World amateur No 1 Leona Maguire achieved her objective and obtained Symetra Tour status by completing 72 holes at the LPGA and Symetra Tour Qualifying Tournament Stage II in Florida.

The 22-year-old Duke University star finished tied for ninth on seven-under-par, five shots behind England’s Georgia Hall, after a closing 72 on the Bobcat Course at Plantation Golf & Country Club in Venice.

Scores

She only needed to complete the event to earn Symetra Tour status and while she easily finished inside the top 80 and tied who qualified, she had no intention of teeing it up at Stage III to battle for one of 20 cards as LPGA rules would require her to turn professional immediately were she to pull it off.

Instead, she will now complete her college studies as planned and turn professional after graduation in May, using her Symetra Tour status and invitations to find her path to the LPGA Tour.

Hall closed with a four-under-par 68 to win by two strokes on 12-under-par from Hungary’s Csicsi Rozsa (71) with compatriot Meghan MacLaren (68) and American Gabriella Then (70) tied third on nine-under.

Swedish amateur Linnea Strom, the Netherland’s Anne Van Dam, Spain’s Luna Sobron and Korea’s Sandy Choi tied for fifth on six-under.  

Eighty-two players progressed to Stage III on  seven-over or better.