Wei-Ling Hsu from Taiwan was nothing short of sleep-deprived and travel-weary but that didn’t hold her back Thursday during the opening round of the Pure Silk in Williamsburg.
The seventh-year pro traveled from Thailand then played in a U.S. Open qualifier last Thursday and finally made her way to Williamsburg and still managed to shoot a five-under par 66 to take the first round lead.
“I’ve only slept I will say 20 hours in the last five days,” Hsu said after going out in the morning at Kingsmill Resort and firing a bogey-free round. “Since I didn’t get much sleep, I didn’t really expect much this week. Just try to sleep and relax and play golf.” Then she laughed, shook her head and said, “I mean, I’m so tired.”
Last week she competed for a spot at the Women’s U.S. Open at the Olympic Club, played 36-holes then won a playoff for the first alternate spot in San Francisco in a couple of weeks and will have to wait and see if a spot opens up.
But the day was hers during the first round of the LPGA Tour’s return to the U.S. Hsu is looking for her first LPGA Tour win. She was a shot in front of five players in at 67, including world’s No. 3 Sei Young Kim from South Korea.
The Korda sisters both were off their game as they turned in one-under par 70s.
Lexi Thompson, a former winner of this event, finished with a two-over par 73 and she’ll have to improve on Friday to make the 36-hole cut.
Stacy Lewis, Ryann O’Toole, Tiffany Joh and Liz Szokol were the low Americans with three-under par 68s.
Player Agents Unimpressed By Super (Saudi) Golf League:
It was true that representatives from the proposed Super Golf League (aka The Saudi Golf League) invaded Kiawah Island and managed to lure in a bunch of player agents for some sort of meeting on the day before PGA eve.
But from comments by some of those agents, it was one big ho-hum, non-event.
One manager afterward, referred to it as “underwhelming.”
“It’s a complete distraction,” Bryson DeChambeau observed. “I would say from my perspective, I’d want to know what way to go and just let’s go, whatever it is. Whatever is best for the players and for the fans is what I would support.”
Now The Sheriff Of Nottingham *aka PGA Tour commish Jay Monhan) wasn’t about to let those Saudi-money-reps get the last word.
Monahan was at Kiawah Island Wednesday meeting with many of the same managers who attended Tuesday’s gathering.
DeChambeau, who is among a group of players who have reportedly been tabbed as potential “franchise owners,” Bryson said he values his relationship with the Tour and would support what’s best for fans. “We don’t want to ruffle any feathers, we just want to go play golf and I would say give the fans the best experience they could possibly have,” DeChambeau said. “If it’s with the super league then it’s with the super league, but I will never do anything first.”
Interesting Byron should even mention that “If it’s with” the Super Golf League.
Monhan has basically taken the “them or us” stance.
