37-spot jump to joint 64th, thus putting her back in the race for one of the Top 45-plus-ties spots for next year’s LPGA season.
Pagdanganan flashed a superb long game to birdie two par-5s.
But six rounds remain in the grueling qualifier with a host of talented players likewise pressing their respective bids.
Swede Linnea Johansson and Korean Na Rin An matched 67s, also at Crossings, and forged ahead with 134s while a shot back at 135 were Hye Jin Choi, also of Korea, who rallied with a 66, and erstwhile frontrunner Emily Pedersen of Denmark, who slowed down with a 70 after a 65.
Japanese Ayaka Furue also firmed up her LPGA bid with a 67 to move to joint fifth at 136 with French Pauline Roussin-Bouchard, who carded a
67, American Janie Jackson, who shot a 68, and Canada’s Selena Costable, who turned in a 69, while Malayisan Kelly Tan sparkled with a
66 to lead the 137 scorers at ninth who include Americans Kaitlyn Papp and Haylee Harford, who shot 67 and 69, respectively.
Fancied Thai Atthaya Thitikul also rebounded big from a 73 at Crossings with a sizzling 65 at the tougher Falls course to gain a share of 12th at 138 with Germany’s Sophie Hausmann, Caroline Inglis of the US and Chinese Ruoning Yin, who all fired 69s, and Taiwanese Peiyun Chien, who fumbled with a 72.
Week 2 of the two-part series will be held at the Highland Oaks Golf Course on 9 to 12 December. Meanwhile, joining Ardina at 72nd were American Beth Wu, who shot a 71, Japanese Hinako Shibuno, who matched par 72, both at Crossings, Canadian Alena Sharp and Thai Pavarisa Yoktuan, who both groped for 73s at Falls.