LPGA veteran Lucy Li beats heat to grab spot in U.S. Women's Open

Riviera Country Club will present golfers with tough conditions in the U. S. Women’s Open next month.

But the two women who earned berths into that national championship Wednesday at Bermuda Dunes Country Club might be forgiven for thinking Riviera’s conditions will be easy by comparison. On a 36-hole day with temperatures near 100 and dry winds that grew stronger through the two rounds, LPGA veteran Lucy Li and recent college golfer Kaylyn Noh survived for two-round totals of 1-under 143 to earn the last two berths into the U. S.

Women's Open field from the nationwide qualifying process. “The morning 18 was really nice and I felt like we were going to breeze through it, and on the back nine the winds kicked up and the greens got even crustier,” said Li, who will play in her sixth Women’s Open at just 23 years old. “Today was a real grind.

” Li fired a 3-under 69 in the morning round on the course that for years hosted the Bob Hope Classic on the PGA Tour. But in the afternoon, she fought her way to a 74. Needing a par on the closing par-5 18 th , Li survived a poor drive and a punch out before hitting a third shot to 10 feet, somehow getting the ball to stop on greens that hadn’t been watered the previous two days despite temperatures near 110 degrees.