Stars struggle as the year’s final major begins at the AIG Women’s Open

The final major of the 2023 calendar kicked off right now in the U.Okay. as the women teed it up at the AIG Women’s Open. The Women’s Open is being contested this yr at Walton Heath Golf Club simply outdoors of London.

So what’d you miss from Round 1? Check it out beneath.

Stars proceed to struggle

The LPGA’s prime stars haven’t performed their finest golf in majors to date this season, and that development continued Thursday at Walton Heath. Nelly Korda, the top-ranked participant in the world, couldn’t get a lot momentum in Round 1 as she recorded 4 bogeys and three birdies en path to a one-over 73. World No. 2 Jin Young Ko had a equally mediocre efficiency in posting a 73 of her personal, whereas newly minted major champ Celine Boutier might solely muster a 74.

Of the prime 10 gamers in the Rolex Ranking, simply two gamers (Hyo Joo Kim and Allisen Corpuz) had been beneath par throughout the opening spherical.

Crowded leaderboard

The stars won’t have lit up the course on Day 1, however with the approach the leaderboard is bunched collectively, they’ll have alternatives to climb the standings as the week performs out.

Ally Ewing, who shot a four-under 68, leads after Round 1 and is joined by 32 different gamers beneath par. Twenty-seven extra gamers posted even par on the day, which means a whopping 60(!) gamers are inside 4 photographs of the lead after 18 holes. Among them? Major winners Jeongeun Lee6 (-3), In Gee Chun (-2), Allisen Corpuz (-2), Hyo Joo Kim (-2), Stacy Lewis (E), Anna Nordqvist (E), Minjee Lee (E), Danielle Kang (E), Ruoning Yin (E), A Lim Kim (E) and Lilia Vu (E).

With a leaderboard that bunched along with that many confirmed winners, something can occur.

Best quote

“Hitting the opening [shot] in the Women’s British Open is special. It’s a nice accolade — is that the right word? Look at me go. Honestly it was really cool. That was really cool for me. It was nice, my mates got up, a couple of my family members drove down, getting up in the middle of the night is tough, especially when you’re getting on a bit like me and I have to warm the body up more than used to. Nice to get done early.” —Mel Reid

Down the leaderboard

1. Ally Ewing (-4)
T2. Jaravee Boonchant (-3)
T2. Perrine Delacour (-3)
T2. Emily Kristine Pedersen (-3)
T2. Jeongeun Lee6 (-3)
T2. Amy Yang (-3)
T7. 12 tied (-2)

Notables

T19. Charley Hull (-1)
T33. Anna Nordqvist (E)
T33. Leona Maguire (E)
T33. Danielle Kang (E)
T33. Rose Zhang (E)
T33. Lilia Vu (E)
T60. Nelly Korda (+1)
T60. Jin Young Ko (+1)
T81. Lydia Ko (+2)
T81. Ashleigh Buhai (+2)
T81. Atthaya Thitikul (+2)
T103. Brooke Henderson (+3)
T114. Lexi Thompson (+4)
T128. Jennifer Kupcho (+6)
T134. Patty Tavatanakit (+7)

Full leaderboard

Zephyr Melton

Golf.com Editor

Zephyr Melton is an assistant editor for GOLF.com the place he spends his days running a blog, producing and enhancing. Prior to becoming a member of the crew at GOLF, he attended the University of Texas adopted by stops with the Texas Golf Association, Team USA, the Green Bay Packers and the PGA Tour. He assists on all issues instruction and covers newbie and ladies’s golf. He will be reached at zephyr_melton@golf.com.