Circling Raven Championship notes: Hausmann ready for battle

From Epson Tour media relations

FIELD BREAKDOWN

States (23)

States with most representatives: Texas (11), California (9), Florida (7), Georgia (4), North Carolina (4), Washington 4.

Countries (30)

Countries with most representatives: United States (65), Australia (8), Thailand (6), China (5), Sweden (5), Mexico (4), Chinese Taipei (4).

Rookies (33)

Kelly Hooper, Grace Kim, Xiaowen Yin, Ching Huang, Beatrice Wallin, Sofia Garcia, Polly Mack, Hyo Joon Jang, Alexa Pano, Gabriela Ruffels, Jaravee Boonchant, Amelia Garvey, Ana Paula Valdes, Moeka Nishihata, Chanoknan Angurasaranee, Kaitlin Milligan, Katherine Smith, Lauren Cox, Auston Kim, Kennedy Swann, Kenzie Wright, Kaleigh Telfer, Maria Fernanda Escauriza, Ho-yu An, Emily Mahar, Pilar Echeverria, Abegail Arevalo, Sarah Rhee, Caroline Hwang, Elodie Chapelet, Paige Crawford, Payton Schanen, Victoria Huskey.

Collegiate connections to Idaho: Sophie Hausmann, University of Idaho.

2022 Epson Tour winners in field: Kum-Kang Park, Florida's Natural Charity Classic; Dottie Ardina, Copper Rock Championship; Gabby Then, Garden City Charity Classic; Grace Kim, IOA Golf Classic; Kiira Riihijarvi, Ann Arbor's Road to the LPGA; Ssu-Chia Cheng, Island Resort Championship; Xiaowen Yin, FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship/French Lick Charity Classic; Yan Liu, Four Winds Invitational.

HAUSMANN READY TO FIGHT FOR THE TOP-10

After battling a back injury midway through the season, Sophie Hausmann is ready to make a run for the top-10. The German currently sits at No. 16 on the Official Money List, just six spots away from where everyone wants to be coming down the stretch.

She’s familiar with the position just outside the top-10. Last year, Hausmann finished the season at No. 22.

“It was a tough ending [last year],” said Hausmann. “One thing I learned is that you can’t get too caught up on the ranking. The season is long, and anything can happen. At the end of the day, I feel like you really have to believe that you can make it.”

Hausmann started the 2022 season strong, with five top-15 finishes in seven events. She credits the start to learning from last season.

“I had a consistent start, which is what I learned from last year,” said Hausmann. “So I tried to keep it similar and get it going. It’s a long season, and I was aware of it this year.”

She was No. 8 at the midway point of this season, when she took leave to head back to Germany to rehab her injury. Although she has since dropped out of the top-10, Hausmann feels like she is prepared to get back into it.

“I’m glad to be back swinging,” said Hausmann. “And I’m looking forward to being back in contention. That’s one of my goals heading into the next few weeks.”

Hausmann also opened up about the mental side of returning from injury and having unrealistic expectations right away. After starting the season on a positive note, it was hard for her not to expect big things upon her return.

“I was glad to be back out there,” said Hausmann. “But I quickly got into this expectation mindset again, which wasn’t helping. I really try to keep goals realistic and see what’s doable day by day.”

In addition to keeping goals realistic, Hausmann thinks twice about how she treats herself after a not ideal day. She says it’s important to be your own best friend and trust the process.

With only six weeks remaining in the season, Hausmann will have her work cut out for her. Pressure starts to build, but she plans to keep a positive attitude until the end.

“Of course there’s pressure because you know you’re running out of events,” said Hausmann. “But we know it’s a performance job, and it’s a fun thing. You accept the challenge and go for it.”

Hausmann’s push for the top-10 starts in a place that she’s familiar with – the Circling Raven Championship. The University of Idaho graduate returns to the state she knows well, as well as a course she’s previously played.

"It’s a nice thing to know I still have a shot,” said Hausmann. “Top-10 is definitely reachable, but I know I have to play good golf. It’s a challenge these days, but I’m ready for it.”

The 54-hole tournament begins Friday and runs through Sunday at Circling Raven Golf Club. Admission this week in Worley is $10 per day.

ABOUT EPSON TOUR

The Epson Tour (formerly the Symetra Tour) is the official qualifying tour of the LPGA Tour and enters its 42nd competitive season in 2022. With the support of entitlement partner Seiko Epson Corporation, the Tour’s mission is to prepare the world’s best female professional golfers for a successful career on the LPGA Tour. In the last decade, the Epson Tour has grown from 15 tournaments and $1.6 million in prize money to $4.41 million awarded across 20+ events in 2022. With more than 600 graduates and alumnae moving on to the LPGA Tour, former Epson Tour players have won 459 LPGA titles.

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