The final round of the Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic got off to an early start to avoid inclement weather, and for the second straight week, the runner-up from the previous tournament won their next start. Ingrid Lindblad started the day 2-shots behind 36-hole leader Ana Belac but battled her way back with a flurry of birdies on the back nine to secure her first professional victory, one week after a bogey on her 54th hole kept her out of a playoff.

Lindblad started the day off two strokes off the lead, not really making a charge during her first nine holes of play, rolling in only one birdie on the front nine. The back nine is when the Swede's putter got hot, and the rest of the game followed.

A par on No. 10 would be Lindblad's last par until hole 17, making five straight birdies on holes 11-15, rolling in putts from up to 40 feet in the stretch. Hole 14 was the swing hole between Belac and Lindblad, with the rookie making birdie and Belac making bogey, a two-shot swing gave Lindblad the lead by two with just four holes to play. Another birdie followed on No. 15 but would give one shot back to Belac with a bogey on No. 16, dropping the lead back to 2 shots with two holes to play. All the 24-year-old had to do was make two pars to secure her first professional victory, taking home the 2024 Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic just months after declaring professional.

"The first nine was kind of, I would say, very boring. The first ten holes, actually," explained Lindblad. "Then I started rolling in birdies, and I rolled in about 25-footer, then another 25-footer, and then, like, a 35 or 40-footer. I was like, I don't know what's going on anymore. Everything happened pretty quickly. It feels really good. I mean, it was close last week, but I was able to get it done this week."

Belac held the 36-hole lead after two bogey-free rounds of 66 and 67, entering the day at 13-under. The 2020 Epson Tour Player of the Year made back-to-back birdies early in the round on holes 3 and 4 before finally making her first bogey of the week on No. 6 after a three-putt. Belac would not make a birdie again until No. 12 when she hit her approach to near tap-in range but would give the shot back with a bogey on No. 14. The 27-year-old put together another solid performance in 2024 but fell just short once again, claiming her second runner-up finish this season.

"I got off to a really hot start to the tournament. The first two rounds really everything was going my way," said Belac. "Today I didn't play bad golf, you know, just made a couple of mistakes, missed a couple of short putts, but Ingrid was just rock solid on the back. I gave it my best effort, and it wasn't perfect golf, but that's okay."

The Epson Tour heads to El Dorado, Ark., next week for the ninth playing of the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout. With only two events remaining, the stakes are as high as ever, and multiple LPGA Tour cards are still on the line.

IN THE WINNER’S CIRCLE WITH INGRID LINDBLAD

Hometown/Resides: Halmstad, Sweden

Age: 24

Qualified for the Epson/LPGA Tour: Finished first after 72 holes at the Qualifying Stage of 2023 LPGA Q-Series to first earn Epson Tour status

Rookie Year: 2024

CATEGORY	STATS
2024 Race for the Card Rank	7
2024 Race for the Card Points	1,113.889
2024 Epson Tour Wins	1
2024 Epson Tour Top 10s	4
2024 Season Earnings	$83,219
Career Epson Tour Wins	1
Career Epson Tour Top 10s	4
Epson Tour Career Earnings	$83,219

OF NOTE

The 2024 Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic is Lindblad’s first professional victory
She made five straight birdies on her back nine to help secure her win
The rookie has made seven starts on the Epson Tour since graduating from Louisiana State University (LSU)
- She has four top 10 finishes in those seven starts
She was the No. 1 ranked amateur before turning professional
Lindblad was the 2024 ANNIKA Award presented by Stefil Winner
She won the 2021 European Ladies Amateur Championship
The 24-year-old won the 2024 Inkster Award presented by Workday
In her time at LSU, she had 15 medalist finishes

Former Amateur World No. 1 Wins Her First Professional Event at the 2024 Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic

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