Dave Andrews
New member
Not many 8th graders will ever have to take a week off from school to play in an LPGA tournament. 14-year-old Alexis Thompson from Coral Springs, Florida is doing just that this week. She will be competing in the LPGA’s Kraft Nabisco Championship in Rancho Mirage, California (April 2nd to 5th).
The Kraft Nabisco is the first major of the LPGA season, and the tour traditionally invites a few of the best amateur women golfers in the country to compete in the event. The four other amateurs playing this week are all current college standouts. Alexis Thompson is still four years away from college unless, of course, she decides to turn professional when she is done with high school.
Despite her young age, Thompson, who turned 14 just a few weeks ago, is no stranger to playing with the best women golfers in the world. This will be her third time teeing it up against the likes of Lorena Ochoa, Paula Creamer, and Cristie Kerr. In 2007, Thompson became the youngest player ever to qualify for a U.S. Women’s Open. She qualified for the Open again last year. She failed to make the cut in either event, but just making the field at such a young age was impressive enough. Last year she won the U.S. Girls Junior Championship and has several other amateur titles to her credit.
Thompson put her remarkable talent on display in early March when she played in the Florida Women’s Open in Orlando. Competing against 120 women, most of them professionals on the LPGA or the Duramed Futures Tour, Thompson fired a 66 on the first day of the event and a 69 on the second day. She held a one-stroke lead in the tournament going into the final round at 9 under par. She faltered on the final day, shooting a 75, and ended up in a tie for second place. She finished the event just one stroke behind the winner, LPGA veteran Kris Tamulis, who is literally twice her age.
Thompson comes from a golfing family. Her 26-year-old brother, Nicholas, is a fourth year pro on the PGA. Her other brother is also a standout in junior golf. She will likely attempt to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open again this year. She has grown several inches over the last year and is now hitting her woods and iron shots much longer than last year. At just 14, she appears destined for stardom in golf at a very young age.
The Kraft Nabisco is the first major of the LPGA season, and the tour traditionally invites a few of the best amateur women golfers in the country to compete in the event. The four other amateurs playing this week are all current college standouts. Alexis Thompson is still four years away from college unless, of course, she decides to turn professional when she is done with high school.
Despite her young age, Thompson, who turned 14 just a few weeks ago, is no stranger to playing with the best women golfers in the world. This will be her third time teeing it up against the likes of Lorena Ochoa, Paula Creamer, and Cristie Kerr. In 2007, Thompson became the youngest player ever to qualify for a U.S. Women’s Open. She qualified for the Open again last year. She failed to make the cut in either event, but just making the field at such a young age was impressive enough. Last year she won the U.S. Girls Junior Championship and has several other amateur titles to her credit.
Thompson put her remarkable talent on display in early March when she played in the Florida Women’s Open in Orlando. Competing against 120 women, most of them professionals on the LPGA or the Duramed Futures Tour, Thompson fired a 66 on the first day of the event and a 69 on the second day. She held a one-stroke lead in the tournament going into the final round at 9 under par. She faltered on the final day, shooting a 75, and ended up in a tie for second place. She finished the event just one stroke behind the winner, LPGA veteran Kris Tamulis, who is literally twice her age.
Thompson comes from a golfing family. Her 26-year-old brother, Nicholas, is a fourth year pro on the PGA. Her other brother is also a standout in junior golf. She will likely attempt to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open again this year. She has grown several inches over the last year and is now hitting her woods and iron shots much longer than last year. At just 14, she appears destined for stardom in golf at a very young age.
