The LPGA’s Lotte Championship has always been a hugely international event. It’s more than ever before after Wednesday’s first round, with all nine players at the top of the leaderboard representing different countries.
The eight players within two strokes of A Lim Kim’s 6-under pace do have something in common: Zero U.S. LPGA Tour victories as professionals. And many of them are trying to earn enough points to climb in the rankings with just a couple of tournaments left in the season.
That makes them a hungry bunch, and that’s how they — and Kim — attacked Hoakalei Country Club, most of them in the morning, before the winds picked up.
Kim blasted away from the very start, with an eagle on No. 1. By the end of the front nine she’d added three birdies. After the turn it got a little choppy, but she still improved by another stroke with three birdies and two bogeys.
Several players tied her in the afternoon, but they all fell back and she never lost her clubhouse lead.
The fourth-year pro from Korea has 14 career top 10s. Her only U.S. victory was a big one — a huge comeback win at the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open.
“It’s a good start,” said Kim, speaking not of her major triumph four years ago, but of the eagle to start this tournament, where she tied for 10th in 2021 and 48th in 2022.
“Fun day,” she added.
Today’s second round in the afternoon might not be as enjoyable for Kim, if the winds continue their usual pattern. Only one of the five players who finished Wednesday a shot behind her at 5-under 67 did it in the afternoon.
So maybe Peiyun Chien has an advantage today with her morning tee time. She will if she can balance risk and reward as well as Bianca Pagdanganan did Wednesday, and successfully attack the course early and often like Kim also did.
Pagdanganan birdied four of her first six holes, and thanked “good vibes” afterward — as well as taking some mental notes on soggy Tuesday when overnight rain soaked normally dry Ewa Beach.
“I played the pro-am and I kind of noticed that the greens were a little soft, so coming into today I was like, you know, if the conditions are pretty much the same of how was it yesterday I could probably try to go for pins earlier in the round,” she said. “I knew the wind was going to pick up, so if I was able to kind of make a little bit more birdies on the front nine, kind of help me towards the back, then that would be great.”
Ruixin Liu (China), Polly Mack (Germany), and Perrine Delacour (France) joined Pagdanganan (Philippines) and Chien (Taiwan) at 5-under, with Savannah Grewal (Canada), Yuri Yoshida (Japan) and Nataliya Guseva (Russia) in hot pursuit at 4-under.
Jennifer Song and Gina Kim were the best-scoring Americans yesterday, tied with nine others another shot back at 3-under. Song aced No. 15, which was her sixth hole of the day.
Tour rookie Malia Nam, the only local player in the field, was all smiles after finishing her morning round with a chip-in for eagle on 18 that turned her 1-over for the round to 1-under, and gives her a much better chance to make the cut.
“I went for it in two but kind of went over the green and I thought it was just going to be in the bunker, but it kind of rolled out into the lip,” Nam said. “So I was just like, well, let’s just try to get a birdie. Luckily it went in. If you saw how my day was going my putter was ice cold; not in a good way. So it seemed kind of fitting that I would chip it in on the last hole.”
She knows playing in the afternoon today will likely be a tougher challenge.
“(The wind) will probably be more like this,” she said a little after noon, as the slight breeze grew stronger.
Nam birdied Nos. 3 and 9 and bogeyed No. 4 to make the turn at 1-under. She bogeyed at 10 and 12 to put her back over par, until her final shot of the day.
Nam’s round was a shot better than defending champion Grace Kim’s 72, and just one behind two-time Lotte and 13-time LPGA winner Brooke Henderson, who was tied for 21st at 2-under. That’s also where 2022 Lotte champ Hyo Joo Kim finished the day.
LOTTE SCORES, TEE TIMES
LPGA LOTTE CHAMPIONSHIP
At Hoakalei Golf Course
Wednesday
First Round; par 72
A Lim Kim………………………………….31-35—66
Peiyun Chien …………………………….31-36—67
Perrine Delacour……………………….31-36—67
Ruixin Liu …………………………………..33-34—67
Polly Mack…………………………………33-34—67
Bianca Pagdanganan ………………32-35—67
Savannah Grewal …………………… 34-34—68
Nataliya Guseva ……………………… 34-34—68
Yuri Yoshida ……………………………. 30-38—68
Clariss Guce …………………………… 35-34—69
Muni He …………………………………… 33-36—69
You Min Hwang ………………………. 34-35—69
Gina Kim………………………………….. 34-35—69
Jeong Eun Lee5………………………. 35-34—69
Yu Liu……………………………………….. 31-38—69
Yuna Nishimura……………………….. 34-35—69
Hee Young Park………………………. 35-34—69
Yue Ren …………………………………… 35-34—69
Jennifer Song ………………………….. 34-35—69
Jasmine Suwannapura……………. 34-35—69
Weiwei Zhang…………………………. 35-34—69
Dottie Ardina …………………………….32-38—70
Ashleigh Buhai………………………….36-34—70
Robyn Choi……………………………….35-35—70
Olivia Cowan…………………………….34-36—70
Amanda Doherty ………………………35-35—70
Ayaka Furue………………………………35-35—70
Brooke Henderson…………………..32-38—70
Yu-Sang Hou…………………………….33-37—70
Gurleen Kaur…………………………….34-36—70
Hyo Joo Kim………………………………35-35—70
Jin Young Ko……………………………..35-35—70
Aline Krauter……………………………..35-35—70
Stephanie Kyriacou…………………..35-35—70
Jeongeun Lee6…………………………34-36—70
Yan Liu……………………………………….35-35—70
Caroline Masson………………………35-35—70
Azahara Munoz …………………………36-34—70
Ryann O’Toole…………………………..34-36—70
Emily Pedersen…………………………34-36—70
Paula Reto…………………………………34-36—70
Kiira Riihijarvi……………………………..34-36—70
Alena Sharp………………………………35-35—70
Angel Yin …………………………………..36-34—70
Kristen Gillman………………………….34-37—71
Danielle Kang……………………………37-34—71
Auston Kim………………………………..37-34—71
Frida Kinhult………………………………34-37—71
So Young Lee……………………………35-36—71
Pernilla Lindberg……………………….35-36—71
Malia Nam………………………………35-36—71
Sophia Schubert………………………36-35—71
Gigi Stoll……………………………………37-34—71
Elizabeth Szokol ……………………….34-37—71
Alana Uriell………………………………..36-35—71
Pavarisa Yoktuan………………………36-35—71
Arpichaya Yubol………………………..36-35—71
Laetitia Beck……………………………..36-36—72
Hye Jin Choi………………………………35-37—72
Lindy Duncan ……………………………36-36—72
Isabella Fierro……………………………36-36—72
Georgia Hall ……………………………..35-37—72
Lauren Hartlage………………………..38-34—72
Mone Inami ……………………………….34-38—72
Hyo Joon Jang…………………………..35-37—72
Grace Kim…………………………………35-37—72
Min Lee ……………………………………..36-36—72
Somi Lee …………………………………..35-37—72
Gaby Lopez ………………………………34-38—72
Ana Pelaez Trivino…………………….35-37—72
Yu Jin Sung……………………………….36-36—72
Liqi Zeng……………………………………35-37—72
Marina Alex………………………………..36-37—73
Matilda Castren………………………..37-36—73
Daniela Darquea……………………….37-36—73
Jodi Ewart Shadoff……………………35-38—73
Erika Hara………………………………….39-34—73
Haeji Kang…………………………………35-38—73
Minami Katsu…………………………….35-38—73
Roberta Liti ……………………………….36-37—73
Mary Liu …………………………………….37-36—73
Morgane Metraux……………………..36-37—73
Kaitlyn Papp………………………………38-35—73
Sophia Popov……………………………37-36—73
Angela Stanford ……………………….36-37—73
Kelly Tan…………………………………….34-39—73
Jing Yan……………………………………..35-38—73
Xiaowen Yin………………………………35-38—73
Celine Borge…………………………….39-35—74
Jennifer Chang………………………….36-38—74
Ssu-Chia Cheng……………………….35-39—74
Maria Fassi…………………………………37-37—74
Honorine Nobuta Ferry…………….36-38—74
Sandra Gal………………………………..35-39—74
Sofia Garcia………………………………36-38—74
Nasa Hataoka …………………………..35-39—74
Eun-Hee Ji…………………………………38-36—74
Soo Bin Joo ………………………………39-35—74
MinJi Kang…………………………………35-39—74
Maude-Aimee Leblanc……………..36-38—74
Hira Naveed………………………………35-39—74
Annie Park…………………………………38-36—74
Pauline Roussin………………………..36-38—74
Mao Saigo…………………………………34-40—74
Natthakritta Vongtaveelap ……….35-39—74
Laura Wearn……………………………..39-35—74
Dewi Weber……………………………….37-37—74
Caroline Inglis …………………………..37-38—75
Mina Kreiter……………………………….37-38—75
Gayoung Lee…………………………….38-37—75
Kaitlin Milligan …………………………..38-37—75
Hinako Shibuno………………………..38-37—75
Cydney Clanton………………………..36-40—76
Cheyenne Knight………………………38-38—76
Pornanong Phatlum………………….37-39—76
Emma Talley………………………………38-38—76
Jiwon Jeon…………………………………36-41—77
Amelia Lewis …………………………….38-39—77
Alexandra Forsterling ……………….42-36—78
Benedetta Moresco …………………40-38—78
TODAY’S TEE TIMES
Second Round
Tee No. 1
6:45 a.m. — Matilda Castren, Pornanong
Phatlum, Sofia Garcia
6:56 a.m. — Jing Yan, Dottie Ardina, Kaitlyn Papp Budde
7:07 a.m. — Sophia Popov, Dewi Weber,
Alena Sharp
7:18 a.m. — Celine Borge, Paula Reto, Minami Katsu
7:29 a.m. — So Mi Lee, Cheyenne Knight,
Angela Stanford
7:40 a.m. — Caroline Inglis, Georgia Hall,
Hira Naveed
7:51 a.m. — Elizabeth Szokol, Morgane
Metraux, Jodi Ewart Shadoff
8:02 a.m. — Robyn Choi, Aline Krauter,
Emma Talley
8:13 a.m. — Laetitia Beck, Jennifer Song,
Pavarisa Yoktuan
8:24 a.m. — Sandra Gal, Ga young Lee,
Soo Bin Joo
11:20 a.m. — Jennifer Chang, Roberta Liti,
Amanda Doherty
11:31 a.m. — Olivia Cowan, Jeong Eun
Lee, Azahara Munoz
11:42 a.m. — Danielle Kang, Pernilla Lindberg, Gurleen Kaur
11:53 a.m. — Angel Yin, Nasa Hataoka,
Hye Jin Choi
12:04 p.m. — Gaby Lopez, Mao Saigo,
Ashleigh Buhai
12:15 p.m. — Emily Kristine Pedersen, Hinako Shibuno, Ryann O’Toole
12:26 p.m. — Hyo Joon Jang, Nataliya Guseva, Auston Kim
12:37 p.m. — Mary Liu, Natthakritta Vongtaveelap, Weiwei Zhang
12:48 p.m. — Mina Kreiter, Kelly Tan, So
Young Lee
12:59 p.m. — Ana Pelaez Trivino, Alana
Uriell, You Min Hwang
Tee No. 10
6:45 a.m. — Kiira Riihijarvi, Yuri Yoshida, Yu Liu
6:56 a.m. — Yue Ren, Daniela Darquea,
Caroline Masson
7:07 a.m. — Eun-Hee Ji, Minji Kang, Maria Fassi
7:18 a.m. — Grace Kim, Brooke Henderson, Hyo Joo Kim
7:29 a.m. — Ayaka Furue, Jin Young Ko,
Marina Alex
7:40 a.m. — Lauren Hartlage, Jiwon Jeon,
Yuna Nishimura
7:51 a.m. — Thidapa Suwannapura, Xiaowen Yin, Pei-Yun Chien
8:02 a.m. — Gigi Stoll, Benedetta Moresco, Annie Park
8:13 a.m. — Gina Kim, Laura Wearn, Cydney Clanton
8:24 a.m. — Pauline Roussin-Bouchard,
Erika Hara, Min Lee
11:20 a.m. — Alexandra Forsterling, Haeji
Kang, Maude-Aimee Leblanc
11:31 a.m. — Sophia Schubert, Perrine
Delacour, Isabella Fierro
11:42 a.m. — Lindy Duncan, Jeongeun
Lee, Malia Nam
11:53 a.m. — Ssu-Chia Cheng, Kristen
Gillman, Yu Jin Sung
12:04 p.m. — Polly Mack, Arpichaya
Yubol, Mone Inami
12:15 p.m. — Ruixin Liu, Stephanie Kyriacou, Frida Kinhult
12:26 p.m. — A Lim Kim, Yan Liu, Savannah Grewal
12:37 p.m. — Liqi Zeng, Bianca Pagdanganan, Hee-Young Park
12:48 p.m. — Clariss Guce, Kaitlin Milligan , Amelia Lewis
12:59 p.m. — Muni He, Honorine Nobuta
Ferry, Yu-Sang Hou
