(Photo credit score: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images)
Five girls fired rounds of 65 to take the first-round lead Thursday on the Evian Championship, the fourth of 5 LPGA majors on the season.
Americans Jennifer Kupcho and Andrea Lee, Australians Grace Kim and Gabriela Ruffels, and Leona Maguire of Ireland all share the lead at 6-under on the Evian Resort Golf Club in Evian-les-Bains, France.
A stroke again at 66 is Minjee Lee of Australia, who gained the Women’s PGA Championship in June.
Two extra strokes behind after rounds of 67 sits a bunch of 9 that features world No. 1 Nelly Korda, defending champion Ayake Furue of Japan and one other native of Japan, Mao Saigo, who gained the season’s first main at The Chevron Championship in April.
Kupcho, beginning on the again 9, bogeyed No. 12 however that was the one stroke she dropped on the day. She adopted with three birdies earlier than the flip, then two extra on her closing 9 earlier than an eagle at No. 9 to complete the spherical.
‘I began off just a little bit rocky I’d say. Kind of just a bit bit out of kinds, swinging just a little fast,’ Kupcho mentioned. ‘Kind of simply settled down midway by way of the again 9, my entrance 9, and form of simply obtained it collectively. Was hitting the ball into the inexperienced very well. So even lacking some fairways I used to be in a position to get well.’
Ruffels referred to as her bogey-free spherical ‘tremendous strong.’
‘Only missed two greens on the market,’ she mentioned. ‘Ball putting was actually good. Been working exhausting on that with my coach.
‘And then the placing was good, too. I made some good lengthy putts after which was fairly strong inside 10 toes as effectively. So, yeah, that added as much as a reasonably good rating.’
Korda had a curler coaster of a spherical to begin. She sandwiched birdies on Nos. 2 and three between bogeys on the primary and fourth holes, then added 4 birdies the remainder of the best way.
She mentioned she had points of her sport to handle.
‘I did not drive it very effectively, particularly with my driver, so I’m going to the vary,’ she mentioned. ‘Going to FaceTime my coach, Jamie, and form of determine what was happening.
‘I had two misses and that is by no means good on a good Evian golf course with the tough being fairly thick. Putting because the day went on progressively obtained higher. … Around the greens was actually good. I saved a pair up and downs particularly with having to pitch out.
‘Overall, couple components of my sport helped me and rescued me, and the opposite components let me down. That’s golf. Just going to attempt to determine it out on the vary.’
–Field Level Media