Hye-Jin Choi carded a 3-under 67 on Friday at Pelican Golf Club to share the lead at The Annika.
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Hye-Jin Choi overcame two bogeys to shoot 3-under 67 on Friday, taking a three-way share of the lead at The Annika at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair, Florida.
Choi’s round included a 15-foot eagle putt late and left her tied for the top with Solheim Cup star Carlota Ciganda, who birdied her last four holes to finish with a 63, and Lindy Duncan, who posted a 66.
Nelly Korda’s bogey-free 69 left her four shots behind heading into the weekend. Korda made 15 straight pars, added one birdie, and closed with two pars.
Korda said the wind made the course’s defence difficult, adding that it was “as fast as Bermuda” to how she had seen putts during her career.
The leaderboard also had a pair of players two shots back: Mao Saigo shot 65 and Minami Katsu carded 69, finishing at 10-under.
Choi said she was not rattled by her bogey-bogey start, including a bogey on the par-5 14th, and built momentum with enough birdies before reaching eagle range on the par-5 seventh.
Choi noted she has experience competing in a champion group in a previous tournament and said she will “go just try my best and concentrate on my game like two rounds” over the final two days.
Scoring was low enough to ensure the cut was made with a 1-under 139 after the opening round.
The final regular-season event of the year is underway at The Annika, with the top 60 in the Race to the CME Globe advancing to the finale next week in Naples, where the winner receives $2 million.
Julia Lopez Ramirez was among those at 9-under 131, and Duncan—who has yet to win on the LPGA Tour—said it was the first time she had at least a share of the lead through 36 holes.
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