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By Devlina Sarkar
Contributing Sports Writer
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Sophia Popov, a five-time professional winner and 2020 AIG Women’s Open champion, is facing a career-threatening setback after a clerical error by the LPGA stripped her of 12 CME points, just enough to keep her out of Q School finals.
It’s a "frustrating" twist for the German professional, who returned to competition in 2024 after giving birth to her daughter Maya in June 2023.
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LPGA faces backlash over maternity leave error, jeopardizing pro’s future on Golf
Under the LPGA maternity policy, players can take leave during the year of childbirth or the following year, with the option to return within two years and reclaim their prior status. Popov did just that, only to be misinformed.
According to NBC’s Grant Boone, the LPGA admitted in March that it had mistakenly granted Sophia Popov three tournament starts under maternity leave. As Boone posted on X, “Not a lot, but enough to keep her out of Q School finals.”
Popov had reached out to the LPGA in January to confirm her priority status and was told she was good to go.
Trusting that guidance, she left her 20-month-old at home and entered the Founders Cup in Florida, Honda LPGA Thailand and HSBC Women’s World Championship, events she technically wasn’t qualified for.
She earned 12 CME points across those three starts, finishing T59 in Florida, T68 in Thailand, and T52 in Singapore, collecting over $16,000 in earnings.
But in March, the LPGA issued a memo acknowledging the error and retroactively removed her points, earnings and Aon Risk Reward Challenge stats. That dropped her from No. 139 to No. 151 on the CME list, leaving her just outside the 101 to 150 range needed to qualify for Q School finals.
Meanwhile, Popov had been grinding on the Epson Tour, where she won an event on Mother’s Day and climbed to No. 35 in the season-long points race. That ranking would have secured her exemption into Q School finals.
But with one LPGA start left, she chose to play in Hawaii instead of the Epson finale, finishing T67. By the time the Epson season wrapped, she had slipped to No. 38, missing the exemption by three spots.
Surprisingly, this isn’t the first time the one-time LPGA winner is battling the margins of LPGA eligibility.
Popov has long walked the edge of LPGA eligibility
Since joining the tour in 2015, she’s fought through Lyme Disease, held conditional status and lost her membership in 2019 after missing the final Q School card by a single stroke.
Her breakthrough came in 2020, when she stunned the golf world by winning the AIG Women’s Open while ranked No. 304 globally.
But as a non-member, she received only a two-year LPGA exemption. That rule has since been changed to five years for future major winners, largely because of her case.
Now, unless the LPGA reinstates those 12 points and grants her entry into Q School finals, Popov will be forced to enter Stage II this month or spend 2026 grinding on the Epson Tour, relying on limited LPGA starts through veteran status.
“It’s very frustrating,” Popov told Golfweek earlier this year. “I specifically reached out to clarify my status situation. It is very unfortunate for me and the girls that didn't get into these events and missed out on guaranteed points in Asia."
Golf fans erupt over LPGA’s maternity leave blunder
Ever since the post about LPGA’s maternity leave error and current threat to Popov's career spread over social media, fans have lit up with frustration, disbelief, and calls for accountability.
One user summed up the mood bluntly, commenting, “Total s*** show,” in reference to the LPGA’s miscalculation that not only impacted Popov but also kept several players out of spring Asian events.
Others have taken a more reflective tone, pointing to Popov’s journey since her 2020 AIG Women’s Open win. “I’ve followed her since she won the British,” one fan wrote. “She should have received the full exemption, but it’s water under the bridge.”
While some argue that Popov made a strategic misstep by choosing Hawaii over the Epson finale, many across social media continue to demand justice.
Many are calling for the LPGA to reinstate the 12 CME points that were stripped due to the tour’s own mistake. Others are questioning why the rule change that extended major winner exemptions to five years wasn’t applied retroactively to Popov, whose two-year exemption expired despite being the catalyst for the policy shift.
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