PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – A couple of amateurs from Stanford – Kelly Xu and Sadie Englemann – hit the opening tee shots off Nos. 1 and 10 at Pebble Beach and with that, history was a made. The first women’s major ever contested on this American treasure was underway and, well, it was a rough start for many of the best.
World No. 1 Jin Young Ko and No. 2 Nelly Korda started on the 10th tee and dug a hole early, carding a shocking 79 and 76, respectively. As bad as that was, rookie Natthakritta Vongtaveelap had it worse: She was disqualified after five holes.
Meanwhile, as is often the case, several amateurs had career days with three of the 27 inside the top 10.
Here’s the lowdown on how Round 1 unfolded on a damp and chilly day for some of the biggest names in the field, including rookie sensation Rose Zhang:
Xiyu Lin still looking for first win
Xiyu Lin was meeting with the press after a disappointing finish at Baltusrol as her friend and protégée Ruoning Yin drained a birdie putt on the 72nd hole to win the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
Lin and Yin are so close, in fact, that Lin rents Yin’s second home in Florida. Well, the landlord bounced back strong in Round 1 at the U.S. Women’s Open, where she opened with a 4-under 68 to pace the field.
At No. 9 in the Rolex Rankings, Lin is the highest-ranked player without a victory on the LPGA, though she tied for third in her last two starts. She paces the field after an opening 68 with major champion Hyo Joo Kim.
“I was definitely trying too hard couple months ago,” said Lin. “Like thinking, you know, I need extra skill to able to win the tournament. Apparently my brain is not really capable for those complicated swing thoughts, so my ball striking wasn’t very good.
“Then we kind of calm down and thought of last year was one of the best season I have, and all I did like whole year there was no swing changes. I kept things simple. Kind of remind myself what brings me here.”
Jin Young Ko's early troubles
The most shocking round of the day came from the top-ranked player in the world. South Korea’s Jin Young Ko, who last week set a new record for most weeks at No. 1 at 159 weeks, breaking a mark held by Lorena Ochoa, opened with a brutal 7-over 79.
Ko opened with a 42 on the front nine, including a double-bogey on the par-3 17th. The two-time major winner hit only nine greens and nine fairways in her opening round. In her six previous U.S. Women’s Opens, Ko never finished outside the top 20.
Annika's wayward start
Annika Sorenstam hit only three fairways in her opening round at Pebble Beach, which played a massive role in her opening 80. The three-time U.S. Women’s Open champion is likely competing in her last LPGA major and felt the love from fans regardless of the outcome.
“I think I hit one fairway overall,” said Sorenstam, “and you can’t score on this course, especially with my distance, it makes it really difficult. So I’m disappointed in that, but I fought really hard. I thought I made some great saves. It sounds funny when you have this score, but I did.”
Michelle Wie West's shakes off the rust
Before today’s opening round at Pebble, Michelle Wie West hadn’t played in an LPGA event since last year’s U.S. Women’s Open and the rust showed. The 2014 U.S. Women’s Open champion announced last year that this would be her final competitive event.
Thursday’s morning round included a lost ball in the famous tree near the green on the 18th and a boatload of putts in her opening 79.
“It was great,” she said. “I mean, felt like I played great. Just made a lot of really stupid, rusty bogeys.
“You know it’s funny, spend like the last year picking up those small putts and not thinking about them. You’re like, oh, wow, I have to make all these.
“So definitely just didn’t feel comfortable with the putting today. Just couldn’t get the pace down early on. I felt like I played great. Got one really bad bounce, I mean, lie, I don’t know what you call it, tree.”
Rose Zhang opens with 74
Rose Zhang’s first U.S. Women’s Open round as a professional wasn’t a record day, but it was a memorable one. Zhang, of course, owns the women’s course record at Pebble Beach after shooting 63 last fall in a collegiate event called the Carmel Cup.
While Zhang’s 74 wasn’t record-breaking, her chip shot off the putting surface on the par-3 17th was one that will be replayed for years to come as it harkened back a similar one hit by Gary Woodland to secure his 2019 U.S. Open title.
