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New Straits Times
26-04-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Albatross and closing birdie lift China's Liu to LPGA Chevron lead
HOUSTON: China's Liu Yan made a stunning albatross and a closing birdie to seize a one-stroke lead when darkness halted Friday's second round of the LPGA Chevron Championship. The 27-year-old sank a 15-foot birdie putt at the par-five 18th hole to finish off a level par 72 and grab the lead on seven-under 137 for 36 holes at Carlton Woods in the year's first major women's tournament. "I'm glad I made that last birdie," she said. "Today I had so many putts so close. Last hole was my first birdie today so I'm very happy." Liu's most spectacular shot, however, came at the par-five eighth when she holed out her second shot from 170 yards with a seven-iron. "There was helping wind and I hit a really solid driver on the fairway," Liu said. "I took my seven-iron and yeah, it was pretty crazy." It was the first albatross in a women's major since American Morgan Pressel made one at the 2015 Women's British Open. Liu hopes to make her first LPGA triumph a major victory but a host of rivals were hot on her heels. American Lindy Duncan birdied her last three holes to shoot 66 and share second on 138 with compatriot Sarah Schmelzel, Japan's Mao Saigo and South Korean Kim Hyo-joo. South Koreans Choi Hye-jin and Ryu Hae-ran, American Angel Yin and Belgium's Manon De Roey were on 139. A 90-minute morning fog delay led to the round being halted by darkness with nine players yet to finish. They will complete the second round on Saturday morning before the cut is made and the third round played. Among those still on the course, China's Zhang Weiwei was on five-under with three holes remaining. Liu, who began playing golf with her mother 15 years ago, has a best LPGA career finish of third at the 2023 ShopRite Classic. She had opened with a 65 to share the 18-hole lead, but stumbled with bogeys at the first and sixth holes only to answer with the albatross stunner. After a bogey at the ninth, Liu's lead was down to one stroke. She parred the next six holes before making bogey at 16, missing an eight-foot par putt to fall back, only to surge into the lead alone again with her closing birdie. "I think definitely I will feel a little bit (of pressure) because this is a major," Liu said. "I know the course going to be harder so I think I just stay patient, calm, because I'm a very emotional person."--AFP
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Albatross and closing birdie lift China's Liu to LPGA Chevron lead
China's Liu Yan fired a level par 72 to seize a one-stroke lead in the second round of the LPGA Chevron Championship (Alex Slitz) China's Liu Yan made a stunning albatross and a closing birdie to seize a one-stroke lead when darkness halted Friday's second round of the LPGA Chevron Championship. The 27-year-old sank a 15-foot birdie putt at the par-five 18th hole to finish off a level par 72 and grab the lead on seven-under 137 for 36 holes at Carlton Woods in the year's first major women's tournament. Advertisement "I'm glad I made that last birdie," she said. "Today I had so many putts so close. Last hole was my first birdie today so I'm very happy." Liu's most spectacular shot, however, came at the par-five eighth when she holed out her second shot from 170 yards with a seven-iron. "There was helping wind and I hit a really solid driver on the fairway," Liu said. "I took my seven-iron and yeah, it was pretty crazy." It was the first albatross in a women's major since American Morgan Pressel made one at the 2015 Women's British Open. Liu hopes to make her first LPGA triumph a major victory but a host of rivals were hot on her heels. Advertisement American Lindy Duncan birdied her last three holes to shoot 66 and share second on 138 with compatriot Sarah Schmelzel, Japan's Mao Saigo and South Korean Kim Hyo-joo. South Koreans Choi Hye-jin and Ryu Hae-ran, American Angel Yin and Belgium's Manon De Roey were on 139. A 90-minute morning fog delay led to the round being halted by darkness with nine players yet to finish. They will complete the second round on Saturday morning before the cut is made and the third round played. Among those still on the course, China's Zhang Weiwei was on five-under with three holes remaining. Liu, who began playing golf with her mother 15 years ago, has a best LPGA career finish of third at the 2023 ShopRite Classic. Advertisement She had opened with a 65 to share the 18-hole lead, but stumbled with bogeys at the first and sixth holes only to answer with the albatross stunner. After a bogey at the ninth, Liu's lead was down to one stroke. She parred the next six holes before making bogey at 16, missing an eight-foot par putt to fall back, only to surge into the lead alone again with her closing birdie. "I think definitely I will feel a little bit (of pressure) because this is a major," Liu said. "I know the course going to be harder so I think I just stay patient, calm, because I'm a very emotional person." js/bb
Straits Times
25-04-2025
- Sport
- Straits Times
China's Liu Yan, South Korea's Ryu Hae-ran share storm-hit LPGA Chevron lead
China's Liu Yan plays her shot from the 11th tee during the first round of The Chevron Championship. PHOTO: AFP HOUSTON – China's Liu Yan and South Korea's Ryu Hae-ran each fired a seven-under 65 to share the lead in the storm-suspended opening round of the LPGA Chevron Championship on April 24. Both Asian standouts had bogey-free starts for 18 holes at Carlton Woods in the year's first women's Major. 'My driver was pretty good, pretty solid,' Liu said. 'Very solid golf today. On the course I'm pretty confident.' Ryu made a putter change that has paid dividends. 'That was amazing,' she said. 'I change the putter and more comfortable for my putting this week... this putter is definitely (better). I make a lot of tricky ones and it's really good for me.' South Korean Kim Hyo-joo was third on 67 with a pack on 68 including her compatriot Choi Hye-jin, American Brooke Matthews, Spain's Carlota Ciganda, Belgium's Manon de Roey and Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn. Play was suspended by a storm late in the day and halted for good an hour later with 24 players unable to finish their first round until April 25. Ryu, the 2023 LPGA Rookie of the Year, is seeking her third tour title and first Major victory. She won the LPGA Northwest Arkansas Championship in 2023 and the 2024 FM Championship. The world No. 12's three top-10 finishes in Majors last season included a fifth-place effort at the Chevron. Liu began playing golf with her mother 15 years ago. She is hoping to clinch her first LPGA victory and her best career tour finish was third at the 2023 ShopRite Classic. A 10th-hole starter, the Chinese birdied the 10th and par-three 12th, then opened and closed her second nine with birdies in addition to reeling off three in a row starting at the par-three third. 'I think because my approach shot is pretty good, it's much like long putt,' she added. 'I had like 16 on the green, so every putt is for birdie, so it was pretty key for today's approach shot.' In men's golf, Isaiah Salinda and Kevin Velo set the four-ball record at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with a 14-under 58 to take the first-round lead at TPC Louisiana in Avondale. Playing the best-ball format, the duo were a white-hot 12 under through their first 11 holes – an eagle by Salinda at the par-five seventh and the rest birdies – before slowing down. The team finished with five pars and two birdies over the final seven holes. The scoring record only handed Salinda and Velo a one-shot lead over Danish twins Nicolai and Rasmus Hojgaard, who turned in a 13-under 59. AFP, REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Yan and Buhai share lead at LA Championship
Liu Yan of China shared the lead after the first round of the LA Championship (Katelyn Mulcahy) China's Liu Yan and South Africa's Ashleigh Buhai both shot 9-under par rounds of 63 to share the lead after the first round of the LA Championship on Thursday. But on a day of low scoring at El Caballero Country Club, Sweden's Frida Kinhult was just a shot off the leading pair and a chasing pack of five were just a further stroke behind. Advertisement Liu made a shaky start with a bogey on her opening hold, the par-4 10th, but she was electric from then on making birdies on three of her next four holes before an eagle on the par-5 16th. She finished her round with three birdies in a row and carded her lowest score on the LPGA Tour. "I think on my first hole I was a little nervous. I had high expectations for myself and I was nervous," said the 29-year-old, searching for her first win on the LPGA Tour which she joined in 2018. "I got bogey and before the next hole I told myself, 'You have to be calm and you have to be confident and be brave. You can do it.' I just talked with myself," she said. Advertisement Buhai, the 2022 British Open winner, was blemish free through her round, starting with a birdie on the tenth. "Obviously any day you have a bogey-free round, that's a good day. I was very patient; hit a lot of good shots. I mean, you have to hole a lot of good putts as well. But I felt the pins were in locations we could access them today as long as you use the slopes correctly," she said. "I feel that's kind of what this course is like. If you hit it into the right bowls you'll get good results; otherwise you can short side yourself very easily and it can't be fun," added the 35-year old. Kinhult was also bogey-free and finished her round off in style with birdies on each of the last three holes although she accepted she had relied on her putter. Advertisement "I guess it was a smooth ride. Saved maybe two or three pars from, I don't know, six, nine footers. Other than that... golf felt easy for once, so hopefully we'll enjoy that ride the next few days as well," she said. The chasing pack on 7-under includes South Korean trio Jenny Shin, Chun In-gee and Lee Jeong-eun along with China's Miranda Wang and Sweeden's Madelene Sagstrom. Sagstrom, who tasted victory in the LPGA Match Play event in Las Vegas earlier this month, ended her round with a hole-in-one on the par-3 ninth her first ever ace on the tour. But with a tight leaderboard, American Nelly Korda, last year's Tour Player of the Year, who racked up seven victories in 2024, was tied for 15th but was just four shots off the lead. Korda made three bogeys on her round but all of them were three putts after she shit 18 out of 18 greens. Her round was saved by a streak of four straight birdies on her back nine. sev/bfm
