Who is Gerina Piller? All you need to know about the American professional golfer
Gerina Piller is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the LPGA Tour. She turned pro in 2007 after a decorated career as a college golfer. Piller was born in New Mexico and attended Goddard High School. She won the State Golf Championship in 2003 and was also a state level volleyball player.
After winning the State Golf Championship, Piller joined the University of Texas in El Paso. She played collegiate golf for all four years and won four tournaments in her senior year. She was named the 2007 Player of the Year and the UTEP Female Athlete of the Year.
She soon turned pro in September 2007. However, she failed to make the cut for the LPGA Tour that year and instead played the 2008 Futures Tour. In 2009, Gerina featured on Big Break Prince Edward Island where she competed for a cash prize of $100,000. She lost the very last playoff.
Gerina Piller's LPGA Career
In 2009, she earned a conditional status on the LPGA Tour and played full-time on the Tour next year. Then, Gerina recorded seven top-10 finishes on the Duramed Futures Tour.
She also finished with a tied-for-second at both the iMPACT Classic and the USI Championship. The 38-year-old finished fifth on the Future Tours' money list and achieved full-time status for the 2011 LPGA Tour.
Gerina Piller finished 68th on the official LPGA Tour money list in 2012 and retained her playing card. She further improved in 2012 and got two top-10 finishes and a 48th-place finish on the money list. Piller took the 2018 season off after the birth of her first child, Ajeo James Piller. She has been married to Martin Piller since 2011.
On juggling the responsibilities of motherhood and career, Gerina Piller said (via Golf Week):
“It’s obviously hard, it’s not unfeasible, and the best advice I was given was from Juli Inkster. She was like, ‘If you’re on the golf course, be on the golf course, and if you’re at home with your son, be at home with your son, so wherever you’re at, just be present.’”