Haeran Ryu Leads The Annika with a Standout Opening Round
BELLEAIR, Fla. – Haeran Ryu positioned herself at the top of The Annika after an impressive first round, achieving a score of 6 under par, with a 64 on Thursday. In contrast, the young amateur Kai Trump, in her LPGA Tour debut, placed at the end of the group of 108 players, after a round of 83. Ryu, from South Korea, shone with four consecutive birdies on holes 4 to 7 of her second half of the course, facing windy conditions at the Pelican Golf Club. The golfer had already demonstrated her talent by winning the Black Desert Championship in Utah in May, thus adding her third title on the LPGA Tour.Kai Trump, granddaughter of former President Donald Trump, participated thanks to a sponsorship exemption. The high school student had a complicated start with bogeys in the first four holes, finishing the day with nine bogeys and two double bogeys.My game, both in strokes and in putting, was very good. I am very happy to have achieved many birdies.
Haeran Ryu
Grace Kim, from Australia, placed second with a card of 65.I was definitely more nervous than I expected, but I think I managed many good hits. Unfortunately, some of those good hits didn’t fall in the right place.
Kai Trump
Jennifer Kupcho signed a card of 66, while Charley Hull registered 67, tying with Mao Saigo, Leona Maguire and Somi Lee.I knew the wind was going to be a factor, and given that this course is usually challenging, I focused on my own game. I didn’t focus too much on a specific score. Fortunately, I was able to make some putts.
Grace Kim
The current champion, Nelly Korda, started the tournament with a 71, accumulating 17 pars and a bogey on the 9th hole. Korda, who won the tournament last year, was the first player in 13 years to achieve seven victories in a season. This year, she has not yet achieved any victories. The top 60 players in the Race to CME Globe will qualify for next week’s CME Group Tour Championship, where the winner will take home a $2 million prize.I played pretty well, considering I arrived Tuesday night and had to withdraw from the pro-am on Wednesday because I felt unwell. So I couldn’t practice the course. I had an early practice and managed to complete today’s round.
Charley Hull
