The CME Group Tour Championship is the reward of a hard-fought season, and through the ups and downs of 2020, this week in Naples, Fla. was the goal for many. It’s even sweeter for those playing in their first season finale, including four 2020 rookies – Andrea Lee, Leona Maguire, Bianca Pagdanganan and Yealimi Noh.
“I definitely made CME one of my biggest goals beginning of the year to make it with the full schedule, but with half the schedule I was still trying get into CME,” said Noh, who finished the highest on the Race to the CME Globe standings at No. 14 (952 points). “And just being here in nice warm weather is really nice.”
Noh said she’s watched the event before, but experiencing this week already is “totally different.” Pagdanganan said despite everything 2020 has thrown her way, her rookie season went better than expected, and there’s nothing like capping it off playing for a winner’s prize of $1.1 million.
“Overall, it's been a great year for me in terms of golf and being able to play my way into the CME,” said Pagdanganan. “Didn't start off that great this year but I played a couple good events and eventually put myself in a good position. Now I'm here and I'm really excited and looking forward to this whole week.”
Pagdanganan said she’s loving the weather Southwest Florida has to offer, especially after the frigid temperatures last week at the U.S. Women’s Open. “Everything is perfect. I love the course. I actually enjoyed playing it. I feel like some holes you got to know -- pick the right spots off the tee,” said Pagdanganan. “Overall, I think it's a great course. It's in really good condition, especially with the PGA [Tour] having a tournament here last week. So that's pretty cool. Yeah, going to be a fun week.”
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