The 28-year-old LPGA Tour star will be the center of attention on Thursday, Oct. 12, when the Las Vegas tournament gets under way at TPC Summerlin, with Thompson relishing the chance to test herself against her male PGA Tour counterparts.
LAS VEGAS -- Lexi Thompson said on Tuesday, Oct. 10, making the cut at this week's Shriners Children's Open will be the highlight of her career as she prepares to become only the seventh female golfer to tee it up on the PGA Tour.
Didrikson Zaharias remains the only woman to have made the cut in a PGA Tour event, although Shirley Spork played all four rounds in the 1952 Northern California-Reno Open, an event which had no cut. "Definitely at the top of my accomplishments," Thompson said Tuesday."It's been an honor just to get this invite, but one step, one shot at a time. That would be an amazing feeling."PGA Tour policy board member Peter Malnati described Thompson's invite to the tournament as a"gimmick" last week before quickly retracting the remark."No reaction. I knew some comments were going to happen," Thompson said.
The American – who became the youngest golfer ever to qualify for the US Women’s Open as a 12-year-old in 2007 – says she does not expect to be affected by pressure this week.