Lydia Ko will rue what could have been an outstanding opening round of the latest LPGA Tour event.
Ko had a share of the lead through 16 holes at the Drive on Championship in Georgia on Friday morning (NZT), only for an ugly triple bogey on the par three 17th to derail her round.
She bounced back to birdie the 18th, her sixth of the day, to shoot a one-under 71 opening round.
That leaves her just two shots behind clubhouse leader Celine Boutier, with the Frenchwoman making eagle on the par five 18th to finish in style.
However, whether she will go into round two with the lead is no certainty, given Americans Jennifer Song (five-under), Brianna Do (four-under) and Danielle Kang (four-under) are all off to scorching starts.
Earlier, Ko birdied two of her first three holes, and three of four holes in the middle section of the back nine.
The 23-year-old has five top-20 finishes in eight appearances since linking up with new swing coach Sean Foley in July, and told media on Thursday morning the transition had been smooth.
“I think Sean has been able to clear some of the questions in my mind and just make it more simple between the ears. Sometimes that’s the more important thing than learning something new.”
Fellow Kiwi Danny Lee has made a poor start to the latest PGA Tour event, the Zozo Championship, bogeying three of the first four holes to sit in a share of 77th.
Leader Englishman Justin Rose is six-under through seven at Thousand Oaks in California.
