Lydia Ko smiles on the on the 13th tee during the first round of the Women's PGA Championship. Photo / AP
Lydia Ko smiles on the on the 13th tee during the first round of the Women's PGA Championship. Photo / AP
Lydia Ko is one shot behind the leaders at the women's PGA Championship after a late bogey cost her a share of the lead.
Ko was tied for first heading into the final hole only to shoot a five on the par 4 18th, one of two bogeys on her scorecard, to finish with a two-under 68 after the first round at Aronimink Golf Club in Pennsylvania.
The Kiwi former world No 1 trails American Brittany Lincicome and Kelly Tan, of Malaysia, to sit in a six-way tie for third in the third major of the year.
Ko was happy with her round, considering the tough, windy conditions.
"I felt like I hit the ball really solid, tried to hit as many fairways and greens as I could," Ko said. "It was pretty tough out there with it being breezy.
"I feel like every day, even though the wind might say like 10 or 12 miles an hour, it always feels a little bit higher than that. So I tried to play consistent and I feel like I've done that well. Hopefully I'm going to continue doing that."
After falling down the world rankings after a stretch of disappointing results, the 23-year-old has made steady progress this year under new swing coach Sean Foley and hopes to keep moving in the right direction over the weekend.
"I know that with everything it takes time to get used to things," she said. "I feel like especially the five-week stretch kind of gave me the confidence and belief that I'm moving in the right direction.
"This is a very tricky golf course, and I think you really have to be focused out there, and with the breeze being up the last few days, the greens have really dried out.
"Being below the hole and giving yourself more uphill looks for birdies and pars is I think going to be some of the big keys. Nice to be able to start with a solid round and hopefully I'll be able to keep the good momentum going for the rest of the week."
Lincicome and Tan lead
Lincicome brought 16-month-old daughter Emery to a recent practice round at Aronimink Golf Club and let her run around the course and plop down on mom's pink golf bag.
Back home with dad, the TV was on for the family to watch Brittany do what she does best, as one of the tour's bigger hitters regularly found the greens she needed to emerge as a contender for another major victory.
Lincicome and Tan each shot a three-under 67 in windy conditions to share the lead.
Brittany Lincicome. Photo / AP
Lincicome was sensational after missing the cut by one shot this past weekend at the ShopRite LPGA Classic.
"I've had so much time off since having Emery and taking time off and Covid," she said. "Each week it's just kind of been let's make the cut, let's make the cut, and that's not a way an eight-time winner should play golf."
Lincicome, a two-time winner of major winner along with eight LPGA Tour victories, played bogey-free to stay even with Tan and keep her first Women's PGA title in sight.
The 35-year-old Florida player is trying to win for the first since having a baby last July. One of the biggest hitters on the tour, she found her groove at the 6,577-yard Aronimink, missing only one green.
"I never tried to swing hard with the driver off the tee today," she said. "I was just literally, 'Get it in the fairway and then worry about the next shot.' And then on the green, aiming in very specific spots."
Lincicome said her husband, professional long-driver Dewald Gouws, showed Emery all of her mom's big hits on TV. Lincicome might even keep playing long enough for her daughter to grow old enough to remember watching her play.
"It's too hard to walk away from," she said. "When she starts school obviously that will be a little bit more challenging to figure out what we do. But it's cool just to have her out here and to watch what I do and I think my husband was actually watching TV when I was making some birdies and was showing her. That's pretty cool."
Ko, Danielle Kang, Gabby Lopez, Carlota Ciganda, Linnea Strom and Cydney Clanton were a stroke back. Lopez and Ciganda tested positive this year for Covid-19, but have rebounded and were in great shape headed into the second day at arduous Aronimink.
One group was unable to finish the round because of darkness.
Kelly Tan. Photo / AP
The 26-year-old Tan, who has never finished better than 30th in any of her previous majors, played bogey-free on the back nine.
Tan has been looking for her breakthrough victory on the LPGA Tour and has played better of late after she failed to make the cut this year at the Women's British Open. Tan's previous best finish in a major came in 2016 when she tied for 30th at the Women's PGA.
"I just feel like I try to tell myself that every day I have a little goal and try to achieve them and build confidence from there," Tan said. "My ball-striking has been really good, and I think that's been a key and it's been giving me a lot of confidence going into the next day."
First-time major champions — even those not among the top 50 in the world — are becoming common on the tour. Eight of the last nine major champions had never won one before. Tan took inspiration from all the recent first-timers in the major championships club.
"Winning golf tournaments out here is life-changing," she said. "It's very emotional even when I watched them win. I wish to do that one day."
Tan emerged late in a championship delayed three months because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Golfers contended with a breezy day and leaves scattered throughout Aronimink.
