Canada’s Anna Huang fired a round of 67 (-6) on day one at the PIF London Championship to lead at the end of the first round at Centurion Club.
The three-time Ladies European Tour (LET) winner began her day on the 10th tee and rolled in birdies on the 13th and 16th holes before making an eagle on 18.
Huang dropped her only shot of the day came on the third before back-to-back birdies on five and six and she finished with a birdie on nine to sit at the top of the leaderboard on six-under-par.
“It started out pretty good and then I chipped in on my third hole for a good par save and I think that just really brough the momentum going out today,” said the Canadian teenager. “My putting was really good and then I was hitting all the fairways.
“This course is playing a bit different than last year, it’s definitely a lot firmer and everything is rolling out a lot which gives you good shots into the green on par-5s and shorter irons for par-4s. I was sticking to my own process and game plan. I played with my good friend Bri [Navarrosa], so we had a good chat in the round.
“It’s definitely been a really good year. Playing in four out of five Majors and making two cuts which is an improvement from last year. There’s still a lot of room for improvement especially in Links golf, but we’re going in the right direction.”
Australia’s Kelsey Bennett and Austria’s Emma Spitz share second place after they produced rounds of 68 (-5) on day one.
Bennett, who won her maiden LET title earlier this season, started with a birdie on her first hole and added further birdies on seven and nine.
The LET winner made back-to-back birdies on 12 and 13 before a bogey on 16, but she bounced back with a birdie at the last to be one shot back from leader Huang.
“I only just found out where I am on the leaderboard, so I’m pretty happy about that. It was just a solid day, I’m happy to be shooting some good under-par rounds again,” said Bennett.
“It’s definitely playing tougher than the previous years with how firm it is. In the trees on the first few holes, the wind can swirl all over the place. Michael [my caddie] and I did really well today. We just worked out some really good numbers and I hit plenty of good shots and holed plenty of putts. All of Michael’s family are out here running amok.
“My energy is a bit flat this week, but I haven’t played the weekend the last two weeks, so I’ve had time to reflect. It’s nice not having that Major feel around so you can breathe and settle and be back into LET events again.”
It was quite the day for Austria’s Spitz who had nine birdies and two double bogeys during for her round of 68 (-5).
“I don’t think I’ve ever had a round of five-under with two doubles and technically no bogeys. I started badly with a double, but I felt like I was playing well in practice and that I could really come back,” said Spitz.
“I kept playing and making lots of birdies, so it was really nice to start like this. Some days it’s harder to come back when you feel you lost in on the first hole already, but I really tried to stay in there and take my chances. There’s quite a few par-5s and with it being firm you can take advantage.”
England’s Charlotte Heath is in solo fourth place on four-under-par after a round of 69 (-4) which included an eagle, five birdies and three bogeys.
“I played pretty good golf. Obviously, I haven’t played in a month, so it was a bit weird playing again. I definitely saved a couple of shots. I hit it fairly close, it was a boring golf round,” said Heath.
“My driver was pretty solid, I made a crazy par on the fifth hole. It hit it miles right and tried to flop it but there was no ground underneath and went over the green and then I chipped it in. That was my good, crazy experience of the day.”
Seven players are in a tie for fifth place with Sweden’s Louise Rydqvist, Singapore’s Shannon Tan, German pair Olivia Cowan and Aline Krauter, Italian duo Alessia Nobilio and Anna Zanusso, and Ireland’s Aine Donegan all on three-under-par.
England’s Gemma Clews produced one of the highlights of the day with her first-ever hole-in-one as a professional on the par-3 17th hole.
“I used the slope a little bit and then it went in. It’s my first one in tournament as a professional, so that’s quite nice. I’ve been close a lot, but it just never managed to go in,” said Clews.
“I’ve had holes-in-one as an amateur, but not as a professional. I had my godfather out watching me and there were some people cheering at the back of the green. It was nice to see the ball go in.”
Round two will begin at 7.30 am (local time) and there will be a cut to the top 60 professionals and ties at the end of the day.
Follow all the action throughout on our socials – @LETgolf on Instagram, TikTok and X, and Ladies European Tour on YouTube and Facebook – #PIFLondonChampionship.
