Charley Hull fired a round of 67 (-5) to sit in the outright lead after the first round of the AIG Women’s Open at St Andrews.
The English star went out to tackle the Old Course in the afternoon wave alongside world number one Nelly Korda and defending champion Lilia Vu.
Hull rolled in her first birdie of the day on the fifth but made a bogey on the par-3 eighth, however, she was soon under par again with a birdie on the ninth.
The three-time LET winner then had a great back nine as she made birdies on 10, 12, 15 and 18 to hold a solo lead on five-under-par in the final major of the year.
“It was loads of fun out there today,” said Hull, who finished fifth at last week’s ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open.
“Actually, before my round I was in there watching it on the TV when I saw the scores, and I thought how is she [Ruoning Yin] four-under par; that was an unbelievable score. I’d take that now because it was gusting a lot on the range.
“I said to my coach, feels like they could call it at any minute because I don’t know how the balls are staying on the greens. To go out there, shoot five-under, play pretty solidly, it was a lot of fun.
“I’d say the last three holes were a bit easier. The wind dropped, but making the turn it was really, really strong. It was very strong, especially when we had a hold-up on 11. It got really cold there, as well. Yeah, it did drop just the last three holes.
“I can thank my coach, I’ve been working hard on it [links golf] the last few weeks, so he’s kind of got me prepared, got me working on some three-quarter shots. After the Olympics, I went to Turnberry on the Monday.
“I played with my boyfriend there, and that was just fun, but it was getting me in preparation for links golf, and I played well at the Scottish Open last week came fifth, and just mentally starting to like it.
“I’m obviously on home soil, so it’s great to see people out there. Got a long way to go, but I’m just going to enjoy every minute of it.”
China’s Ruoning Yin and American Korda sit one shot behind the leader after they produced rounds of 68 (-4) on the opening day at the Old Course.
The Chinese star began her round from the 10th in the clear but windy conditions and started well with birdies on 12 and 13 before dropping a shot on 16.
Yin then went on a run of birdies with back-to-back on 17 and 18 before rolling in three in a row on holes three, four and five.
It was a trickier end to the round for the Major champion with bogeys on six and eight, but still a great start of four-under on the Old Course at St Andrews.
“The conditions were really tough today, but it was the same for everyone,” said the 21-year-old. “I just tried to enjoy it, have fun and make the wind my friend.
“I don’t have that much experience playing links golf, honestly, I had to calculate the wind when I was putting which was the first time doing that. I really enjoyed it. Luckily, today it didn’t rain!
“I would say my attitude was my secret. I had a really good attitude and just tried to enjoy it. I think the attitude is the key for this week, if you have a bad attitude then it’s not going to go well. I want to have a good attitude and just have fun with my caddie out there.
“The birdie on 17, I was in the left rough and the pin was 15 yards over the hill and three yards to the back edge. I hit a really smart shot there, I tried to hit a lower 7-iron and tried to land it in the front of the green and let it roll. The birdie putt was nine feet. It was perfect – my favourite birdie of the year!”
Korda, who was playing alongside leader Hull, also had a good day with two birdies and one bogey on her front nine.
The world number one then rolled in three birdies in her final five holes to climb up to a share of second place alongside Yin.
“It was good,” said Korda. “It was windy, but especially at the start to the middle, but the last three or four holes it died down and I was able to be a little bit more aggressive. Overall, I think our group had a very good day.
“When you’re all playing well, the momentum is up. Charley and Lilia played really great, and hopefully the crowd enjoyed it as much as we did. There’s something fun about playing in these conditions too. Not that I would do it every single time, but it’s just there’s like a different creative side to it, which I enjoy.”
Six players are in a share of fourth place with Korean duo Jenny Shin and Mi Hyang Lee, American pair Andrea Lee and Lilia Vu, Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit and Japan’s Mao Saigo all on three-under.
Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim, who won the Individual title at the Aramco Team Series Presented by PIF – Korea earlier this year, sits in a share of tenth place alongside Japan’s Momoko Osato.
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