Hyejin Choi leads LPGA Tour Diannica 1R 9 under par... First win again

Hye-Jin Choi took on the challenge of winning again for the first time by hitting hard on the first day of the LPGA Tour The Annika Driven by Gainbridge at Pelican (total prize money of $3.25 million).

In the first round of the tournament held at the Pelican Golf Club (par 70) in Bel Air, Florida, USA on the 13th (Korean time), Choi Hye-jin swept 9 birdies without bogeys and hit 9 under par 61, putting her in the lead with Katsu Minami (Japan).

Choi Hye-jin, who has yet to win since debuting on the LPGA tour in 2022, is showing recent performance that is close to winning.

Last month, she finished second consecutively at the Buick LPGA Shanghai held in China and the BMW Ladies Championship held in Haenam, Korea, and tied for 9th place at the Maybank Championship held in Malaysia at the end of last month, making a great performance in the Asian Swing.

After returning to the U.S., she continued her good mood at D'Annica and reopened the possibility of winning her first LPGA Tour title.

Choi Hye-jin, who started the game on the 1st hole (par 4) on this day, made 4 birdies in the first half, starting with the 2nd hole (par 4), and had a perfect day by making consecutive birdies in holes 12 to 15 in the second half and reducing one stroke in the last 18th hole (par 4).

On this day, Choi Hye-jin showed off her accurate shots, missing the fairway twice and the green only once, and recorded 27 putts.

Choi Hye-jin said, "I have been playing good rounds recently, and I was able to finish well today without making any major mistakes. I am very satisfied that I played without a bogey. I have been doing well on the first day of recent competitions, and this time I am off to a good start. I will continue to do so in the remaining three rounds."

Lindy Duncan (USA) recorded a hole-in-one with a 6-iron in the 163-yard par 3 3rd hole, reducing 8 strokes and rising to 3rd place (8 under par, 62 strokes), one stroke behind the joint leader. In the first round on this day, in addition to Duncan, Allison Copuz (USA) also made a hole-in-one in the same hole with a 6-iron. Copuz was tied for 31st place (3 under par, 67 strokes).

World No. 1 Nelly Korda (USA), who won this tournament three times, started the tournament in 4th place (7 under par, 63 strokes) by recording 7 birdies without a bogey on the first day of the tournament in two months.

Yoon Ina finished the first round in a tie for 5th place (6 under par, 64 strokes), Kim A-rim, Lee Jeong-eun, and Kang Min-ji in a tie for 20th place (4 under par, 66 strokes), Yoo Hae-ran and Ko Jin-young in a tie for 31st place, and Kim Se-young and Lim Jin-hee in a tie for 42nd place (2 under par, 68 strokes).