Former DU Standout Gets First Professional Win

Kempter takes Volvik Championship

Photo: Katie Kempter, via facebook.com

BEAUMONT, CALIFORNIA—This past weekend, Katie Kempter was just one of three golfers to break par at Morongo Golf Club at Tukwet Canyon—and came up clutch when it mattered most.

The former DU Pioneer posted three birdies to finish out the final round of the Volvik Championship—forcing a playoff with Lee Lopez (who bogeyed the final hole). Kempter sealed her first professional win on the second playoff hole.

“It is a little surreal,” Kempter said after the win. “I didn’t know what to think after I won but this is very special.”

This Symetra Tour win symbolizes another step towards once again earning her LPGA Tour card, which she lost after her 2010 rookie season. With seven top 10 finishes in her first four years on the tour, she is looking to continue this momentum. No one is more proud of her noted achievement than current Denver head coach Lindsay Kuhle.

“I am so incredibly proud of Katie,” Kuhle said. “She has worked so hard on her game ever since she played for us at DU. She improved every year while she was here and right out of college qualified 2nd in the final stage of LPGA qualifying school and spent a year on the LPGA Tour (in 2010).”

“I look for Katie to have another successful run on the LPGA soon to come,” predicted Kuhle. “It is such a great win, to birdie three of the last holes and win on the second playoff hole, with her parents there and her dad on the bag. That just shows you what type of competitor she is and how close she is with her family. We always consider Dubs (Katie’s nickname at DU) family and are so excited to see her get her first Symetra tour win.”

The win netted Kempter $15,000 but she is already looking to the future.

“A win is huge, but it doesn’t mean your work is done,” Kempter said. “There is a lot of work to go. It is just the very beginning of the season, but it is a nice way to start the year for sure.”

Indeed it is.

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