Rose Zhang vaulted up 16 spots in the Rolex Rankings after her victory at the Cognizant Founders Cup, cracking the top 10 for the first time. Now No. 6 in the world, the 20-year-old Zhang is in position to snag a spot on Team USA for the Paris Olympics.
Zhang spent 141 weeks as the No. 1 amateur in the world, which is where she sat one year ago as a Stanford sophomore.
“I think in the first couple events coming out I put a lot of pressure on myself to be able to play well,” said Zhang of her start to 2024, “and partially the reason is because I didn’t want to miss out on the Olympics.
“I’ve been watching it since I was 5 years old, so to be able to kind of near an inch towards that, definitely was a goal in previous events. This event I kind of took it slow and didn’t really think about it much.”
With a cutoff date of June 24, or just after the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, players have six weeks left to shore up a spot. The women’s event will be held Aug. 7-10, immediately after the men’s competition.
The International Golf Federation (IGF) utilizes the Rolex Rankings to create its own Olympic Golf Rankings. The top 15 players in the world are eligible for Paris, with a limit of four players from any given country. Currently, the United States is the only country with four players in the top 15.
The rest of the 60-player field will come straight from the Olympic Golf Rankings, with a maximum of two eligible players from each country that does not already have two or more players in the top 15.
The host country, France, is ensured at least one spot, which will go to Celine Boutier, who is currently No. 3 in the world.
Here’s a look at where the top 10 Americans currently stand:
Nelly Korda of the United States plays her shot from the tenth tee during the third round of the Cognizant Founders Cup at Upper Montclair Country Club on May 11, 2024 in Clifton, New Jersey. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
Lilia Vu plays her shot from the 11th tee during the second round of the 2024 Ford Championship at Seville Golf and Country Club in Gilbert, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
A four-time winner on the LPGA last season, Vu hasn’t teed it up on tour since she withdrew from the Chevron Championship with a nagging back injury. She is not in the field this week at Liberty National.
Rose Zhang of the United States looks on after winning the…
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