Jennifer Kupcho finishes memorable 2022 LPGA season with 3 wins, almost $2 million in official earnings; Wyndham Clark uses another ace to notch first top-10 of PGA Tour season; Becca Huffer advances to LPGA Q-Series for third time, this one by sharing title at 2nd stage
By Gary Baines – 11/20/2022
Sunday marked the final event of the season on the LPGA Tour, and the last official tournament of 2022 on the PGA Tour.
The finales were memorable for two Colorado natives — one in the sense that it caps a career season as a tour pro, and the other for an individual highlight and a very good finish.
In the latter category, Wyndham Clark made his second hole-in-one on the PGA Tour — both having coming in the last month. On Sunday, the 2010 CGA Amateur champion aced the 171-yard 17th hole en route to finishing a season-best 10th in the RSM Classic in St. Simons Island, Ga. It was Clark’s 10th top-10 on the PGA Tour overall.
The former Cherry Hills Country Club regular made his first PGA Tour ace on Oct. 22 in the third round of the CJ Cup, that one coming from 181 yards. Those two holes-in-one were separated from one another by less than 120 miles on America’s southeast Atlantic coast. Sunday’s ace came a day after another memorable feat for Clark as he made six straight birdies, his best such run on the PGA Tour. (For scores from the RSM Classic, CLICK HERE.)
No one won more than Jennifer Kupcho — and Lydia Ko — on the LPGA Tour in 2022. (Photo: @jenniferkupcho Twitter.)
Meanwhile, another golfer who grew up in Colorado, Jennifer Kupcho, finished an outstanding LPGA season by placing 33rd in the CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, Fla.
In 2022, Kupcho not only won on the LPGA Tour on the first time, but that win came in a major, at the Chevron Championship. She went on to capture two more titles this year, with all three victories (Chevron, Meijer LPGA Classic and the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational team event with Lizette Salas) coming from early April to mid-July. That tied her for most LPGA wins this season with Lydia Ko, who picked up victory No. 3 on Sunday at the Tour Championship.
Kupcho came up just short of $2 million in official 2022 LPGA earnings, with $1,955,531, good for seventh place overall. The 25-year-old Jefferson Academy graduate and former longtime Westminster resident came into this week No. 6 in the Rolex Player of the Year rankings. (Updated Nov. 21: On Monday, Kupcho sat No. 12 in the women’s world rankings.)
At the Tour Championship — which featured a $2 million payday for the winner — Kupcho went 73-71-68-75. (For scores from the CME Group Tour Championship, CLICK HERE.)
Like Clark, Becca Huffer of Monument had a memorable Sunday as she will be headed to the LPGA Q-Series for the third time in five years, in this instance after tying for the title out of 175 players at stage 2 of Q-school in Venice, Fla.
Huffer finished at 4-under-par 284 after rounds of 69-74-70-71, which left her in a tie for first place with Seulki Lee. The top 45 finishers and ties advance to the Q-Series — the eight-round final stage of Q-school — Dec. 1-4 in Mobile, Ala., and Dec. 8-11 in Dothan, Ala.
Players placing in the top 45 and ties in Alabama will earn 2022 LPGA Tour cards. Huffer landed her 2019 LPGA card by finishing 10th at the preceding Q-Series. The two-time Inspirato Colorado Women’s Open champion also went to Q-Series last year, but failed to make the 72-hole cut.
Here are the scores for all the players with strong Colorado ties who competed at stage 2 of LPGA Q-School:
Advances to Q-Series
T1. Becca Huffer, Monument 69-74-70-71–284
Failed to Advance to Q-Series
141. Katherine Hollern, Sedalia 74-80-76-78—308
163. Former CU golfer Brittany Fan 79-80-75-82–316
For all the scores from Venice, Fla., CLICK HERE.
Colorado Golf Journal 