The days are getting shorter. And not just because it’s that time of year. Clean, crisp air across much of the country brings the first friendly taste of autumn, but the competition in the final week of the LPGA Tour season is hotter than a sauna, and there’s only a few weeks left before more can happen. There is none.
Much attention will be paid to players near the top of the Race to the CME Globe in upcoming events, especially since many of the major Rolex LPGA awards are yet to be decided. But this week, the other end of the rankings deserves special attention. The one that sits 55 to 65 in the race to the CME Globe. The sun is setting and the time is near for those players. This week’s LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship in California will either end the year with a trip to Naples and a $2 million win at the CME Group Tour Championship, or an earlier-than-expected return for Thanksgiving and a run-through to 2018. can be an undesirable extension or difference of off season.
Now Sofia Schubert (55th in the Race to the CME Globe) is hoping to extend her runner-up finish in the Amundi Evian Championship. Schubert earned her LPGA Tour card with one win and a solid finish in the final stages just one year after joining her Epson Tour. With her good memories of her year ago, she hopes this fall will be just as rewarding.
Stacey Lewis is also in the current CME line, but with a 56th-place finish in the race, the former No. 1 Rolex ranking cannot be taken for granted. Lewis had an uncharacteristically hard time at the end of the summer. After achieving her two top-10 finishes in her first three starts starting the 2022 campaign, she finished her third of her four in September. I missed the cut of the times. A strong week for her at MEDIHEAL would go a long way towards securing a spot in Napoli.
Another player looking to move up this week is Pornanong Phatlum, who is ranked 58th in the Race to the CME Globe. Luckily, the 32-year-old Thai is on the opposite end of the spectrum from Lewis. Pornanong finished his T19, 4th, and his T16 in his final three starts after a spring that missed the cut five times in a row. Another week should be enough for her to comfortably move her out of the bubble.
Two players who could make a move this week are Pajaree Anannarukarn (59th) and Daniela Darquea (62nd). The difference between the two is only 37 points, and his two players in between (59th-ranked Alban Valenzuela and his 60th-ranked Jenny Singh) are not on his MEDIHEAL field, so neither player is top. It could go in and out of 60. .
Kelly Tan, Brittany Altomare and former Rolex No. 1 Ariyah Jutanugaan are No. 63, No. 64 and No. 65.
The final player to watch this week is defending champion Matilda Castren. He is currently 66th in the Race to the CME Globe. Yes, another golf his course in another part of California, but nothing motivates me to move from the outside in like the good memories of his first LPGA Tour victory.
This week’s wins will come as a surprise to many players, including No. 70 Frida Kinhult, No. 76 Emma Talley and No. 77 So Yeon Ryu. But whether she wins or not, her solid week counts. Because the days are getting shorter and time is running out.
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