Ko Jin-young and Kim Se-young Tie for 3rd Place... Saso Leads the Race

CPKC Women's Open 1R Fresh Start with 3 Under Par
Grant 2nd, Rose Jang and Danielle Kang Tied 3rd
Korda 9th, Choi Hye-jin 13th, Lydia Ko 19th

This is the comeback shot of 2019 champion Ko Jin-young.

On the 24th (local time), she posted a 3-under-par 69 in the first round of the LPGA Tour CPKC Women's Open (total prize money $2.5 million) held at Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club (par 72, 6,685 yards) in Vancouver, Canada, placing her in a tie for 3rd. Yuka Saso (Japan) leads with 6-under-par 66, Lin Grant (Sweden) is in 2nd place with 5-under-par 67, and Kim Sei-young, Rose Zhang, and Danielle Kang (all from the United States) joined the group tied for 3rd.

Ko Jin-young is teeing off at the 3rd hole during the first round of the CPKC Women's Open. [Vancouver (Canada) = AFP·Yonhap News]

Ko Jin-young recorded five birdies and two bogeys. After consecutive birdies on holes 1 and 2, she took a brief breather with a bogey on the 4th hole (par 4), then climbed the leaderboard with back-to-back birdies on holes 6 and 7. However, in the back nine, she only managed to recover a bogey on the 14th hole with a birdie on the 16th hole (both par 4). She relied on a fairway hit rate of 78.57% and 25 putts. She is three strokes behind the leader, marking her third win of the season and 16th career victory, three months after winning the Cognizant Founders Cup in May.

Ko Jin-young had been somewhat sluggish since her Founders Cup victory. She participated in six tournaments but failed to enter the 'top 10' even once. She missed the cut at last month's major, the U.S. Women's Open. Three weeks ago, she competed in the KLPGA Tour Jeju Samdasoo Masters but withdrew during the second round due to left shoulder stiffness. Once the longest-reigning world No. 1, Ko Jin-young has dropped to 4th in the world rankings.

Ko Jin-young made good memories at this tournament in 2019. She won the event at Magna Golf Club in Aurora, Ontario, Canada, with a 'bogey-free victory.' She set the tournament record with 26-under-par 262. Although she has not yet fully recovered her condition, she laid the groundwork to make another leap forward in Canada, the 'promised land.'

Yuka Saso swept up eight birdies (two bogeys), including four consecutive birdies. She is ranked 15th in the world and won the 2021 U.S. Women's Open. World No. 2 Nelly Korda (USA) is tied for 9th (2-under-par 70), and Choi Hye-jin is tied for 13th (1-under-par 71). Lydia Ko (New Zealand), the winner in 2012, 2013, and 2015, is tied for 19th (even-par 72). World No. 1 Lilia Vu (USA) is also in this group.

From Korea, Kim Hyo-joo and Lee Jeong-eun 5 are tied for 19th, Im Mi-hyang is tied for 31st (1-over-par 73), Jeon In-ji and Lee Jeong-eun 6 are tied for 50th (2-over-par 74). Yoo Hae-ran and An Na-rin are struggling at tied 71st (3-over-par 75). 2017 champion Park Sung-hyun made no birdies but had four bogeys and three double bogeys, placing her tied for 151st (10-over-par 82).

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