When the final round of the Hartford HealthCare Women's Championship teed off, rookie Jenny Bae had zero dollars in career earnings to her name and was looking to pick up her first paycheck while playing in the final group. Fast-forward six days from that last round, and Bae is now sitting at No. 8 on the Race for the Card standings with $60,000 to her name. How is that possible? Well, the 21-year-old won in only her second start of her career at the Hartford HealthCare Women's Championship, which concluded on a Monday because of a week riddled with weather delays. Then the following Sunday, she would pick up her second win of the season at the Twin Bridges Championship, moving her right into contention and a chance to earn an LPGA Tour card.
"I feel great. I didn't expect myself to win this fast, let alone back-to-back, so I am in a blur right now," said Bae. "Overall, I feel really, really good about my game and plan to take a day off or two. I didn't realize it would get me into the top 10 that fast, but there are still a lot of tournaments left. I just want to play well in those and maintain my ranking."
Bae enjoyed an impressive amateur career while at the University of Georgia. The rookie was a three-time all-American and picked up two career victories with the Bulldogs. One of the most memorable moments of Bae's amateur career was her playoff in the 2023 Augusta National Women's Amateur against LPGA Tour rookie Rose Zhang. Bae would fall just short of the ANWA title but showed the golf world her game and that she can compete with the best. Bae's name has been spreading quickly after her career week, with players starting to take notice.
"Jenny is absolutely amazing. I'm so happy for all her success, and I'm sure that you will continue to hear that name," said Zhang. "I actually texted her, and we always pump each other up. We were in the same Curtis Cup practice session together, so (we) really created a really good friendship from there. I expect to see her a lot more."
Zhang will likely have to wait until next year to see Bae on the LPGA Tour since the American still has nine tournaments to play on the Epson Tour before securing her card, and nothing is guaranteed, with nearly $2M in earnings up for grabs for the 2023 season. If nothing else, she'll have to, at minimum, maintain her current position to join Zhang next year. Bae still has a long road ahead, but with how rapidly her professional career began, it would be hard to imagine not seeing her name on the LPGA Tour in 2024. Bae's next start will be in French Lick, Ind. for the French Lick Invitational, August 3-6 where she will look to pick up her third straight victory.
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