The LPGA Tour returns to the desert for the inaugural Ford Championship presented by KCC. The field will showcase the brightest stars in ladies professional golf. In fact, a couple players are representing the JGAA as former Arizona junior golfers Sarah Schmelzel and Lindsey Weaver-Wright will tee it up at Seville Country Club in Gilbert.
Sarah Schmelzel is off to a hot start this season with two Top-10s and her breakthrough runner-up finish at the Blue Bay LPGA. This is her sixth year on the LPGA Tour, and she aims to earn her first victory. Schmelzel is a former All-America Honorable Mention while at the University of South Carolina and was a 2016 Golfweek All-American. Schmelzel was highly ranked in both the National Junior Golf Scoreboard rankings and the Golfweek junior rankings. She was a standout at Xavier Prep and won the 2011 Arizona State High School Championship. During her JGAA playing years, the Phoenician racked up 14 wins in six seasons.
Lindsey Weaver-Wright makes her first appearance of 2024. Last season she recorded two top-10 finishes, including a season-best fifth result at the Bank of Hope LPGA Match-Play. Her key amateur highlights consist of qualifying for the 2015 U.S. Women’s Open, Big East Conference Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year during Weaver-Wright’s collegiate career at Notre Dame University. She shot a 59 on the Apache Course at Desert Mountain during the 2012 Ping Junior Interclub match to become the second female golfer in history to do so, first being Annika Sorenstam. While playing at the JGAA, the Scottsdale local ranked as the No. 3 recruit in the nation on the Junior Golf Scoreboard, seventh in the Golfweek Junior Golf rankings and 20th in the Polo golf rankings coming out of Cactus Shadows High School.
Wishing our talented JGAA alumna the very best as they compete this week at the Ford Championship. It fills us with immense pride to witness the remarkable achievements of our former players as they shine on golf’s grandest platform. Their journey from our program to the pinnacle of the sport is a testament to their dedication and skill, and we’ll be cheering them on.
