Hannah O'Sullian
(Golfweek Photo)
(March 16, 2017) -- The ANA Inspiration has announced its six amateur invitations. Hannah O’Sullivan, the 2015 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, and Olympian Albane Valenzuela headline the group. The pair shared low-amateur honors at last year’s championship with a tie for 65th.
Eun-Jeong Seong, the South Korean who made history last year by becoming the first player to win the U.S. Women’s Am and U.S. Girls’ Junior in the same summer, will make her ANA debut March 31-April 2 along with Paphangkorn Tavatanakit, Andrea Lee and Katelyn Dambaugh.
Seong’s recent finishes on the professional circuit include a tie for 18th at the LPGA KEB Hana Bank and a tie for sixth at the Oates Vic Open on the Ladies European Tour.
“As one of the biggest stages in women’s golf, this year’s amateur invitees have a chance to make history and follow in the footsteps of players like Lorena Ochoa, Yani Tseng and last year’s champion, Lydia Ko, in playing this event before starting their journey in the professional ranks,” said tournament director Gabe Codding. “We wish them the best of luck.”
Stanford freshman Valenzuela will be joined by teammate Lee, the top-ranked player in college golf who won the 2016 Junior ANA Inspiration to earn a spot in last year’s field, where she missed the cut.
Dambaugh, a senior at South Carolina and a lefty, will make her major championship debut in Rancho Mirage, Calif. The first-team All-American holds South Carolina’s career-best scoring average at 72.96.
Tavatanakit was the 2016 AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year, winning both the Rolex Tournament of Champions and the season-ending PING Invitational. She signed with UCLA for the 2017-18 season.
The winner of the ANA Junior Inspiration, which will be contested at Mission Hills Country Club, March 25-26, will also receive a spot in year’s first major.
-Editors Note: Story by Golfweek's Beth Ann Nichols
ABOUT THE
Chevron Championship (ANA Inspiration)
First women's professional major of the year,
the Chevron (formerly the ANA Inspiration, and before
that the Kraft Nabisco)
Championship draws more than
100 of the best women professional golfers in the
world, as well as the top-ranked amateurs in the
country.
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