Former U.S. Women's Amateur winner Gabriela Ruffels of Southern California turns pro
Announced: By Australian Gabriela Ruffels, that she has turned professional and will make her debut in two weeks at the Gainbridge LPGA event in Orlando, Fla. Ruffels, 20, will forgo the rest of her senior season at Southern Cal, the school said in a news release. Ruffels, a U.S. native, was raised in Australia. Her parents, Anna-Maria Fernandez and Ray Ruffels, were tennis professionals who since have moved to Palm Springs, Calif., and her older brother, Ryan Ruffels, competes on the Korn Ferry Tour. She won the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur and was runner-up in the 2020 U.S. Women’s Amateur. Ruffels won twice at USC and added eight top-10 finishes for one of the top women’s teams in the country. In three starts in LPGA major championships last year, Ruffels posted two top finishes: 15th at the ANA Inspiration and 13th at the U.S. Women’s Open. She finished fifth at the Symetra Tour Championship. Upon turning pro, Ruffels was No. 5 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking.
Sign up to receive the Morning Read newsletter, along with Where To Golf Next and The Equipment Insider.