(Photo credit score: Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images)
Rio Takeda and Eri Okayama of Japan shot matching rounds of 67 to take the lead after one spherical of the AIG Women’s Open on Thursday in Porthcawl, Wales.
Takeda and Okayama are 5 below par after one journey round Royal Porthcawl, and Miyu Yamashita made it an all-Japanese high three on the leaderboard as she turned in a 4-under 68.
Behind them is a 10-way tie at 3-under 69 that options three extra Japanese gamers — Chisato Iwai, Shiho Kuwaki and Mao Saigo, who gained the Chevron Championship earlier this 12 months. The solely American in that tie is Alexa Pano.
Takeda is vying for her first main title after ending in a tie for second on the U.S. Women’s Open in June.
Takeda shot her 67 regardless of committing a double bogey on the par-5 ninth, a gap the place different gamers have been making birdie and even eagle Thursday. Takeda made seven birdies, together with at 4 of her final seven holes.
It was an identical story for Okayama, who’s ranked No. 139 on the planet and whose solely earlier wins have are available Japan. Okayama’s lone blemish was a bogey on her first gap, however she responded by making 5 birdies on the remainder of the entrance 9 earlier than getting one remaining birdie to drop at No. 17.
Yamashita’s spherical was highlighted by a four-birdie run at Nos. 4-7, adopted by eagle at No. 9.
Pano additionally eagled the ninth to wrap up a 3-under entrance 9. The 20-year-old had two bogeys and two birdies the remainder of the best way.
‘When it involves hyperlinks golf, you are simply attempting to remain targeted on the shot in entrance of you,’ Pano stated. ‘I feel that is the largest factor is attempting to manage what you may management. For me, it is all psychological out right here.’
The two star gamers who commanded probably the most consideration have been World No. 1 Nelly Korda and British phenom Lottie Woad.
Korda, nonetheless searching for her first win of any sort in 2025, is simply three again of the lead following a 2-under 70. She rolled in a birdie on the par-5 18th after a quiet however regular spherical that included a run of 9 straight pars.
‘Sometimes you are like, ‘Well, scorecard does not have photos so does not matter that you just type of (play a gap) from left to proper,’ which that did occur to me a pair occasions,’ Korda stated. ‘You know, you type of do hit it — when you’re in a type of bunkers you are having a 6- or 7-iron into the inexperienced and having to scramble. So that is what this sort of golf is about.’
Several different notable names are tied at 70, together with World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand and former main winners Ayaka Furue of Japan, Minjee Lee of Australia and Koreans Amy Yang and A Lim Kim.
Then there was Woad, whose even-par 72 featured 4 birdies and 4 bogeys. She was by no means higher than 1 below or worse than 1 over throughout her spherical.
‘It was a bit combined,’ Woad stated of her spherical. ‘Had a great quantity of birdies; simply few poor bogeys on the entrance 9 that would have positively been averted.’
The 21-year-old got here in on a heater — wins on the Women’s Irish Open and Women’s Scottish Open sandwiching a T3 end on the Evian Championship, the newest main. Woad turned professional earlier this month after a adorned beginner profession.
‘Obviously coming off Scottish it was coming straight into this which is an enormous week, so simply attempting to maneuver on from that as a lot as doable, deal with this as its personal occasion,’ Woad stated.
–Field Level Media