269 Hopefuls Ready For Duramed FUTURES Tour Qualifying

LAKELAND, Fla., November 3, 2006 -- The eighth annual qualifying tournament for the Duramed FUTURES Tour will bring 269 players to Central Florida next week in an effort to gain or retain status for the Tour's 2007 season.

The 2007 Q-School will be held Nov. 7-10, on three golf courses. Contestants will rotate and play one round at each venue -- Cleveland Heights Golf Course, Huntington Hills Golf & Country Club and Schalamar Creek Golf Club -- before the player cut is made after 54 holes. The cut field of 90 players and ties will return to Cleveland Heights for the final round on Friday, Nov. 10. Tee times start at 8 a.m. on Tuesday through Thursday, with play beginning at 7:30 a.m. on Friday.

"Even though the size of our field is smaller this year (269) than last year (300), we're confident that the quality of the field will be very strong," said Cynthia Rihm, vice president of corporate operations at the Duramed FUTURES Tour. "This continues the Tour's mission of preparing the top young talent for a future on the LPGA Tour."

Leading the field will be Paige Mackenzie, 23, of Yakima, Wash., the former University of Washington standout who was the 2006 PAC-10 champion, the NCAA West Regional champion, medalist at the 2006 U.S. Women's Amateur Championship, the 2006 Colorado Open champion and a member of the victorious 2006 U.S. Curtis Cup team.

"Every year, some of the top amateurs in the United States and in the world make their professional debuts here at our qualifying tournament," added Rihm. "This will be many of these players' first test against other professionals."

Irene Cho, 22, of La Habra, Calif., also likely will be one of the tournament's top contenders. Cho was the 2006 Honda Award recipient as the Top Female Collegiate Golfer while at the University of Southern California. Cho broke USC's school records for wins in a season last year (four) and was an NCAA first-team All-American. She also was the 2006 PAC-10 Player of the Year.

Two-time All-American Maru Martinez, 22, of Venezuela, makes her Duramed FUTURES Tour pro debut after a successful collegiate career at Auburn University. Martinez was the 2006 Southeastern Conference (SEC) Player of the Year and was the winner of five collegiate tournaments. She also was a finalist at the 2005 U.S. Women's Amateur Championship.

The University of Tennessee's Violeta Retamoza of Aguascalientes, Mexico, also will be in the field. Retamoza, 23, was the 2002-2003 SEC Freshman of the Year, was a 2004-2005 first-team All-American, and was the 2004-2005 SEC Player of the Year.

Unnarin Sattayabanphot of Bangkok, Thailand hopes to transition professionally after being named the 2006 Purdue University Female Athlete of the Year. The 22-year-old Thai player also was the 2006 Big Ten Player of the Year, and is a two-time All-American. Joining Sattayabanphot will be fellow Thai player Titiya Plucksataporn, 23, of Bangkok, who was a member of the 2006 Ladies European Tour and who finished 53rd at the recent Honda LPGA Thailand tournament.

Players of regional interest include Charlotte Campbell, 22, of Heathrow, Fla., who was a four-time NCAA Division II Player of the Year while at Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla. Campbell also was the NCAA Division II individual champion in 2003-2004. Tampa's Elizabeth Stuart, 25, was a rookie on the 2006 Duramed FUTURES Tour and is still the first player -- male or female -- to play on a professional tour after getting her start in The First Tee program for urban and disadvantaged youth.

Three other Orlando-area teens, Jessica Yadloczky, 17, of Casselberry, Fla., Noon Huachai, 17, of Bangkok, Thailand (and Orlando), and Sandra Changkija, 17, of Orlando, all will compete for exempt status on the 2007 Tour. Yadloczky was on the 2005 Florida High School Championship team and the 2005 AJGA Canon Cup Team, and finished second at the 2006 Women's Western Junior Championship. Changkija was the winner of the 2005 Florida Junior Governor's Cup and was a member of the 2006 Florida Junior Cup Team (North). Huachi played as an amateur on the 2006 Duramed FUTURES Tour and made three cuts in five tournament starts.

Two South Korean teens now living in the United States also will attempt to earn 2007 playing status. Mindy Kim, 17, of Diamond Bar, Calif., won all four of her matches on the Canon Cup West Team, and Na-On Min, 17, of Duluth, Ga., was a member of the six-player Korean National team.

Sofie Andersson, 23, of the University of California-Berkeley, also will be in the field. A former member of the Swedish National Team and a native of Angelholm, Sweden, Andersson was a member of the 2004 world champion team at the Women's World Amateur Golf Team Championship.

Nancy Abiecunas, 24, of Ft. Collins, Colo., will be a noticeable contestant off the tee. She was the 2003 RE/MAX World Long Drive champion and holds the women's world long-drive record at 359 yards.

Japan's Yukiko Ishizaka, 38, returns to Q-School in an effort to improve her playing status for 2007. Ishizaka was a member of Japan's Olympic Beach Volleyball team at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta and the 2000 Games in Sydney, Australia.

Two former members of The Golf Channel's "Big Break" reality golf series also will be in the field. Julie Wells, 26, of Wilsonville, Ore., was a contestant in "Big Break V: Hawaii," while Annie Mallory, 23, of New Brunswick, Canada, was a contestant in this fall's "Big Break VI: Trump National" show, that is still being aired.

Two players from Russia also will be in the field. Sisters Anastasia Kostina, 21, and Maria Kostina, 23, both of Moscow, hope to make their respective transitions from collegiate careers at Washington State University. Anastasia was the 2005 Russian Amateur Champion.

One player from the People's Republic of China will be in the field. Lan Zhang, 33, who now lives in Ballwin, Mo., will be one of three Chinese players, while amateur Tang Thi Nhung, 29, will be the first player from Vietnam to attempt to earn playing status on the Duramed FUTURES Tour. Nhung tied for fourth at the 2006 Thailand Ladies Amateur Open and was the runner-up at the 2006 Joondalup Club Championship in Perth, Australia.

This year's qualifying tournament boasts a field of players from 23 nations. Outside the U.S., South Korea brings the most players with 27 contestants, followed by Canada with 15 players, Japan with nine, Sweden with six and Thailand with four players.

Of contestants from the United States, 39 states are represented in this year's qualifying tournament. Florida has the most players with 34, followed by California with 29 players, Texas with 19 players, and North Carolina with 12 players.

In addition, 86 players are attempting to earn 2007 playing status as amateurs.

Contact: Lisa D. Mickey, Duramed FUTURES Tour, 863-709-9100, Ext. 2 or lisa@duramedfuturestour.com.