Sarah Schmelzel and Minami Katsu Lead Walmart NW Arkansas Championship
Rogers, Ark. – Sarah Schmelzel staged an impressive comeback, moving from the middle of the pack to the lead in just five holes. With four consecutive birdies and an eagle, she closed the day with an impressive 63, eight under par, tying Minami Katsu at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. Alison Lee also had a strong finish, with a birdie and an eagle, placing her just one stroke behind the leaders. This result is especially significant for Lee, who is participating in her third tournament after giving birth to her son at the end of April. The Pinnacle Country Club course witnessed a day of low scores, which caused some concern for Schmelzel. After a first round of 34 strokes and a total of two under par, it seemed like he wasn’t progressing. However, he knew he was approaching holes conducive to scoring, with short shots towards the green and two par 5s.Schmelzel managed to get several wedges close and sank a long birdie putt on the 17th hole. He capped off his performance with a second shot close enough for an eagle. After being two under par through the first 13 holes, he finished six under par in the last five. Katsu, for his part, distributed his eight birdies throughout an impeccable round, without bogeys. The surprise of the day was Alison Lee, who competed in the Solheim Cup while pregnant last year. Lee returned to competition this month, finishing 53rd in the Aramco Series event in Houston, and failed to make the cut last week at the Kroger Queen City Championship. Lee reflected on whether starting on Friday, in one of the two 54-hole events scheduled on the LPGA, helped her prepare.You should have opportunities on all those holes because you have pretty short clubs.
Sarah Schmelzel
Although Lee acknowledged that this good result is just one round in her return as a mother on the circuit, her son accompanies her on the trip. Lilia Vu, who has struggled this year, along with Nasa Hataoka, Carlota Ciganda, Leona Maguire and Somi Lee, also shot a 64. Nelly Korda, who has yet to secure a victory this season after a seven-win year in 2024, failed to capitalize on the good scoring conditions. She finished with a 69 and will begin Friday’s second round closer to the cut line than to the lead.I would say that in the last few weeks, coming back and playing, the strongest part of my game is my approach shots, my irons. I’m usually good with my numbers. I felt like in the last few weeks that was my weakness. I couldn’t do well. So coming into this week, which is also a start on Friday, I had an extra day to prepare and hit more balls on the practice range, and I feel like that really helped.
Alison Lee
