After finishing her senior season at Princeton, golfer Kelly Shon ’14 decided to test herself against a new level of competition in pro tournaments on the Symetra Tour, a minor-league circuit for the LPGA. Last weekend, she earned a promotion: With a top-10 finish in the LPGA’s qualifying tournament, she earned her LPGA Tour card for 2015.
Shon will be the first Princeton woman — and third Ivy League alumna — to play regularly on the LPGA Tour. At Princeton, she was one of the most accomplished players the women’s golf team has ever seen — a two-time Ivy Player of the Year and three-time All-Ivy competitor who earned the league’s best-ever individual finish at the NCAA Championships in 2013 (tied for 37th).
Shon’s recent success came in her second pass through the marathon five-day tournament known in golf circles as “Q-School.” Last year, she played well enough to gain entry on the Symetra Tour but fell short of the LPGA cutoff. This time, Shon carded a 6-under-par 354 to graduate in a class of 20 tour qualifiers, including 14 rookies. She completed the weekend with a tap-in for an even-par 72 on Sunday.
“All the weight on my shoulders just dropped right there,” the Port Washington, N.Y., native told Newsday. “Making it on the tour was my next goal and now I have bigger goals.”
READ MORE:
Shon ’14, a Late Bloomer, Shines in Women’s Golf (PAW, April 25, 2012)
Ivy Leaguer Works Through Q-School (Golfweek)
Port Washington’s Kelly Shon Following Her Dream — All Over the Country (Newsday)