Jeon In-ji 'Escapes Slump'... 'Good Start Tied for 5th, 2 Strokes Behind'

HSBC Women's World Championship 1R 2 Under Par
Schmelzel Leads, Bu 2nd, Kim Hyo-joo Tied 5th
Ko Jin-young and Yang Hee-young Tied 10th, Shin Ji-ae 36th

‘Flying Dumbo’ Jeon In-ji breaks out of slump.

Jeon In-ji

On the 29th, at the Tanjong Course (par 72, 6,749 yards) of Sentosa GC in Singapore, Jeon In-ji shot 2-under 70 in the first round of the LPGA Tour’s Asian Swing second event, the HSBC Women’s World Championship (total prize money $1.8 million), placing tied for 5th. Sarah Schmelzel led with 4-under 68, while three players including world No. 1 Lilia Vu (both from the USA) tied for 2nd at 3-under 69.

Jeon In-ji recorded 4 birdies and 2 bogeys. After a bogey on the 1st hole (par 4), she energized herself with consecutive birdies on the 2nd and 3rd holes and another birdie on the 5th hole (par 5). However, after recovering from a bogey on the 9th hole with a birdie on the 11th hole (both par 4), she failed to reduce her score on the remaining 7 holes, which was disappointing. She missed the fairway only once and had 26 putts. Her greens in regulation dropped to 61%, limiting her birdie opportunities. She is 2 strokes behind the leader.

Jeon In-ji debuted on the LPGA Tour in 2016 and has maintained consistent results. Of her 4 career wins, 3 came in major tournaments, showing her strength in ‘big matches.’ However, she struggled to produce results after her last victory. Last year, she earned $491,488 (ranked 58th) in 19 tournaments. Her season best was a tie for 8th, her only top 10 finish. But on this day in Singapore, she showed renewed vigor and seized a chance for her 5th career win, her first in 1 year and 8 months since the 2022 major KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

Korea’s Kim Hyo-joo joined the tied 5th group. Ko Jin-young, aiming for a tournament three-peat, along with Choi Hye-jin, Yang Hee-young, and Shin Ji-eun, were tied for 10th at 1-under 71. Shin Ji-ae, who entered as an invitee, was tied for 36th at 2-over 74. Kim Sei-young, who finished tied for 3rd last week at the Honda LPGA Thailand, struggled at tied 57th with 5-over 77. Patty Tavatanakit (Thailand), challenging for back-to-back wins, stood tied for 30th at 1-over 73.