INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — When Hailee Cooper saw Epson Tour Chief Business and Operations Officer Jody Brothers walking toward her, she panicked. Questions raced through her head. Did she do something wrong? Was she about to be fined? Was he upset with her? What was happening?

But when Brothers handed her a Road to the LPGA ball marker and explained that she had clinched an LPGA Tour card for the 2026 season ahead of the Epson Tour Championship at Indian Wells, Hailee’s fears melted away. Her unease turned into delight, and she began to celebrate, reveling in the life-changing moment that had come to fruition right in front of her.

Her dream of making it to the LPGA had just come true. Finally.

“I put my hands on my knees, took a big breath and a big sigh of relief,” Hailee said. “Everybody wishes they could earn it as soon as they turn pro, but I'm really glad I had a year and a half out here on (the Epson Tour). I feel like my game wasn't ready, and mentally, I wasn't ready. Hopefully, now this has prepared me.

“I hope a year and a half is enough, but I'm super grateful, and it did happen pretty quickly.”

Hailee joined the Epson Tour in 2024 and quickly made an impact in her inaugural season, only missing one cut and collecting four top-10 results, one of which saw her nearly win the season finale at Indian Wells Golf Resort and ultimately finish in a tie for eighth.

That steady energy has rolled on throughout the entirety of 2025, as, ahead of the Epson Tour Championship in Indian Wells, Calif., Hailee again only missed one cut and racked up a whopping eight top-10 finishes in 18 starts, five of which were top fives and the most recent of which she tallied at the Guardian Championship after tying for third.

But the highlight of Hailee’s year came over the summer in Wisconsin.

Teeing it up in her first U.S. Women’s Open since 2018, Hailee showed up at Erin Hills giddy with excitement and with her only expectation being to perform better than she had as an amateur at Shoal Creek seven years ago.

And after posting a four-day total of 3-under in what are traditionally some of the hardest conditions in women’s golf each season, Hailee did just that in the 80th playing of the major tournament, tying for seventh on a leaderboard that included several LPGA Tour winners and major champions, a showing that saw her take home the first six-figure check of her young career.

“It was a huge ‘you can do it’ moment,” said Hailee, who made $358,004 that week. “I think I went into the U.S. Open not expecting anything. I was just happy that I made it. I had a couple of good weeks on the Epson Tour, so I felt like my game was trending in the right direction.

“When I got there, with how narrow the fairways were and how fast the greens were, I was hitting it really solid, and my putting was on that week. Whenever I look back, I'm like, there are a lot of shots that I could have shaved off. My caddie talked about it at the end of the week, and he was like, ‘You could have won that golf tournament.’”

That renewed confidence in herself and her game helped propel Hailee all the way through the rest of the 2025 season on the Epson Tour, and she ultimately secured a spot inside the top 15 of the Race for the Card point standings, earning her LPGA Tour membership next year.

And while the learning curve is generally pretty steep for any first-year athlete who finds themselves among the world’s best athletes at the highest level of the game, the 25-year-old has a pretty unique mentor on whom she has and can continue to lean on as a 2026 LPGA rookie – 13-time winner and former Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 1 Stacy Lewis.

Hailee played collegiate golf for Stacy’s husband Gerrod Chadwell at Texas A&M, and since graduating, the former Aggie has maintained an incredibly close relationship with Stacy and her family, sometimes seeking advice from the two-time major winner concerning her professional golf career.

Hailee’s bond with them is so strong, in fact, that Stacy’s father Dale traveled to Indian Wells, Calif., to carry Hailee’s bag at the Epson Tour Championship instead of attending the LOTTE Championship in Hawaii, which marks his daughter’s final event of her last full season competing on the LPGA Tour, as Stacy announced her impending retirement at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship.

And after an impressive performance on the Road to the LPGA, Hailee now has the opportunity to directly follow in her mentor’s footsteps. But even though she will head to the most competitive circuit in the women’s game still fairly green when it comes to her tenure and experience as a pro athlete, Hailee doesn’t want to just show up next year. She wants to contend alongside golf’s top talents.

“I would love to be the Rookie of the Year. That'll be one of my goals, but it's really hard to do,” Hailee said of her 2026 aspirations. “There are a lot of new rookies coming in, girls out here, girls from other tours, ones that will come from the Final Stage (of LPGA Q-Series). But I want to be able to contend for that.

“I'd love to be able to get my card again, so finish in the top 100 in (the Race to CME Globe). I want to be in contention to win. I'd love to win an event out there, but I know it's very difficult as it is difficult out here, but I'd love to be in contention at least to give myself a chance to win out there.”

Hailee Cooper Heading to LPGA Tour in 2026 for Debut Season

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