The Los Angeles area is familiar ground to Alison Lee and on Thursday, the former UCLA star solved the puzzle that is the Wilshire Country Club.
Lee fashioned a flawless, bogey-free round of 66 to take a one-shot lead on opening day at the Women’s L.A. Open.
“I feel really comfortable,” Lee said. “I would say it’s not so much the course, but just being in L.A., seeing a bunch of familiar faces out there. Sometimes when you play week to week it does get pretty lonely out there. When you come to an event and you see people that you recognize and you know and they’re there to support you and bring up and lift you up.”
Lee birdied the par-4 sixth and par-3 seventh on the front nine, then moved up the leaderboard with birdies on the par-3 12th, par-5 15th and par-4 16th. She saved par on the final two holes, making a 6-footer on the par-4 17th and blasting out of the front bunker for a tap-in on the par-3 18th.
“I wouldn’t say there is any sort of secret weapon or secret that you need to know to play this course,” Lee said. “I would say it’s a little bit of everything. You are challenged with your tee shots, with your approach shots, even around the greens. As it gets in the afternoon it does tend to get a little more bumpy. You just need to stay patient out there.”
Three players were in with 67s, including Japanese star Nasa Hataoka, who is trying to play her way back into the world’s top 10.
Hataoka closed with a birdie on 18. The 23-year-old Japanese player had seven birdies and three bogeys. She has five LPGA Tour victories, winning twice last season. “Wilshire is not an easy course,” Hataoka said. “Four under is a pretty good start for me.”
Emily Kristine Pedersen and Emma Talley joined Hataoka at four-under par on a windy, testy day.
World No. 10 Sei Young Kim was one of a half-dozen players who recorded three-under par rounds of 68.
Defending champion Brooke Henderson, who withdrew from last week’s Lotte Championship with an illness, may still be in the recovery mode. She struggled mightily and finished with a five-over par 76 that left her in big danger of missing the 36-hole cut.
World No. 1 Jin Young Ko shot an even par round of 71. No. 5 Minjee Lee shot 70 as did No. 4 Atthaya Thitikul. Danielle Kang, highest ranked American in the field at No. 7, shot 72 as did ninth-ranked Inbee Park.
The Next “The Match” Pits Old Guard QBs (Brady, Rodgers) Vs. New Guard QBs (Allen, Mahomes):
Yet another episode in “The Match” is coming June 1 but this time there’s no Phil Mickelson, no Brooks Koepka, no Bryson DeChambeau — in fact, no professional golfers at all.
This one, slated for June 1 at the familiar Wynn Golf Club in steamy Las Vegas, will pit two future first ballot Hall of Fame quarterbacks from the NFC, vs. two young, All-Pro studs from the AFC.
It’s Tampa’s Tom Brady and Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers teaming up against Josh Allen from the Buffalo Bills and Patrick Mahomes from the Kansas City Chiefs — the Old Guard vs. the New Guard, if you will.
Seems TNT wants to see if NFL guys can outdraw PGA Tour guys. It will be Brady’s third appearance and he’s 0-2 so far.
Brady had the best comment on his Twitter account: “We tried to make this a tag team cage match but the lawyers said our contracts wouldn’t allow it…”
Like the Koepka-DeChambeau fiasco, this will be a 12-hole event with coverage beginning on TNT at 6:30 p.m. EDT.
DP World Tour Finally Back In Action:
After some time off for the Masters, the DP World Tour is finally back in action this week in Spain.
Hipster-hat-wearing Tapio Pulkkanen from Finland along with South Africans Johannes Veerman and Hennie Du Plessis tied for the first round lead with six-under par 64s at the ISPS Handa at the Lakes Course in Tarragona.
England’s Jack Senior, Swede Niklas Lemke and David Law from Scotland were a shot back with 65s.
