Brooke Henderson 1 shot back from the lead after the first round of the Women’s PGA Championship
South Africa’s Lee-Anne Pace made a two-putt birdie on the final hole in fading daylight for a 5-under 66 and first-round lead Thursday in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Baltusrol in Springfield, NJ
Two-time grand winner Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., and Ruoning Yin and Xiyi Lin of China returned a shot as Baltusrol’s historic Lower Course delivered 16 subpar rounds to the field of 156 players.
The 42-year-old Pace won her only LPGA Tour title in 2014 in China. She is playing in her second event in the United States this year.
Wichanee Meechair of Thailand was alone at 68. Leona Maguire of Ireland, the winner last week in Michigan, was at 69 with Ayaka Furue and Yuka Saso of Japan, Jenny Shin of South Korea, Celine Borge of Norway and Esther Henseleit of Germany.
LOOK | Henderson shoots 4-under 67 in 1st round:
Smiths Falls, Ont., native Brooke Henderson sits in a 3-way tie for second at 4-under following the opening round of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Baltusrol Golf Course in Springfield, New Jersey.
Rose Zhang, the two-time NCAA individual champion at Stanford who became the first player in 72 years to win an LPGA Tour event on her pro debut this month at nearby Liberty National, opened with a 70.
Pace teed at 2:28 p.m. and made seven pars to start her round, then finished with five birdies in her final 11 holes, hitting the par-5 18th in two and coming down in two. She also made an important par save from the bunker on the par-3 16th.
Henderson, who won this event in 2016 and last year’s Evian for her majors, had a bogey and five birdies, the last from about 10 yards on the ninth hole, her last.
The 20-year-old Yin, who won this year in Los Angeles, had two birdies and an eagle in a bogeyless round. Lin, who finished third last week, had four birdies in pursuit of her first win on the tour. The 27-year-old lost in a playoff in California earlier this year.
They want to become the second Chinese player to win a major. Shanshan Feng won the LPGA Championship in 2012. That event became the Women’s PGA Championship in 2015.
Bogey free lap propels Lee-Ann Pace to the top of the @KPMGWomensPGA leader board!
FULL LEADERBOARD ⬇
The 20-year-old Zhang had bogeys on the second and fourth holes, but then played steady and made three birdies the rest of the way, before settling for a birdie on the 18th after missing an 8-foot eagle attempt.
World No. 1 Jin Young Ko and Lilia Vu, the only two-time LPGA Tour winners this year, shot 72. No. 5 Minjee Lee also had a 72.
Defending champion In Gee Chun was 2 down on the front nine, but had five bogeys on the back nine to finish on 74.
Second ranked Nelly Korda and No. 9 Lexi Thompson each shot 76.
