By: Max Bechtoldt
When the pairings came out for the opening rounds of the AIG Women’s Open at St. Andrews, there was one group that was more eye-catching than the rest. That put on an absolute show in the afternoon.
World No. 1 Nelly Korda, No. 2 Lilia Vu and No. 10 Charley Hull have each put themselves in firm contention to win. Generally we see that the vibes of a group improve play, which looked clear here. All three looked comfortable despite the brutally slow pace of play. Often they were seen joking and laughing on the tees and in the fairway. Those good vibes led to the elite golf we saw.
Hull came out on top, taking the lead after Ruoning Yin set a seemingly impossible to reach -4 mark in the morning. The conditions eased up a tiny bit for the afternoon players. Hull got to -5 with six birdies and a bogey, and shot -4 on the back nine. Hull was near flawless all around hitting 12 fairways, 13 greens and having only 27 putts.
Speaking of near flawless, Nelly Korda’s back nine was spectacular. Particularly the last three holes she looked like the Nelly we are used to seeing. Korda hit terrific approaches on 16, 17 and 18. While she couldn’t convert on 16, she hit putts on both the last two holes. Shooting -4, this was easily the best Korda has looked since her win at the Mizuho Americas Open.
Finally, Lilia Vu finished at -3 after hitting arguably the shot of the day on the first hole. In the brutal wind of the morning, Vu made a 60+ foot putt for birdie to kick off what was a very solid round. She saved herself all day, including a great bunker shot on the brutal par 3 11 and a great par save after a poor bunker shot on the par 5 14.
While the first round in all likelihood will not be completed today, Hull’s lead will undoubtedly stand. Tomorrow will show if these three superstars can continue the momentum.
