The Symetra Tour, the Road to the LPGA Tour, enters the home stretch of its season with the fourth to last event of the year at the Eagle Classic Presented by Bag Boy. The three-round event will begin on Friday, August 15, and run through Sunday, August 17, at Richmond Country Club.
The 144 player field will be competing for a share of a $100,000 purse with a top prize of $15,000. The top-10 on the year-end Volvik Race for the Card money list will receive their LPGA Tour cards for the 2015 season.
LOCAL CONNECTIONS: 4 players in this week’s field have connections to Virginia, including a pair of UVa grads, and a pair of locals in Casey Kennedy (Bristow) and Lauren Doughtie (Suffolk).
Below is the list of players and their ties to the area.
| Player | Hometown | College |
| Brittany Altomare | Shrewsbury, Mass. | University of Virginia |
| Calle Nielson | Nashville, Tenn. | University of Virginia |
| Casey Kennedy | Bristow, Va. | |
| Lauren Doughtie | Suffolk, Va. | North Carolina State |
EAGLE CLASSIC PAVES THE WAY TO THE LPGA: The Eagle Classic Presented by Bag Boy has seen six different winners in its six years of existence and five of those winners are currently competing this season on the LPGA Tour, including 2014 RICOH Women’s British Open champion and 2011 Eagle Classic winner Mo Martin.
In addition to Martin, Christine Song (2013), Paola Moreno (2012), Jennifer Song (2010) and Jaeji Kang (2008) have all seen action on the LPGA this season.
13 PLAYERS WITH LPGA STATUS IN THE FIELD: There are 13 players with LPGA Tour status competing this week at the Eagle Classic.
The list includes: Brittany Altomare, Dottie Ardina, Brianna Do, Lindy Duncan, Veronica Felibert, Jamie Hullett, Emma Jandel, Maude-Aimee Leblanc, Haley Millsap, Reilley Rankin, Natalie Sheary, Marta Silva, and Jackie Stoelting.
INTERNATIONAL FIELD: This week’s Symetra Classic features a field with an international flavor as 24 different countries are represented by 47 players. Next to the United States, Canada has the most participants in the field with 11.
VOLVIK RACE FOR THE CARD PLAYER TO WATCH: Sadena Parks had the Volvik Race for the Card Move of the Week with her win at the New England Charity Classic presented by PTC. Parks fired a 5-under 67 and defeated fellow Big Break Florida contestant Jackie Stoelting on the second playoff hole to win her second event in three weeks.
“It’s very exciting, I knew I had one more win under my belt,” said Parks, who won the SEFCU Championship at Capital Hills two weeks ago in Albany. “Playing against Jackie was really, really hard, but we both put in a good fight and I can’t wait to see her on the LPGA Tour with me next year.”
Two weeks ago, Parks become the first African-American to win on the Symetra Tour since LaRee Sugg in 1997. She is now the first African-American to win twice in the 34-year history of the Symetra Tour.
Parks moved from sixth to third on the Volvik Race for the Card money list with her $15,000 winner’s check. The 24-year-old has now accumulated $51,615 in 13 events played. She has made $43,596 in her last five events, which includes two wins and a solo second place finish.
“I don’t want to say that I have my LPGA Tour card yet, but it’s looking pretty good right now.”
With four events left in the season, Parks has all but solidified a spot in the top-10.
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