Yoo So-yeon's Winning March "Tied 3rd, 1 Stroke Behind"... Kim Se-young and Lee Mi-hyang Tied 7th

7-Under Par Surge on Day One of Lotte Championship, Altomare and Saso Tied for Lead, Henderson Tied 14th, Park In-bee Tied 65th

Yoo So-yeon surged with a 7-under par on the first day of the Lotte Championship, beginning her march toward victory.

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] So-yeon Yu (31, Mediheal) is on her way to victory.

On the 15th (Korean time), at the Kapolei Golf Club (par 72, 6,397 yards) on Oahu Island, Hawaii, USA, the first day of the 6th event of the 2021 LPGA Tour, the Lotte Championship (total prize money $2 million), she shot 7 under par to tie for 3rd place. Brittany Altomare (USA) and Yuka Saso (Philippines) share the lead (8 under par 64), while Nelly Korda and Ally Ewing (both USA) are also tied for 3rd, pursuing the leaders.

So-yeon Yu made seven birdies without any bogeys. She made birdies on holes 1, 3, and 5, and consecutive birdies on holes 7 and 8 to reduce five strokes in the front nine. In the back nine, she added birdies on holes 14 and 17 (both par 5). She relied on powerful drives averaging 278 yards and ‘stingy putting’ with only 26 putts during the round. She is one stroke behind the co-leaders, presenting a great opportunity to claim her 7th career win, her first in 2 years and 10 months since winning the 2018 Meijer Classic.

"I didn’t miss any important putts," she said, "and I’m most pleased with playing a bogey-free round." Number 3 ranked Sei-young Kim (28, Mediheal) recorded seven birdies and two bogeys. She is tied for 7th place (5 under par 67) with Mi-hyang Lee (28, Volvik). Missing the green six times was a slight disappointment. She is three strokes behind the co-leaders, with a chance to return to the top for the first time in six years since 2015. Lydia Ko (New Zealand) and Jessica Korda (USA) are also tied for 7th.

Brooke Henderson (Canada), the two-time consecutive champion in 2018 and 2019, started comfortably tied for 14th (4 under par 68). Lexi Thompson (USA), In-ji Jeon (27, KB Financial Group), and Hyo-joo Kim (26, Lotte) are also in this group. Korea’s Jeong-eun Lee6 (25, Daebang Construction) is tied for 27th (3 under par 69). Ah-rim Kim (26, SBI Savings Bank) is tied for 48th (2 under par 70), and ‘Golf Queen’ In-bi Park (33, KB Financial Group) is tied for 65th (1 under par 71).