Jeon In-ji Tied for 7th Place... 'Career Grand Slam GO~'

Major AIG Women's Open 1R Starts at 2 Under Par
Yu Ying Leads, Lee Jeong-eun 6 and Yang Hee-young Tied for 2nd
Ko Jin-young, Korda, and Shin Ji-ae Tied for 60th Start

‘Flying Dumbo’ Jeon In-ji has begun her march toward the ‘Career Grand Slam.’

On the 10th (local time), she posted 2-under par in the first round of the AIG Women’s Open (total prize money $9 million), the final major tournament of the 2023 LPGA Tour season, held at Walton Heath Golf Club (par 72, 6,881 yards) in Surrey, England, placing her in a tie for 7th with Kim Hyo-joo. Ally Ewing (USA) leads with 4-under par 68, while Lee Jeong-eun 6, Yang Hee-young, and three others are tied for 2nd at 3-under par 69, engaging in a chase.

Jeon In-ji is taking her second shot on the 18th hole in the first round of the major tournament AIG Women's Open. [Surrey (England) = AFP·Yonhap News]

Jeon In-ji recorded three birdies and one bogey. She started shakily with a bogey on the 2nd hole (par 4) but recovered the lost strokes with a birdie on the 6th hole (par 5). In the back nine, she showed clean play by securing two birdies on the 11th hole (par 5) and the 15th hole (par 4). Her shot accuracy stood out, missing the fairway and green only three times each. However, her putting count of 32 was somewhat disappointing. She is two strokes behind the leader, in a position to expect her first win of the season and her fifth career victory.

Jeon In-ji is a ‘major hunter.’ Among her four LPGA Tour wins, three are major championships. She consecutively won the 2015 US Women’s Open, the 2016 Evian Championship, and the 2022 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. Last year, she lost to Ashleigh Buhai (South Africa) on the fourth hole of a playoff in this tournament, postponing her record-breaking achievement. On the LPGA Tour, winning all four major titles is called a ‘Career Grand Slam,’ and sweeping five majors is known as a ‘Super Career Grand Slam.’

Shin Ji-eun is tied for 19th (1-under par 71), while Ji Eun-hee, Choi Hye-jin, Kim A-rim, Yoo Hae-ran, and Rose Zhang (USA) are tied for 33rd (even par 72). World No. 1 Nelly Korda (USA), No. 2 Ko Jin-young, and Shin Ji-ae are tied for 60th (1-over par 73). Defending champion Ashleigh Buhai and Lydia Ko (New Zealand) are tied for 81st (2-over par 74). Celine Boutier (France), who recently won two consecutive tournaments, is also in this group.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.