At the end of the 2024 Epson Tour season, Heather Lin found herself in the winner’s circle and headed to the LPGA Tour.
With her victory at the Epson Tour Championship at Indian Wells, the 24-year-old earned the last of 15 LPGA Tour cards that were up for grabs via the Epson Tour’s season-long Race for the Card, guaranteeing the soon-to-be LPGA Tour rookie some starts on the biggest stage in women’s golf in 2025.
But Lin still has some unfinished business to attend to and is teeing it up at the Final Qualifying portion of LPGA Q-Series, hoping to earn full status for the upcoming LPGA Tour season.
Since her win in Indian Wells, Calif., two months ago, the Chinese Taipei native has kept her foot on the gas, returning home and continuing to play in tournaments. Overseas. Even though she only took a few days of rest for every few days of practice, Lin feels more than ready to compete in Mobile, Ala., this week.
“I went straight back to Taiwan, I think for five weeks, played three tournaments there, and so I would say I've been playing quite a bit,” said Lin. “I haven't really had much time off, but it was nice to go back and see some friends and a lot of congratulations from all the friends and family back home, so that was cool.
“But straight back into working and preparing for Q-Series for me. I didn't really have much time off, honestly.”
Despite walking away victorious the last time she played a tournament in the States, the Epson Tour sophomore isn’t lingering on the past or letting it affect her future. With five rounds of intense competition looming, Lin is zeroed in on the task at hand – earning status that would see her compete in nearly every LPGA Tour event next year.
“This field is very different this week,” said Lin. “Plus, weather-wise, it's basically a complete opposite of what we played in Palm Springs. It's probably one of the coldest weeks, and the course is very different. I'm not a person that really compares the past to now, so I kind of have let that go.”
Thanks to her finish in the 11-35 category of the Epson Tour Race for the Card and the generosity of the Tour’s title sponsor, Seiko Epson Corporation, Lin has one less thing to worry about when it comes to LPGA Q-Series. For the second year, those who finish Nos. 11-35 in the Race for the Card had their Final Qualifying entry fee covered by Epson.
“It means so much having Epson sponsor the top 35 players and pay for the entry fee,” said Lin. “And it's not just the entry fee. It's not having to go to (Qualifying), so the $5,000 entry fee plus not having to go to stage two, that's another couple thousand probably, and I live in Florida, so it's a drive for me. It definitely helped a lot financially to give me peace of mind that I don't have to spend a huge amount of money at the end of the year.”