England’s Charley Hull is two strokes behind the leader following the opening round of the LPGA Tour’s Maybank Championship in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Pauline Roussin-Bouchard of France secured an outright lead after firing an 8-under 64 at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club by birdieing her final three holes.
Tournament Leaderboard
Roussin-Bouchard, who entered the tour as a rookie in 2022 and holds three top-10 finishes, is searching for her maiden LPGA victory. American Sophia Schubert and Miyu Yamashita, who triumphed in last year’s Malaysian event via a three-way play-off, shared second place after posting rounds of 65.
Perrine Delacour of France recorded a 66 to share fourth place alongside Hull, who managed birdies on two of her last three holes. Haeran Ryu, this year’s Women’s PGA Championship and Evian Championship major winner, withdrew prior to her opening tee time for reasons that were not disclosed. Ryu entered the tournament as the highest-ranked player due to the absences of top-ranked Nelly Korda and second-ranked Jeeno Thitikul.
Yuri Yoshida shot a 69 on Thursday following her victory at the BMW Ladies Championship in South Korea last week. Yoshida’s win marked the fourth time this season a Japanese player has claimed an LPGA Tour title, joining Yamashita, Shiho Kuwaki, and Yuna Nishimura.
Course Incidents and Schedule
Television coverage captured an unusual hazard on the Kuala Lumpur course when a 3-meter (10-foot) monitor lizard was seen eating a smaller animal near one of the water hazards.
The LPGA Tour’s four-week late-season Asian swing concludes next week with the Toto Japan Classic held in Omitama, located outside Tokyo.
