Ireland’s Leona Maguire, American duo Jennifer Kupcho and Andrea Lee, and Australia’s Gabriela Ruffels and Grace Kim, all share the lead on day one at The Amundi Evian Championship, after each carding six-under-par (65) at the picturesque Evian Resort Golf Club.
Related: Mimi Rhodes upbeat on Amundi Evian Championship debut
Fresh off her appearance at the KPMG Women’s Irish Open, Maguire delivered an impressive performance for her opening round, highlighted by a hole-in-one at the par-3 second hole using an 8-iron. The LET winner, who plays on both the LPGA and LET, dropped her only shot of the day on the 10th, but made up for it with five birdies across her round.
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“I just played really solid golf,” said Maguire. “I hit a lot of fairways and greens, and gave myself some great chances early on – especially on 11, 12, and 13. It was as stress-free as it gets around here. The hole-in-one on two was definitely a special moment. It looked good in the air but you’re never sure on that hole until the ball actually lands. It was sort of a perfect morning for it. Not much wind which is nice, especially on that tee box. It was a pretty good highlight to the day.”
Reflecting on the course, Maguire added: “I always enjoy coming here. You have to stay really patient. I hit what I thought was a perfect tee shot on six and it ended up in a divot. Things like that happen, and you just have to accept it. But conditions this morning were ideal, and it was nice to take advantage.”
America’s Lee carded seven birdies across the first 18 holes to also finish the round six-under-par.
The 26-year-old finished her round with a solid tap-in birdie on the last hole.
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“It was a really solid round. Nothing was like incredible I thought, but I made quite a few putts. I hit some really good shots within five, six feet, so took advantage of those. I think I played the par-5s really well today – just overall played super solid golf. The weather is also amazing today, so I feel like we had to take advantage of the nice conditions.
“I feel like my game has been pretty consistent as of late, so just working on the same things that I have been. Honestly, I like to try and keep things as simple as possible, so just a couple swing thoughts and obviously always working on the short game and the putting. I’m just looking forward to hopefully playing some more good golf the rest of the week.
“I love this stretch. It’s always fun coming over to Europe to play some golf, two majors. Next week I’m actually taking a week off and going to Paris with my parents so that will be fun. Evian is gorgeous and the AIG Women’s Open is always a good test of golf.”
Ruffels joins the leaders after carding a bogey-free 66 that featured six birdies.
“It was a really solid day,” said the Australian. “I only missed two greens, so the ball striking was really good – something I’ve been working hard on with my coach. The putter felt good too. I made a couple of nice long ones and was steady inside ten feet, which always helps. It all added up to a pretty good score.”
Ruffels opted to skip the Dow Championship and used the break to recharge with a trip to Wimbledon. “I had a week and a half at home and even managed to go to Wimbledon,” she said. “A few days in London really helped me get over the jet lag and just unwind. I got here on Sunday, and then had a typical prep from Monday through Wednesday. So far, it’s working out well.”
Fellow Aussie Kim went bogey-free for the first 18 holes, carding seven birdies to her name to join the lead on day one.
“I didn’t really do much wrong”, said Kim. “If I did, my short game really backed it. I had a few hard up and downs, but the majority of the time it was fairways and greens and I holed a few putts out there.”
Kim, who’s had mixed experiences at the Evian Resort Golf Club in the past, was especially pleased to post a clean card.
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“I’ve definitely had my share of bogeys and doubles here before,” she said. “So to go bogey-free today – yeah, I’m pretty happy with that. Hopefully I can keep the momentum going, but I also know anything can happen out here. It’s a really tough track.”
The round wasn’t without its lighter moments. “At the 7th hole, I just went to the bathroom like normal, and then my fly wouldn’t zip back up,” she laughed. “So I played the rest of the round 6-under with a busted fly.”
Kim also credited a recent trip home to Sydney for helping her recharge.
“Going back home was exactly what I needed,” she said. “Sleeping in my own bed, seeing my coach and my family – it was a good mental reset halfway through the season. There’s still a long way to go, but I definitely feel refreshed and ready.”
Kupcho, who started the day on the 10th tee, finished up her last two holes with a birdie and an eagle to make it also six-under par, and join the leaders.
“I started off a little bit rocky I would say. I just settled down halfway through the back nine – my front nine – and kind of just got it together. I was hitting the ball into the green really well. So even missing some fairways I was able to recover.”
Heading into this week, Kupcho mentioned she hadn’t started that well with the majors this year.
“I’m just kind of trying to stick with it and prepare the best that I can. This golf course is a little bit different than others, so I think I definitely had some good bounces. You can have some bad bounces so I think it’s just taking it and doing with it what you can.”
The Aussies dominate the top of the leaderboard with Minjee Lee sitting one shot behind on five-under par in solo sixth place.
Lee picked up her third major title at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, and is making her first start since her victory in Texas. She is returning this week to the site of her first major victory in 2021, when she defeated South Korea’s Jeongeun Lee in a playoff. In addition to Lee’s win at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, she has had three other top 10s in 2025, so this marks another solid start.
A total of nine players sit in a tie for seventh place, all firing opening rounds of four under par. South Africa’s Casandra Alexander, Germany’s Helen Briem, America’s Nelly Korda, Japan’s Ayaka Furue, India’s Aditi Ashok, Korean duo Hye-Jin Choi and Somi Lee, Japan’s Mao Saigo, and China’s Mary Liu are only a further shot back.
