Hey JustDoIt,
Actually, of the last three tournaments she played before this one, one was a $10,000 and one a $25,000. The girl she lost to in Sofia (a $100,000) was the same she lost to in Horb ($25,000).
Barbara and her parents have a certain philosophy about chosing tournaments and I guess there are different ways to get points for the rankings.
As for her loss in Lebanon, she's had the flu for a week now, which has taken a lot of her strength. She was actually 5-2 up in the first set, but then she lost her strength. She managed to pull out the first set in a tiebreaker, but then it was all gone.
Her opponent (Laura Thorpe) lost one game in the first round and four in the third round against Anastasiya Vasylyeva, from the Ukraine, who is currently ranked WTA #276.
I think - under normal circumstances - Barbara had a good opportunity to get into the main draw.
Ah well ...
I'm sure things will be on the up and up again for her shortly!
Anyway, it's nice that you take an interest!