Honda LPGA Thailand
Siam Country Club, Pattaya Old Course
Chonburi, Thailand
First Round Notes
February 26, 2015
Rolex Rankings No. 3 Stacy Lewis (-6)
Rolex Rankings No. 90 Yani Tseng (-6)
Rolex Rankings No. 62 Brittany Lang (-6)
Rolex Rankings No. 44 Ariya Jutanugarn (-5)
Rolex Rankings No. 16 Amy Yang (-5)
The opening round of the Honda LPGA Thailand ended with Yani Tseng, Brittany Lang and Stacy Lewis tied atop the leaderboard after each firing a 66. For Lewis, it was the second time she’s led or co-led after Rd. 1 this year. For Tseng and Lang it’s a position they are more unfamiliar with. Tseng hasn’t led after the first round since the 2012 CN Canadian Women’s Open and Lang has never done so, and both players are looking for their first win since 2012.
With the high temperature nearing 90 degrees Fahrenheit, players battled the heat all day and will have to do so the rest of the week. Temps will be in the high 80’s to low 90’s all weekend.
This is the second time Lewis has led or co-led the Honda LPGA Classic after the first round, with the last time coming in 2013 after an opening-round 63. Tseng has won the event two times (2011 and 2012) while Lang’s best finish at this event was a T4 in 2009.
HOT START FOR LEWIS
Stacy Lewis began her round with an eagle on the first hole at the Siam Country Club, Pattaya Old Course on her way to a 29 on the front nine but came back down to earth on the back nine.
“There are tough holes that if you get on the wrong side of it,” Lewis said. “I mean, we misjudged the wind on 13 and got on the wrong side of the hole, and then made a couple bad decisions there on 18. You know, it happens on this golf course. You get short sided, you’re going to make a bogey. Just try to minimize the damage.”
Lewis, who has finished in the top five of this event in each of the last three years, is feeling strong early this season and that may strike fear into opposing players.
“I was pleased coming out today with the ball striking,” Lewis said. ”That was something those first two events that wasn’t quite there. Pleased with the way I hit it. Put a new driver in the back this week and was pretty pleased with that, too. I’m excited about the rest of the week.”
Lewis dealt with the headaches of a traveling golfer early in the week. The airline was unable to find her clubs early in the week but thankfully the World No. 3 had her clubs in time for the start of this tournament. The extra rest may have led to Lewis’ 29 on the front nine.
“I kind of think it might have been to my advantage,” Lewis said. “You come out Tuesday and maybe you’re sweating like crazy and taking some energy out. If anything, I got to save some energy on Tuesday.”
A FAN OF THAILAND
Prior to 2015, Yani Tseng has played the Honda LPGA Thailand seven times and seven times she has finished in the top-7 including back-to-back wins in 2011 and 2012.
“I always love here,” Tseng said. “I have so many friends out here and the fans out here always give me great support. I feel like coming back here always start of the season and I feel fresh and give me good energy. We play on this great golf course. I think it kind of suits my game. It’s good for the long hitter out here.”
Tseng was paired today with Thailand native Ariya Jutanugarn and sees a lot of herself in the young Thai golfer.
“I feel like when I watch her play I feel like that’s how I play when I was young,” Tseng said. “Just grip and hit it. Don’t really worry about it. I give my 100% every shot. If I pitch it right, I go there to save my shot. I think that’s how golf should be. I feel I just worry too much out there. I might actually learn something from her. Very happy to play with her. She kind of give me good motivation. She hits great shot out there and makes good putt, and that makes me feel like I want to catch her. “
SOLHEIM MOTIVATION
The 14th edition of the Solheim Cup will take place in September at the St. Leon course of Golf Club St. Leon-Rot, St. Leon-Rot, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Brittany Lang sits 11th on the Solheim Cup points list at 154.5 points. She was asked after her opening-round 66 if it being a Solheim year adds any motivation for her.
“You know, it does,” Lang said. “ Of course I want to play on the Solheim, but I am just going to keep doing what I have been doing: seeing my shots, committing, having fun, being positive. Because if I start thinking about Solheim it’s going to get me away from what I’m doing. Solheim is the most fun you ever have on the course. It’s one of the most important things to me, so it’s hard not to think about it. You got to have some mental strength to just stick to what you’re doing.”
The cut-off event for American players to earn points will be at the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open August 20-23 in Vancouver. Players started earning points at the 2013 CN Canadian Women’s Open and will receive heavier weighted points at LPGA events in 2015 and double points at the Tour’s five major championships. Members of Team USA are decided by the top-8 U.S. Solheim Cup Points earners, two players from the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings not already qualified by points, and two captain’s picks.
ROLEX PROJECTIONS
Regardless of what happens this week, Lydia Ko is projected to remain the No. 1 player in the Rolex Rankings. Current No. 3 ranked Stacy Lewis could move up a spot, past Inbee Park, into second with a win this week.
Numbers to know
0- Number of times a player from Thailand has won an LPGA event
7 - There have been seven different winners of the Honda LPGA Thailand. Only Yani Tseng has won the event more than once (2011-2012)
6- Number of countries represented within the top 10 of the Rolex Rankings
9 - This is the ninth edition of the Honda LPGA Thailand, which began in 2006
16- This week, 16 of the top 20 in the Rolex Rankings will play at the Honda LPGA Thailand
22- The average age of the three LPGA winners (Na Yeon Choi, Sei Young Kim and Lydia Ko) in 2015
33- Number of official events in 2015, up from 23 in 2011
62 million (USD)- The total purse money in 2015, up from $41.4M in 2011
410- Number of live televised hours in 2015, the most in LPGA history
TV TIMES THIS WEEK
Golf Channel airtimes of the Honda LPGA Thailand are as follows: (All times listed are United States ET)
Friday 2/27
1:00am-5:00am ET - Round 2
11:00am-1:00pm ET - Round 2 (re-air)
7:00pm-9:00pm ET - Round 2 (re-air)
Saturday 2/28
1:00am-5:00am ET - Round 3
Sunday 3/1
1:00am-5:00am ET - Final Round
Monday 3/2
11:00am-1:00pm ET- Final Round (re-air)
QuoteS of the Day
“They tell me if I don’t win I don’t go back, because that’s how good the offseason was.” - Yani Tseng explaining what her new coach, Claude Harmon and her new trainer, Dave Donatucci, said to her at the start of the season.
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