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05/01 20:57 CDT Haeran Ryu and Ariya Jutanugarn shake off major doldrums and
have solid start on LPGA in Utah
Haeran Ryu and Ariya Jutanugarn shake off major doldrums and have solid start
on LPGA in Utah
IVINS, Utah (AP) --- Haeran Ryu and Ariya Jutanugarn didn't waste time moving
on from the disappointment of the first LPGA major behind them, both opening
with bogey-free rounds Thursday for an ideal start in the inaugural Black
Desert Championship.
Ryu missed only one fairway, one green and took 27 putts in her round of
9-under 63, giving her a one-shot lead over Jutanugarn and Wei-Ling Hsu in the
LPGA's return to Utah for the first time in just over 60 years.
Ryu shared the 54-hole lead last week in the Chevron Championship when nothing
went right for her the final round. Even with an eagle on the final hole, she
shot 76 and missed the playoff by two shots.
"I'm not change something from my mind, because last week it was tough golf
course and this week it's tough, too," Ryu said. "Just thinking more accuracy
for my shot, and I think same as last week."
Jutanugarn had a rougher finish. She needed par on the last hole to win when
the Thai stubbed a chip behind the green and wound up making bogey. In the
five-player playoff, Jutanugarn lipped out on a 7-foot birdie putt as Mao Saigo
won.
"I would say when I got here I felt like the course is really tough because
like it's kind of new. It's different, really unique, really beautiful,"
Jutanugarn said. "But of course last week I didn't finish the way I want, but
it's so many thing going on --- like good things --- and I just want to carry
on from that and keep working as hard as I can."
Jutanugarn, a former No. 1 player in women's golf, has gone four years without
winning.
Saigo was 2 over through four holes and then steadied herself by playing
bogey-free the rest of the way with four birdies to salvage a 70. She was among
the late starters at Black Desert, a Tom Weiskopf design carved from a massive
field of black lava amid red rock mountains, some 30 miles from Zion National
Park.
It is the only golf course that hosts an official PGA Tour and LPGA Tour event.
Black Desert hosted a PGA Tour event last fall.
Lucy Li birdied her last two holes for a 64 and was part of a six-way tie for
fourth that included Carlota Ciganda. Celine Boutier was among the group at 65.
"It's an amazing place. I've really enjoyed my past few days here. It's
beautiful. It was kind of just the focus on refreshing and recharging after the
major last week," Henseleit said.
The scoring was low without much wind and relatively soft conditions, with
nearly 60% of the 144-player field breaking par.
Henseleit said it was more about picking targets and being aggressive. Even so,
there is enough rock framing the fairways to make targets appear smaller than
they are. And it doesn't take much to get in trouble.
"I would say this course can be really stressful because you kind of have to
plan everything, every shot --- tee shot, second shot, where to finish the
ball," Jutanugarn said. "I'm very lucky this morning --- no wind, so got a bit
easier to finish the ball where I want to finish."
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This version corrects Ryu's score to 9-under 63
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
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