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Hawaii’s Stephanie Kono and Ayaka Kaneko finished in the top 20 at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament, earning full Priority List membership for 2012.
Kono, a three-time All-American in her senior year at UCLA, started the week fast, then shot 75 the final three rounds and tied for ninth at 3-over-par 363.
She gave up her amateur status after her performance in the tournament, bypassing the last five months of her college career, according to Golfdigest.com.
Kaneko, a Sacred Hearts graduate who played the Futures Tour this year, rallied from a slow start by shooting 67 in Saturday’s fourth round. She closed with a 71 and tied for 15th at 364.
Junthima Gulyanamitta (68—350) was the medalist at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Lizette Salas of Azusa, Calif., birdied all three holes in a nine-player playoff for the last spot.
Spain’s Elisa Serramia (73) birdied the 18th hole from 8 feet to jump into the 19th spot at 4 over, avoiding the playoff.
Twenty-one other players also earned 2012 LPGA membership, with 10 gaining Category 16 status by finishing 21st through 30th, and 11 more earning Category 20 membership by finishing 31st through 40th.
Hawaii’s Shayna Miyajima (78—311) and Kimberly Kim (79—325) were not among the 72 golfers who made the 72-hole cut at 12-over 300.
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