They don’t have the same sort of name recognition as Rose Zhang, the former Stanford champion who is the sixth-ranked LPGA player in the world.
Yet the Bay Area will be represented this weekend at the U.S. Women’s Open in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, by other golfers with local ties who were prodigies in their own right and have dreams of getting to where Zhang is now.
There are three players locally to watch when the Open gets underway Thursday at the Lancaster Country Club. Sabrina Iqbal of San Jose and Megha Ganne at Stanford qualified on April 16 at the El Macero Country Club, and Lucy Li of Redwood Shores won her qualifying tournament in Winchester, Massachusetts.
Here is a look at all three:
Sabrina Iqbal chips the ball onto the third green for birdie during the second round of the U.S. Women’s Open golf tournament, Friday, May 31, 2019, in Charleston, S.C. A.P. Photo
Sabrina Iqbal
Thursday tee time: 3:56 a.m. PT
Iqbal, 24, is a former Mercury News Golfer of the Year a decade ago when she won a state championship at Pioneer High as a freshman at a school that didn’t even have a girls golf team.
“I think back to when I was a teenager in high school, my goal was to play college golf and turn professional and play in the biggest events,” Iqbal said in a conference call Wednesday. “Obviously this is a great one to play in and it’s hard and tough to qualify for but I’m pleased with where I’m at and being here this week.”
Iqbal won the CIF State Championship at Rancho Cucamonga by shooting a 71 to win by a stroke and was a four-time Northern California Junior Player of the Year. She went on to become a top player at Texas Christian, ending her career as the program’s leader in stroke average (72.9) and birdies (357).
This past year, Iqbal played as a graduate student at Colorado and had one of the best seasons in school history with a stroke average of 70.9 and scoring par or better in 10 of 12 rounds in the fall and has since turned pro.
“There’s a lot more logistics playing week in and week out and college golf is a great experience but now it’s a job moving forward,” Iqbal said. “The work doesn’t change, but I need to be more intentional about what I’m doing and in my downtime and making sure everything on and off the golf course is setting me up to succeed.”
Iqbal played in the 2019 U.S. Women’s Open in Charleston, South Carolina, and didn’t make the cut.
“I want to go out there and play as well as I can play all four days,” Iqbal said. “I’m not used to playing with the best players in the world but I know I can come out here and compete and be patient, trust my game and anything that happens is going to be a learning experience for me. I know I’m capable of doing well.”
Iqbal’s brother Sebastian will caddy and both her parents will attend.
“They haven’t watched me as much as they did in junior golf so I’m thankful everyone is here this weekend,” Iqbal said.
Megha Ganne
Thursday tee time: 10:47 a.m. PT
A Stanford sophomore, Ganne, 20, is riding the wave of winning three times in match play — including a 3-2 title win over UCLA last week — in the Cardinal’s run to the NCAA Championship and will compete as an amateur. Now 20, she made a name for herself at the 2017 U.S. Women’s Open at the Olympic Club when she was among the leaders for three days.
Ganne eventually finished 14th, but had the lowest score of any amateur.
“It was a lifetime memory but every U.S. Open is a different one and has a different set of challenges,” Ganne said. “Obviously I have that in the memory bank, which is pretty special and I’m excited to see what this week has to present. These are the best players in the world and it can be a bit intimidating, but if you’re here, you’re here for a reason.”
Ganne conceded the turnaround from the NCAA championship to the U.S. Women’s Open is a quick one, and she’s also got to get back for final exams at Stanford, where she has every intention of returning next fall rather than turning pro.
Given her hometown of Holmdel, New Jersey is 180 miles from the Lancaster Country Club, Ganne will have a fan base that knows her beyond her exploits at the Olympic Club three years ago.
Considered a steady and consistent player, Ganne will need those attributes over the next few days.
“It’s a pretty classic U.S. Open course,” Ganne said. “So ball-striking and hitting as many fairways as you can get is going to be helpful. The greens are really tricky so two-putts are pretty much good anywhere you’re at . . . I’m going in expectation-free, but there’s plenty of possibility so I’m excited.”
Lucy Li plays her shot from the fourth tee during the first round of the Cognizant Founders Cup at Upper Montclair Country Club on May 10, 2024 in Clifton, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images Getty Images
Lucy Li
Thursday tee time: 10:25 a.m. PT
Ten years ago at age 11, Li, who grew up in Redwood Shores, became the youngest player to ever qualify for the U.S. Women’s Amateur and U.S. Women’s Open.
“I can’t believe it’s been 10 years already,” Li, said. “I still remember it like it was yesterday. It was an incredible experience . . . I don’t think I totally comprehended it at the moment but it’s cool to look back on it and see how far I’ve come.”
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Her interests as a youth included diving, table tennis and badminton — but golf was always No. 1.
“I’ve known since maybe I was 9 I was going to do this as my profession and see where it takes me,” Li said.
A third-place finisher on the money list for the Epson Tour — the LPGA’s developmental tour — Li looks forward to hopefully gaining an exemption on the LPGA Tour rather than fighting through qualifying tournaments. Her first U.S. Women’s Open is a nice footnote.
“I think I’m at a point in my career now where it’s just a cool part of my history,” Li said. “I put a lot of pressure on myself, just trying to compete with the best. Now I just take everything as it comes and treat every shot with equal importance.”
