Bolles senior Amelia Lewis, a three-time Times-Union girls golf player of the year, received a release Thursday from her scholarship offer by the University of Central Florida and will compete on the Duramed Futures Tour, which begins in March.
The Futures Tour is a developmental professional tour owned by the LPGA, similar to the PGA Tour's Nationwide Tour.
Although Lewis qualified for conditional status on the Futures Tour at a four-round qualifier last fall, she will retain her amateur standing for now.
However, that could change.
"If I do well, such as win a tournament or finish second or third a couple of times, I might turn professional," Lewis said.
Lewis, who has a combined 49 victories in junior, high school and amateur tournaments, finished among the top 10 in the Class 1A state high school tournament four times in five years of eligibility. In the past two years, she was the individual district and region champion.
However, it was a prestigious women's amateur tournament in Sebring in which she finished second last week that convinced Lewis to bypass college.
Lewis shot 6-under 282 for four rounds in the Harder Hall Invitational, in a field top-heavy with existing college players.
"We believe that showed Amelia is ready," said her mother, Gina Lewis. "And she will be getting better competition on the Futures Tour than she could in college tournaments."
"I want to go out and try for my dream of making the LPGA," Lewis said. "I didn't want to wait a couple of years for college golf. I believe I'm giving myself the best chance to reach that dream."
In the meantime, Lewis will be unable to play and practice for two months after scheduling outpatient surgery Jan. 25 to remove a benign cyst in a bone of her left ring finger.
The cyst was discovered last year, but after tests showed it was not malignant, Lewis said she wanted to complete her senior season at Bolles, then play in the Futures Tour qualifier and the Harder Hall before surgery.
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