Alexandra Forsterling Qualifies for LPGA Tour

By: Connor Smith

MOBILE, Ala. - Sun Devil Women's Golf alum Alexandra Forsterling is officially a member of the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), qualifying for the 2024 Tour.

She receives category 15 status next year thanks to her Top-45 finish in Stage II of LPGA's "Q-School", used to determine the next group of LPGA members. Forsterling has earned an opportunitiy to compete at the highest level of women's professional golf.

"We are all so proud of Lexi and her phenomenal year," Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye exclaimed. "She is an amazing young woman and we are thrilled to watch her dreams come true through her hard work and determination. Next year it will be great to follow her on both professional tours!"

Forsterling is now a member of both the LPGA and Ladies European (LET) Tours as she continues to emerge as one of the top young female golfers. At LPGA Q-School, competitors have to survive a grueling two-stage process in which many of the World's best fail to qualify. Forsterling managed to comfortably get through to Stage II and was in need of a Top-45 finish at Magnolia Grove Golf Course in Mobile, Alabama. She sealed her spot as a 2024 LPGA Member thanks to a T27th finish, shooting 11-under over the two rounds. 

Despite her status as a 2024 LPGA rookie, Forsterling will be no stranger to the attention and pressure brought on by the world's most important female golf tour. She has played in three previous LPGA events, including two while she was stilll a member of the Sun Devil Women's Golf program. Forsterling joins an incredibly long and decorated list of Sun Devils to have made the LPGA Tour since it's foundation back in 1950. Fellow ASU alums Anna Nordqvist, Carlota Ciganda, Linn Grant, Azahara Munoz, Linnea Strom, and Roberta Liti also boast LPGA Tour membership status and will now be joined by Forsterling in professional events. 

It has not taken Forsterling long to make an impact on the professional level, the latest in a long line of standouts to come out of the Sun Devil Women's Golf program. In just her first season on the Ladies European Tour (LET), she has emerged as one of the top competitors, finding herself in contention on a weekly basis. Forsterling is one of only the second player to earn two victories on the LET Tour this season, having won the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open in September. The only other player who has won twice on the LET this year is the No. 3-ranked golfer in the world, Céline Boutier. Forsterling has accumulated over $200,000 in prize money on just the LET alone during her rookie campaign.

Forsterling had a total of 13 Top-20 finishes and has made 19 cuts through her first 24 LET events. Thanks to her efforts, she finished eighth in the Costa Del Sol Standings, which is the title for top player on the LET. Fellow Sun Devil Linn Grant was the 2022 Race to Costa Del Sol winner. Forsterling was the runner-up for LET Rookie of the Year, finishing just ahead of former teammate and fellow Sun Devil Alessandra Fanali, who also enjoyed a fantastic debut campaign as a professional. 

SECOND LET VICTORY
Sun Devil Women's Golf alum Alexandra Forsterling won the Mallorca Ladies Golf Open in November, securing her second career title on the Ladies European Tour (LET).

Forsterling carded rounds of 69, 67 and 67 for a 54-hole total of 203, finishing at 13-under-par and securing an emphatic five-stroke victory at Golf Son Muntaner. Starting the day trailing by one stroke, Forsterling took advantage of struggles from the leader. Thanks to a birdie on the third hole, she would find herself at the top of the leaderboard for the first time. Forsterling would not look back, making a birdie on the long seventh to reach 10-under-par and stretch her lead to three strokes. Another birdie for Forsterling, this time on the 11^th hole, opened a comfortable four-stroke advantage. Forsterling then went on to birdie 15 and finished with three straight pars to seal the victory to go along with $60,000 in prize money. 

""I can't believe it," Forsterling told LadiesEuropeanTour.com. "I still can't believe that I won in Switzerland and now here. It just feels great. I played really good today and didn't make many mistakes. I saved a couple of shots and it was just perfect."

"We are so proud of Lexi! Winning twice on the Ladies European Tour in one year is a fantastic accomplishment," Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye remarked. "It is wonderful to watch one of our golfer's dreams come true. She is becoming the golfer that we knew she could be."

FIRST LET VICTORY
Sun Devil Women's Golf alum Alexandra Forsterling won the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open back in September, securing her first career title on the Ladies European Tour (LET).

Forsterling shot a 66 (-5) three consecutive days, erasing a two-stroke deficit on the final day to claim the victory at Golfpark Holzhausern in Switzerland. A bogey-free final round and clutch birdies on 8, 10, 12, and finally 18 helped her seal the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open Championship while collecting $45,000 in prize money. 

"I can't quite believe it," Forsterling told LadiesEuropeanTour.com. "It feels so strange in a way. Obviously you always work for it, but then when it happens you can't quite believe it."

It has not taken Forsterling long to make an impact on the professional level, the latest in a long line of standouts to come out of the Sun Devil Women's Golf program. In just her first season on the LET, she has emerged as one of the top competitors, finding herself in contention on a weekly basis.

"We couldn't be more proud of Lexi winning on the LET," Head Coach Missy Farr-Kaye remarked. "She has worked extremely hard and is a terrific representative of Sun Devil Women's Golf. This is the first of many victories for her."

FORSTERLING AT ASU
Through her first three years with the Sun Devil Women's Golf program, Alexandra Forsterling was a consistent presence in the lineup, performing admirably for a Top-10 Arizona State team. During a breakout senior campaign, she took her game to another level, becoming one of the best golfers in the nation. She did it while maintaining a 3.95 GPA and graduating with a degree in Film, epitomizing the ideal student-athlete. The unanimous First Team All-American continued the long lineage of great female golfers at Arizona State. Thanks to her efforts as a senior she was named the 2022 Most Improved Player by Golfweek. She was the first recepient of the award sponsored by Rapsodo.

The No. 5-ranked golfer in the nation (top-ranked Senior) was named the 2022 Pac-12 Scholar Athlete of the Year, one of many accolades from that season. She also competed in the most prestigious amateur event in the sport, participating at iconic Augusta National Golf Course as a part of the Augusta National Women's Amateur. The Berlin, Germany native was one of ten finalists for the ANNIKA Award, which is given annually to the top player in women's collegiate golf. Forsterling enjoyed one of the most prolific seasons in program history.

Forsterling recorded seven Top-10 finishes in 2020-21, despite the fact that the Sun Devils faced one of the nation's toughest schedules. The highlight of her season was winning the Individual Title at the 2021 PING/ASU Invitational, beating out a field with 25 of the Top-100 ranked golfers, including the nation's No. 1. Forsterling recorded Top-10 finishes at the Stanford Intercollegiate, Darius Rucker Intercollegiate, Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge, Silverado Showdown, and the Stillwater Regional. She was the senior leader on a team that finished ninth at the NCAA Women's Golf Championship. Not only has she achieved great things on the course, but she has also led by example with her performance in the classroom. She has made the ASU Dean's List in each of her eight semesters and was a Pac-12 Academic Spring Honor Roll selection all four seasons. 

HOW TO FOLLOW
For the latest updates and information on the Sun Devil Women's Golf program, follow our Twitter/Instagram accounts (@SunDevilWGolf), like our Facebook page (facebook.com/sundevilwgolf/), and visit our website (thesundevils.com). Find Coach Farr-Kaye (@missymkaye) and Coach Tatman (@CoachMikayla_) on Twitter as well. Congratulate Alexandra Forsterling on Instagram (@AlexForsterling).