After a successful opening event, the Epson Tour continues the three-week-long Florida stretch this week as 132 players will take on Alaqua Country Club for the 11th IOA Golf Classic presented by LPT Realty. Here are five things to know about the 2024 IOA Golf Classic:
Plata Looking for Back-to-Back Wins
The first week of the season was an eventful one as the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic went into overtime, and a two-hole playoff ultimately saw Colombia’s Valery Plata go head-to-head with Slovenian Ana Belac. The Michigan State University alumna defeated 36-hole co-leader, Belac after carding two birdies on the 55th and 56th holes. After her win, Plata said she was leaving the Country Club of Winter Haven with both momentum and confidence, making her a player to keep an eye on in the near future.
Hausmann Looks for Redemption
Sophie Hausmann has seen her name near the top of the IOA Golf Classic leaderboard for the past two years. In 2022, the German finished in a tie for sixth, and in 2023, she lost to Jenny Coleman in a playoff. Seemingly comfortable at Alaqua Country Club, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the University of Idaho alumna finally finished on top at the IOA Golf Classic in 2024.
Which Club Member Will Tee It Up?
Amateur Mara King, one of the two sponsor exemptions, is no stranger to Alaqua Country Club. The 17-year-old is a club member and will tee it up on the Epson Tour for the third time as a sponsor exemption for the event in Longwood. King has yet to make the cut on the Epson Tour but has proven her talent on different amateur tours in the past year. She finished in a tie for second at the 2023 Florida Junior Tour Labor Day Major and in a tie for 12th at the American Junior Golf Association’s Billy Horschel Junior Championship presented by Zurich in 2023.
Past Champions Have Had Success on LPGA Tour
Two past champions of the IOA Golf Classic have found themselves in the winner’s Circle on the LPGA Tour within the last season. Grace Kim, who won this event in 2022, won the 2023 LOTTE Championship presented by Hoakalei in April. The LOTTE Championship and IOA Golf Classic share a piece of Kim’s history, marking her first LPGA Tour win and Epson Tour win, both in her rookie year of the respective tours. Kim’s fellow Australian Hannah Green is also a past champion of the IOA Golf Classic, winning the fifth edition of the event in 2017, and has since gone on to win four titles on the LPGA Tour. Her most recent win happened just a couple of weeks ago at the HSBC Women’s World Championship.
Second Week of the New Points System
The Epson Tour saw two major changes to the Race for the Card heading into the 2024 season. The first change is from a money-based system to a point-based system. The points will be the same for every event, except for the season-ending event, the Epson Tour Championship in Indian Wells, Calif. Additionally, the top 15 players in the Race for the Card will now earn LPGA Tour membership for the 2025 season. For more information about the updated season-long competition, please click here.
After the first tournament, Valery Plata leads the Race for the Card with 500 points. Ana Belac and Cassie Porter trail behind in second and third, with 320 points and 230 points, respectively.
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