Daniela Iacobelli, playing for more than a trophy, wins LPGA Epson Tour Hartford Healthcare Championship

MILFORD – Once the rain passed, Daniela Iacobelli brought her own storm to Milford’s Great River Golf Club for Sunday’s final round of the LPGA Epson Tour Hartford Healthcare Championship .

Iacobelli, 36 years old in her 14th season, told the golf website Monday Q Info earlier in the week that her girlfriend was in the hospital dealing with complications from a surgery, but that she didn’t have the financial means to skip an event. So she set out to win the tournament, which has a total purse of $262,500 and would be able to help out with medical bills.

She shot 66 and 67 in the first two rounds on the par-72 course, entering Sunday with a four-shot lead. Iacobelli birdied three of the first four holes, building her lead up to five strokes, and settled in to finish the third and final round with a 67, bringing her winning score to 16-under par 200.

On the 18th green, after sinking the final putt, Iacobelli gave a strong fist pump and was showered by her friends with water. She broke down in tears when it came time to accept the trophy, and the $39,375 check.

“I didn’t touch a club the entire off week, I slept in a hospital chair for four days and I had to leave three hours before she got discharged and I hated every second of it. I felt like the world’s worst person,” Iacobelli said. “I figured, if you’re gonna go, you’ve got to do something about it. This helps.”

It was the fifth career win for Iacobelli who, just two weeks ago, lost in a six-hole playoff at the Dream First Bank Charity Classic. Her most recent win came in the Wildhorse Ladies Golf Classic in Sept. 2022, but now her game is picking up.

“I don’t know if I can put it into words,” Iacobelli said. “I’m excited for win No. 5, but I’m more excited that if she needs help, now I can help her. And that means more to me than any golf tournament.”

The Hartford Healthcare Classic, in addition to its purse, rewards 500 points to the winner which go toward “The Race for the Card.” The top 15 players with the most points at the end of the season, which culminates in early October at the Epson Tour Championship, earn their 2025 LPGA Tour card.

It was the second consecutive year that the Hartford Healthcare Championship was hosted at the Great River course, and Tournament Director Patrick O’Connor sees no end coming soon.

“It’s the course, it’s Hartford Healthcare and the LPGA Epson Tour kind of all having the same vision to make this a great event on the schedule for a long time to come,” O’Connor told The Courant. “Many years down the road we plan to be here, July of every summer going forward. I think the course is in great shape, our players love the course, our staff likes setting up and working on the course, we love the community and Hartford Healthcare is a tremendous title sponsor for this event.”

The 2023 winner, Jenny Bae, entered Sunday’s final round at 1-under and finished that way, tied for 43rd.

Amelia Lewis, who was in Iacobelli’s final group and made things interesting down the stretch, came up one stroke short to take second place at 15-under 201. Amanda Doherty finished in third at 13-under 203, followed by Miranda Wang and Fatima Fernandez Cano, who each finished at 11-under 205 to round out the top five.