Cassie Porter and Gemma Dryburgh Lead Dow Championship
MIDLAND, Mich. – Cassie Porter starred in a standout performance by reaching the green on a par 4 and subsequently chipping in for an eagle to start a streak of three consecutive birdies on Thursday. Alongside Gemma Dryburgh in the foursomes format, they achieved an impressive 66 (-4), leading the Dow Championship, the only team event on the LPGA Tour. The duo only committed one bogey and finished with six consecutive pars, securing a one-stroke lead over six competing teams. Among the teams closely pursuing the leaders are Lexi Thompson and Meghan Kang, as well as Leona Maguire and Jennifer Kupcho. The current defending champions, Ruoning Yin and Jeeno Thitikul, both ranked among the top five in the women’s world rankings, are two strokes behind, with a 68. Dryburgh, a 32-year-old Scottish golfer, and Porter, a 22-year-old Australian who is in her rookie season on the LPGA Tour, carefully chose which holes they would play, taking advantage of Porter’s greater distance at Midland Country.
Thompson, who hasn’t achieved a victory on the LPGA in six years, and Khang recorded five birdies, offset by two bogeys.“Cassie hits it further than me, and I’m usually accurate in the center,” Dryburgh commented. “We choose the right holes for each of us, and I think we complement each other very well. We merge very well.”
Gemma Dryburgh
Maguire and Kupcho suffered an early bogey, but then played error-free, with four birdies in the last 16 holes, joining the group of 67. For an alternative shot format that can be stressful, Maguire and Kupcho kept it simple. Both rarely get out of position and are consistently good at putting.“I knew that coming here for alternate shot, we just needed to make some birdies and pars were good,” Thompson said. “I tried to stay consistent and be patient.”
Lexi Thompson
Kupcho won the 2022 event alongside Lizette Salas. The format will change to fourballs on Friday.“We’re not too aggressive attacking the pins,” Kupcho said. “So we give ourselves a lot of putts and somehow have our speed under control and somehow make it easy for each other.”
Jennifer Kupcho
