(Photo credit: Phil Didion / USA TODAY NETWORK)

The LPGA Tour has granted an age waiver allowing 17-year-old Gianna Clemente to compete for early membership next month.

League rules require members to be 18 or over, but the high school senior from Estero, Fla., won't celebrate that birthday until March 28.

Clemente is competing for a tour card at next month's LPGA Q Series and the waiver will allow her to play on tour if she is successful.

LPGA Tour officials said they granted the waiver because of her success as an amateur at LPGA events.

'With 10 starts on the LPGA Tour over the past three years, Gianna is a great example of a young player who continues to push herself to compete at the highest level, and we're excited to see what she accomplishes as she works to earn her spot on the LPGA Tour,' LPGA commissioner Craig Kessler said in a statement. 'We congratulate Gianna on her tremendous success as an amateur and wish her all the best in Final Qualifying as she pursues her dreams in professional golf.'

In 2025, Clemente finished T30 in Thailand in February and T71 at The Chevron Championship in April and missed the cuts at two other tournaments.

Clemente has been a rising star on the amateur scene since 2022, when she qualified for three consecutive LPGA tournaments at the age of 14.

Clemente visited collegiate programs at Oregon, Arizona State and Auburn before forgoing that route to pursue a professional career.

'Obviously, I took my time making this decision,' she told Golf Channel on Wednesday. 'I took a couple college visits, but I've wanted to play professional golf my whole life. I'm thrilled to be able to go compete at Q-School for my LPGA Tour card.'

The final stage for LPGA qualifying is a 90-hole tournament from Dec. 4-8 at Magnolia Grove in Mobile, Ala. Those finishing in the top 25 (and ties) earn full LPGA Tour status for 2026.

The LPGA Tour previously granted similar age waivers in 2023 to Germany's Chiara Noja and China's Liqi Zeng.

--Field Level Media