Tournament headliners Lydia Ko and Minjee Lee opened their campaign at the Hana Financial Group Championship with matching even-par 72s, trailing first round leaders Park Hyejun and Lee Dayeon by three shots on Thursday.
Related: Hana Financial Group Championship set to unite global stars
World No. 3 Ko mixed her card with two birdies and two bogeys at Bears Best Cheongna Golf Club in Incheon to close the day in a share of 12th place together with eight others, including Lee.
Ko, the 23-time LPGA winner, stumbled early with two bogeys in her opening three holes. She responded with a birdie on the fourth hole before picking up another shot on the par-four 13.
“I was a bit worried early on because my shots weren’t really working. But after I made my first birdie on the fourth hole, I started to regain some momentum. The course was playing tough today, and it was a challenging setup. I figured it wouldn’t be a low-scoring round. Even when the pin was tucked away, I made a conscious decision to aim more for the centre of the green and just rely on my putting from there,” said Ko.
View this post on Instagram
When asked about the significance of a victory at her sponsor’s event, Ko said: “I think both Minjee Lee and I would agree that winning our main sponsor’s tournament would be incredibly meaningful.
“For me, I’ve always dreamed of winning at least once in Korea — it’s where I was born, and I have family here, so it would mean so much more than just another victory abroad.
“No Hana-sponsored player has ever won this tournament before. So, hopefully one of us can change that this year.”
Like Ko, Lee also got off to a sputtering start when she bogeyed her opening hole. The Australian recovered with a birdie on the third hole but dropped another shot on the ninth hole to turn in 37.
A steady run of five consecutive pars kept her in check before she picked up a birdie on the par-five 15th and closed with three pars to match Ko’s 72.
“I didn’t really hit it all that well as I felt the pin positions were quite difficult and the wind made it even harder. But obviously it was the same for everyone,” Lee said. “I’m not disappointed, but I feel like if I can give myself a few more birdie opportunities and sharpen my iron play, then I would be a little happier. But I’m okay with my round,” said the World No. 4.
In its seventh edition this year, the Hana Financial Group Championship features an elite international field and the largest prize purse on the KLPGA Tour (KRW 1.5 billion, with KRW 270 million to the winner).
