THREE TIED FOR LEAD AFTER FIRST ROUND

South Koreans Hyo Joo Kim and Mirim Lee along with Japan's Haru Nomura are in a three-way tie for the lead at 5-under par after the first round of the Marathon Classic Presented by Owens Corning and O-I.

Kim, who won the season’s first tournament at the Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic, was the outright leader heading into her final hole but lipped out a par putt on the ninth green and card her lone bogey of the round.

“I hit good shots, a lot of good shots, good drives, good putts, but on the last hole I missed a putt,” said Kim. “It was just a great round.”

A two-time winner this year, Nomura is one of six players on Tour with multiple wins in 2016. The No. 22 ranked player in the world is looking to add to her career year that includes five top-10 finishes, nearly six after a T11 result in the U.S. Women’s Open.

“Today par putter is good,” Nomura said. “Shots good, second numbers, and everything smooth. Yeah. And play too good.”

Mirim Lee has at least a share of the first round lead for the fourth time in her career, and second time in the last two weeks after tying the lowest single round in a U.S. Women’s Open with an 8-under 64 last Thursday.

“I feel just great, and I’ll try to keep doing the same thing,” Lee said after finishing her round with back-to-back birdies.

American Kelly Shon, France’s Celine Herbin and three-time 2016 winner Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand sit a shot back of the lead at 4-under. Nine other players are tied for seventh at 3-under, including World No. 1 Lydia Ko (2014 Marathon Classic champion) and World No. 2 Brooke Henderson.

"Hopefully I'll have a few more birdies tomorrow," Ko said. "It's a solid start. I'll take the 3-under today, but I think because of the weather and if there are no thunderstorms the course will probably play drier. That will make it tougher if the greens get much firmer."

HARU NOMURA - 2016 IN A NUTSHELL

Rolex Ranking - 22
Wins - 2
Top-10s - 5
Official Money - $969,861 (7th)
Race to CME Globe - 2,003 pts. (5th)
ROLEX Player of the Year - 80 pts. (5th)

STAYING PATIENT
After a T52 finish facing a difficult test at CordeValle in the U.S. Women’s Open, Kelly Shon decided to take the same approach heading into this week’s Marathon Classic. Staying patient, Shon was able to fire a bogey-free 67 and sits tied for fourth through the first round of play.

“That key word, "patience" has kind of been the theme for my entire year so far,” said Shon. “I've been just kind of grinding away, and hopefully I'll be able to keep at it the next few days.”

Shon has had somewhat of an up-and-down sophomore season, making the cut in 11 of her 18 starts with her lowest finish coming two weeks ago at the Cambia Portland Classic (T19). With one career top-10 finish, the former Princeton Tiger has been focusing on getting her weight more to her left side and being more solid at impact.

“I missed those two cuts, consecutive two cuts back in Michigan and Arkansas. I finally said, I think I need to make a little swing adjustment. I did. Since then, I've been hitting the ball a lot better. I been putting well pretty much all season, so just that little swing change I think has helped me.”

POWERBALL

It has become commonplace for Rolex Rankings No. 7 Ariya Jutanugarn to leave her driver at home during tournaments this season, and she has opted to keep it out of her bag again this week in Ohio. Despite not always using driver off of the tee, Jutanugarn still ranks 11th on Tour in driving distance (267.97 avg.). She relies on her 3-wood and 2-iron when playing without her driver.

Jutanugarn is tied with Lydia Ko for the most LPGA wins in 2016 and is looking to become the first player on Tour to reach four victories this season. The Thailand native currently sits in a three-way tie for fourth at 4-under.

“Feel good,” said Jutanugarn. “Today I played pretty good. My tee shot was good and I make some putt.

OF NOTE

Haru Nomura and her caddie, Jason McDede, celebrate one year of work together this week. Nomura is one of six players with multiple wins in 2016 (ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open, Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic Presented by CTBC).
Celine Herbin’s won the 2015 French Open on the Ladies European Tour, which qualified her for this year’s Evian Championship. Herbin will also be playing in the Ladies Scottish Open next week as well in hopes of making it into the RICOH Women’s British Open. She’s made 6-of-11 cuts on the LPGA this year but has also played in 4 LET events and has two top-20 finishes there.
Lydia Ko is the fifth player to be named Best Female Golfer at the ESPY's in multiple years (Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, Lorena Ochoa, Cristie Kerr)
Epson Tour player Katherine Perry is making her first start on the LPGA Tour in 2016 and is tied for seventh at 3-under. Perry played in the 2009 and 2012 U.S. Women's Opens but failed to make the cut in either
Six of the last eight winners of the Marathon Classic were from South Korea.

Marathon Classic Presented by Owens Corning and O-I RD 1 Notes

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