The first round ended with Lauren Stephenson tied at the top of the leaderboard, but the tournament ended with her name standing alone. The 27-year-old put together a resilient performance during the final round of the Twin Bridges Championship, carding a 1-over 72 to capture her first professional win, moving her to No. 3 in the Race for the Card and in prime position to return to the LPGA Tour.

Stephenson did not have her A-game during her final round, going birdie-free for 17 holes before rolling in a 7-foot birdie putt on No. 18 to seal the tournament. Before that, it was grinding for pars and missed birdie opportunities as Jessica Porvasnik made a late rally to try and track her down. The University of Alabama alum was also battling a cold all week, only seeing nine holes of Pinehaven Country Club before her first round. The saying "beware of the sick golfer" rang true throughout the course over the three days of play as Stephenson went wire-to-wire.

"I think it's been six years since I won, at least in college. So yeah, I don't really know what to do right now, but I'm super excited," said Stephenson. "I didn't come to the course at all Thursday, and I saw nine holes on Wednesday, and I had never been here. There are multiple holes I didn't see because I was sick and just kind of rocked with it in the short grass, and it worked out for me."

Jessica Porvasnik was the main competition for Stephenson throughout the day despite not being in the final pairing. The Ohio native started the final round five shots off the lead but ended the day just two shots behind the champion. A bogey on the first hole put Porvasnik behind the 8-ball early, but she rallied back by not making any more bogeys for the round and added three birdies along the way. Two birdies before the turn moved her into contention, and only three shots back. A Stephenson bogey on No. 12 closed the gap to two shots, and a late birdie for Porvasnik on No. 17 moved her within one shot. The birdie on No. 18 from Stephenson sealed the tournament, but with the runner-up finish, Jessica Porvasnik moved to No. 1 in the Race for the Card with just six tournaments remaining.

"It feels good, I mean just putting up good scores and just finally seeing more and more solid play," said Porvasnik. "I know my games in a good spot right now and good spot for the rest of the season."

The Epson Tour heads into a three-week break before heading out west to Pendleton, Oregon, for the Wildhorse Ladies Golf Classic, August 16-18

QUICK QUOTES

Jenny Bae (-3, 5th) on a top-X finish at the Twin Bridges Championship as the defending champion:

"I definitely feel a lot more confident coming off the course this time compared to the all the previous events that I played so far. That last putt I had, I was like, 'I know this putt and I know I can make it because it's the exact line of the putt that I made for birdie in the playoff last year'. So that was really exciting, but I think overall I am in a very good position going forward."

Ou Olankitkunchai (-2, T6) on her rookie season and 4-under final round:

"I mean the season is going okay. I'm now getting used to the courses and being on tour. Today and this whole tournament I've been struggling with my long game, so I hit a bunch of trees. I struggled the first day and then came back yesterday and today. It was a really good run today. I made seven birdies with a couple of bogeys, so it all worked out."

Alice Duan (E, T17) on her best career finish on the Epson Tour and her limited starts this season:

"It's definitely been tough being unsure of where I'm going to go. This week it was like; we're not even supposed to be here. We got in last minute, so just try and have fun and have a good attitude and be way more present. Have like a Labrador mindset and we had a lot of fun."

IN THE WINNERS CIRCLE WITH LAUREN STEPHENSON

Hometown/Resides: Lexington, South Carolina

Age: 27

Qualified for the Epson/LPGA Tour: Finished T6 at 2018 LPGA Q-Series to earn LPGA Tour membership for the 2019 season

Rookie Year: 2019

CATEGORY
2024 Race for the Card Rank	3
2024 Race for the Card Points	1001.083
2024 Epson Tour Wins	1
2024 Epson Tour Top 10s	5
2024 Season Earnings	$73,936
Career Epson Tour Wins	1
Career Epson Tour Top 10s	5
Epson Tour Career Money	$73,936

OF NOTE

The Twin Bridges Championship is her first professional victory
- Her best previous result on the Epson Tour was a T4 finish at the 2024 Atlantic Beach Classic
She has spent the last five years on the LPGA Tour
- In that time, she collected five top-10 finishes, including a top-10 finish at the 2020 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship
Finished her rookie season 10th in the Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year standings on the LPGA Tour
She has earned over 1 million dollars in career earnings on the LPGA Tour
Was a member of the 2018 U.S. Curtis Cup and Arnold Palmer Cup Teams
Named the 2018 Golfweek Player of the Year and won the 2018 Golfstat Cup, which is given to the nation’s leading score average with a 69.76 average
Made two career LPGA Tour starts as an amateur at the 2016 and 2017 U.S. Women’s Open

Lauren Stephenson Wins the 40th Playing of the Twin Bridges Championship

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