Confident and on Her Game, Grace Kim Enters Stretch Run for an LPGA Card
FRENCH LICK, Ind. — Grace Kim couldn't believe her eyes when she reached the crest of the hill and turned right, passing through the gates at the Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort.
One of the late architect's finest masterpieces came into full view, his wide expanses of green rolling over hills stretching into miles of vistas across southern Indiana.
"Oh my goodness," she said.
The course is a visual feast for professionals just as much for amateurs seeing it for the first time. But this week on the Epson Tour, the pros' awe turned into business pretty quickly. A $50,250 first-place check and $335,000 total purse are up for grabs, both records on the LPGA's qualifying tour. (The event will also be streamed on golfchannel.com from noon-3 p.m. ET on Saturday and Sunday.)
A win can change a career, as Kim knows.
The 21-year-old Australian arrived at French Lick third in the Ascensus Race for the Card, thanks to a win earlier this year at the IOA Golf Classic in Longwood, Florida.
She shot 66-65-64 over the three rounds, winning by five and hardly missing a shot.
"You do well one week, and it changes your life," she said. "At that point, you never question it twice, never question it again that you belong on this tour."
The buildup to that victory can be traced back to the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Kim couldn't leave her native Australia. She never stopped training, not exactly knowing when her career could resume but determined to be ready when it did.
"Some people slacked off a little bit and enjoyed their time off," she said. "In my head, I wanted to be ready when it started."
Finally able to come to the U.S. for seven months in 2021, she won twice on the Women's All-Pro Tour in four starts as an amateur and notched a T10 in her first Epson Tour start, just a couple hours away from French Lick in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Fueled with confidence from that, she earned conditional status on the Epson Tour via LPGA Q-School. She won in her fifth start and has since added a T4 and T3, the latter last week in Battle Creek, Michigan, to climb to third on the money list.
Grace Kim finished T63 at this summer's U.S. Women's Open at Pine Needles.
Mateo Villalba/Golffile
The top 10 on the money list at the end of the season get LPGA cards.
"You've still got eight events left, anything can happen," Kim said. "Anyone from the top 40 not in the top 10 can get into top 10 and steal a spot from you. You can’t be backing off and saying you’re good enough already, you have to stay on top of your game."
Kim arrived in French Lick in time for a Tuesday practice round, then played in a Wednesday afternoon pro-am. (By playing Wednesday afternoon she was given a Thursday afternoon first-round tee time, though she didn't tee off due to inclement weather delaying the first round. She'll begin the four-round event on Friday.) With her four pro-am partners she displayed an easy, accurate game, finding all but a couple fairways around the 6,763-yard, par-72 Pete Dye Course and flighting smooth irons to the well-protected greens.
She also belied a maturity beyond her 21 years, making easy conversation with her partners about everything from golf equipment (she plays Srixon) to U.S. geography (the Epson Tour has gone from Michigan to southern Indiana to, next week, northern Indiana) to food ("What's a Milky Way?" she asked when peering into a beverage cart snack tray).
While continuing her preparation for the tournament, she also marveled at the volcano bunkers and other oddities of the Pete Dye Course. She's a fan of the game, but also recognizes that as a pro, it's now a business.
And she figures to be in the business for a long time.