Anna Rin, Tied 2nd at 2 Strokes Behind... 'Expecting Korea's First Win'

15th Meyer Classic 1R 5-Under Par
Korea's 14 Consecutive Tournaments Without a Win This Year
Allison Lee Leads, Henderson and Shim Da Tied for 2nd

Will Anna Lin become the first Korean winner of the year?

Anna Lin is putting on the 17th hole of the first round at the Meijer Classic. [Grand Rapids, USA = AFP·Yonhap News]

On the 13th (local time), at the Blyderfields Country Club (par 72, 6,638 yards) in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA, Anna Lin finished the first round of the LPGA Tour Meijer Classic (total prize money $3 million) tied for 2nd place (5-under 67) with five birdies and no bogeys. Korean players have been suffering from a drought of victories since the LPGA Tour opened in January. They have failed to secure a win in 14 consecutive tournaments up to last week's ShopRite Classic. This is the worst streak in 24 years since 2000, when the first win was achieved in the 16th tournament.

Anna Lin started off well with a birdie on the first hole, the 10th hole (par 5), and added two more birdies on the 14th and 17th holes. In the back nine, she added birdies on the 2nd hole (par 4) and the 8th hole (par 5), joining the race for the championship. She relied on her long drives averaging 263 yards. Her iron shots were precise enough to miss the green only three times. She is two strokes behind the leader, a position from which a comeback is definitely possible. Anna Lin debuted on the LPGA Tour in 2022 and has yet to win. This year, she has made two top 10 finishes: tied for 3rd at the T-Mobile Match Play in April and tied for 6th at last week's ShopRite Classic.

Allison Lee (USA) dominated the top of the leaderboard with one eagle and seven birdies (two bogeys), posting 7-under 65. Brooke Henderson (Canada) and Carlota Ciganda (Spain) joined the group tied for 2nd place. Among Koreans, In-Kyung Kim is tied for 11th (4-under 68), while Hye-Jin Choi, Ji-Won Jeon, and Jeong-Eun Lee 5 are tied for 22nd (3-under 69).

World No. 2 Lilia Vu (USA), struggling with a back injury, returned after more than two months since the Ford Championship at the end of March and started tied for 22nd. On the other hand, defending champion Leona Maguire (Ireland) finished tied for 68th (even par 72). World No. 1 Nelly Korda (USA), a strong favorite to win, lost four strokes and dropped to tied for 133rd (4-over 76).

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