Jeon Ji-won 6 Under Par... "Third Hole-in-One This Year"

Annika Drivens Shares Lead After 1R Hull
Hole-in-One on 3rd Hole, 6 Birdies and 2 Bogeys
Im Hyang 3rd, Korda and Lee Minji Tied 5th

Jeon Ji-won made three holes-in-one this year alone.

Jeon Ji-won is teeing off at the 1st hole, 1st round of the Annika Driven. Bel Air, USA=AP·Yonhap News

On the 14th (local time), at the Pelican Golf Club (par 70, 6,349 yards) in Bel Air, Florida, USA, during the first round of the LPGA Tour's The Annika Driven (total prize money $3.25 million), she scored a hole-in-one on the 3rd hole (par 3), along with six birdies and two bogeys, finishing 6 under par with a 64. She tied for the lead with Charley Hull (England). Due to sunset, six players were unable to complete the first round.

On the 3rd hole, from a distance of 177 yards, she hit a tee shot with a 5-iron hybrid club that went straight into the hole. This was her fourth career hole-in-one and her third this year alone. Jeon Ji-won said, "I saw the ball bounce and go into the hole. Watching the hole-in-one happen in person was really amazing." She added, "I want to continue playing on the LPGA Tour next year, but I’m trying not to think too much. I poured everything into practice over the past three days and focused on every shot. That effort was rewarded. I will keep doing the same in the remaining rounds."

Jeon Ji-won, who studied golf in the United States after spending time in Australia, is ranked 258th in the world and 98th in the CME Globe rankings. She had little presence on the LPGA Tour. Starting this year, she began competing regularly on the tour but missed the cut 12 times out of 22 tournaments. Her only top-10 finish was a tie for 9th at the Portland Classic last August. For Jeon Ji-won, The Annika Driven is effectively her last chance this season. After this tournament, only players ranked within the top 60 in the CME Globe rankings can participate in the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship.

Charley Hull recorded seven birdies and one bogey. This is her third hole-in-one on the LPGA Tour, the first since the 2022 Volunteers of America event two years ago. World No. 1 Nelly Korda (USA) and Minjee Lee (Australia) are tied for 5th place (4 under par, 66), while defending champion Lilia Vu (USA) is tied for 34th place (1 under par, 69).

Korea’s Lee Mi-hyang shot 5 under par 65 to tie for 3rd place. Kim A-rim, who won the Lotte Championship last week for the first time in four years, started comfortably tied for 11th place (3 under par, 67). Kim Se-young and Lee Jeong-eun6 also joined this group. Yang Hee-young and Lim Jin-hee are tied for 21st place (2 under par, 68), Lydia Ko (New Zealand) and Yoo Hae-ran are tied for 76th place (1 over par, 71), and Kim Hyo-joo is tied for 91st place (2 over par, 72).