South Korea’s Choi Na-yeon wasted no time in bouncing back from her disappointing LPGA Championship last week, grabbing the first-round lead at the Farr Classic.
Choi, who last week missed the cut for the first time in more than two and a half years, changed putters and came out firing with a seven-under 64 that gave her a one-stroke lead over Canadian Alena Sharp.
“After that, I feel I need to trust myself more, so I changed putters for a good setup,” Choi said of her swap after the LPGA Championship disappointment.
PHOTO: AFP
The move paid off as she needed only 26 putts in a career-best round that included eight birdies and a bogey at Highland Meadows Golf Club.
Choi had made 64 LPGA cuts in a row dating to 2007 before failing to make it to the weekend at the LPGA Championship.
That ended a run of 10 cuts made this year.
Choi leads the tour in birdies this year. She said missing a cut gave her incentive to make more.
“For me to be able to come back the next week and win the tournament would mean a lot to me,” she said. “It would go a long way in terms of building my trust back up.”
Sharp celebrated Canada Day with a 65 and said one of the reasons she played so well was because she is so close to a host family.
“It just feels like a second home,” she said. “It’s easier to play golf when you’re really comfortable. I’ve had good rounds here in the past. I birdied the first hole and holed out on the fourth hole from a plugged lie in the bunker and I was like, ‘Well, maybe this is my day.’”
Taiwan’s Amy Hung was tied for 12th after a round of 68, while compatriot Candie Kung was joint-41st after going round in 70.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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