The IOA Championship presented by Morongo Casino Resort & Spa starts next week at Morongo Golf Club at Tukwet Canyon. The top 108 aspiring LPGA Tour professionals will begin the 2016 with dreams of finishing in the top 10 on the final Volvik Race for the Card money list. The winner will earn $15,000 and move to No. 1 on the first money list.

Here are five players to watch next week.

Nelly Korda (Bradenton, Florida) – The 17-year-old will likely grab the headlines early in the week in California because of her last name. She is the younger sister of Jessica Korda, a four-time LPGA Tour winner and one of the most popular players on Tour. If LPGA Qualifying Tournament was any indication, Nelly will have a chance to contend in California. She finished third at Stage I in August and then stole the show in Stage II with a final-round 69 to earn medalist honors. She edged Grace Na by one shot and topped friend Megan Khang by four shots. Both Na and Khang are playing full-time on the LPGA Tour this year. Korda is going to play the IOA Championship as an amateur and she has not indicated when and if she will turn professional. She is currently the No. 10 ranked amateur in the world.

Ginger Howard (Bradenton, Florida) – In tumultuous final-round conditions last year, Ginger Howard fired a 69 to finish T4 at Tukwet Canyon. This offseason, Howard earned conditional LPGA Tour status for the first time in her career by finishing T43 at Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying Tournament. The 21-year-old is coming off the best year of her career. She posted two top 10’s and finished 39th on the Volvik Race for the Card money list in 2015. Howard found a level of comfort last year with her caddie, sister Robbi, who will be on the bag again for Ginger in 2016. She won’t be in California, but will join her the rest of the year.

Sophia Popov (Heidelberg, Germany) – The former USC All-American went right from college to the LPGA Tour last year by finishing T11 at 2014 Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying Tournament. In what can be a difficult jump, Popov finished No. 140 on the LPGA money list, but did show promise with her best finish of the year at her final event – Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic. Popov will make her Epson Tour debut at the IOA Championship. She enjoyed a decorated career at USC. She was the 2010-11 Pac 10 Freshman of the Year and was an integral part of the 2012-13 national championship run. Prior to USC, she was a German national team member who represented Germany at the Junior Solheim Cup in 2009 as well as at the 2009 European Girls' Team Championships. She comes from a very athletic family. Her brother, Nicholas, is a swimmer at Arizona, her mother, Claudia, was a top swimmer at Stanford while her father, Philip, was a first division field hockey player.

Katie Kempter (Albuqueque, New Mexico) - Nobody has better memories of Morongo Golf Club at Tukwet Canyon than Kempter, who won the event in a two-hole playoff over Lee Lopez in 2015. Dealing with tough conditions, Kempter was the only player under-par all three days of the tournament (71-69-71). Kempter had to birdie the final three holes coming in just to get into the playoff. The 28-year-old is experienced and is coming off her best season on the Epson Tour. She posted a career high four top 10’s in 2015 and closed 23rd on the Volvik Race for the Card money list. She lowered her scoring average from 73.25 to 72.51 from 2014 to 2015.

Lisa McCloskey (Houston, Texas) – The 24-year-old is one player in the field that is eyeing a spot in the 2016 Olympic Games. McCloskey is currently No. 476 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, but the second highest rated player from Colombia (Mariajo Uribe, LPGA). Although not in the current top 60 to qualify for the Olympics, McCloskey is close. McCloskey played her college golf at USC, where she was a Second Team All-American following the 2010-11 season. She played in 11 events on the LPGA Tour last year and has made 55 career starts since 2011. She will make her Epson Tour debut at the IOA Championship.

Players to Watch: IOA Championship presented by Morongo Casino Resort & Spa

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