Lee So-young and Jeon Ye-sung are tied for the lead after the first round of the Doosan E&C Weave Championship, a new event on the KLPGA Tour this year.
Lee So-young shot a 6-under 66 in the first round of the KLPGA Tour’s Doosan E&C Weave Championship at Teddy Valley Golf & Resort (Par 72) in Seogwipo, Jeju Island on Wednesday.
The tournament was scheduled to be played over four days, but the first round was canceled on Oct. 10 as Typhoon Kanun passed near Jeju. The tournament will now be played through Sept. 13 to determine the winner.
Lee was tied for the lead on the first day, giving her a chance to shake off the jinx of going winless in an odd-numbered year. The South Korean made her KLPGA Tour debut in 2016 and recorded one win in her rookie season. She has since added three wins in 2018 and one each in 2020 and 2022, giving her six career victories.
However, she hasn’t won in odd-numbered years. This year, she has seven top-10 finishes, including a runner-up finish at the season-opening Hana Financial Group Singapore Women’s Open. Last week at the Jeju Samdasu Masters, she shot a 6-under-par first round to take a share of the lead, but fought back to finish third.
She had a chance to shake off her odd-numbered winless jinx once again by taking the lead on the first day of the Doosan E&C Weave Championship.
On the day, So-young Lee used her excellent putts to reduce her score. After starting the day on the 10th hole, Lee dropped a 15-meter birdie putt into the hole on the 14th. On the 15th, she made an 8-meter birdie putt. She made her first bogey of the day on the 16th.
In the second half, she had birdie chances to within two meters on the second and fourth holes. At the third and fifth, he holed a 5-meter birdie putt. On the back nine, she made a birdie putt from over 10 meters to complete the 6-under-par puzzle.
After the match, Lee said, “My bold long putts paid off,” adding, “I think I averaged about 7 meters. However, my shots inside 100 meters were a bit lacking,” Lee reflected on the day.
“The course is not difficult, so I think I need to reduce my strokes a lot to compete for the championship,” Lee said, adding, “I think I can do well if I make short putts and finish well.” Lee revealed her strategy for the rest of the round.
Fourth-year Tour player Jeon Ye-sung also shared the lead after the first day of play. Jeon carded an eagle, five birdies and a bogey for a 6-under 66.
Jeon, who won her first KLPGA Tour event at the EverCollagen Queen’s Crown in July 2021, has a chance to make it two wins in two years and one month.
After the match, Jeon said, “I lost a lot of feeling during the break after the first half. I practiced a lot to find it,” she said, adding, “I was worried because I couldn’t feel my shots until yesterday, but today it went well. There were some things I was disappointed with, but overall I’m happy.”
Jeon, who started the day on the 10th hole, had a shot eagle on the par-4 18th. From a distance of 138 meters, she put her second shot into the hole. “The hole was on top of a two-tiered green. I thought about hitting it with a 6-iron, but then I hit it confidently with a 7-iron,” he said.
“I tried not to miss the fairway and the green. I will try to make a birdie after making a par,” he said of his strategy for the rest of the round.
“When you are physically tired in the middle of the round and your concentration drops, there is a crisis,” Jeon said, adding, “I expect that if I don’t lose my concentration and think positively and confidently like I did today, I will be able to produce good results.” 메이저사이트