RYU RIGHT IN CONTENTION, THANKS TO MAJOR INSPIRATION

So Yeon Ryu arrived in Arkansas with a fresh outlook and great confidence after a two-week break from the LPGA Tour. Her first-round 65 came courtesy of her improved putting stroke, something on which she focused with her coach Cameron McCormick during her time off. The two-time major champion also drew inspiration from two other major winners, this time from the PGA Tour.

“I went to see Ian Baker-Finch and he told me – he actually make me really comfortable to do putting, like he gave me a lot of confidence like just trust yourself,” said Ryu, who is based in Dallas, Texas, near McCormick. “Also, I played with Nick Price, which it was really a pleasure to play with him. He also told me like your putting stroke is so smooth and you’re really great, so after that I got extra confidence. So I would like to say thank you to all three gentlemen.”

ACE PROPELS REID

Mel Reid used an ace on the par-3 11th, the seventh of her career, to post an opening-round 6-under 65.

“As soon as I hit it I thought, oh, it’s got a chance,” said Reid with a smile. “It just pitched a little longer than we thought. But yeah, I mean, a hole in one, I hit a good shot into there. I just hit a little 9-iron, so I think it was 135. I just tried to play a 130 shot and it pitched about seven behind it and came back.”

The hole-in-one pushed Reid to 8 under through 11 holes before she gave a pair back coming in and finished in a tie for second at 6-under 65.

“I actually felt like I’ve not been swinging it very well this week,” Reid explained. “I did a really hard session yesterday, just wasn’t comfortable at all. So my coach, Kev, we kind of had a chat last night and he just said your mindset’s a choice. He said you’ve just got to relax. As long as I relax. Like my ball doesn’t really go that far offline, it’s just when I get tense. So that was literally the main focus today and it worked out all right.”

A good finish at Pinnacle would strengthen Reid’s chances of playing on her third European Solheim Cup Team. She currently sits third on the Ladies European Tour Solheim Cup points standings, but comes into this week having missed her last three consecutive cuts. Reid, a native of England, represented Europe at the 2011 and 2015 Solheim Cups.

LEWIS OFF TO A GOOD START

Local favorite and 2014 NWA champion Stacy Lewis got off to a good start on Thursday, carding six birdies and one bogey to finish at 5-under 66. Starting on No. 10, Lewis said she actually started off flat, and didn’t pick up momentum until she made the turn.

“(No.) 18 is definitely a birdie-able hole, with the tee being up this year, and I think the putts on 1 and 2 are what calmed me down,” said Lewis, a 2008 graduate of the University of Arkansas. “And I told myself you’re going to be okay today and you can make some putts, and got into a good ball-striking rhythm after that.”

Lewis is aiming for her first LPGA victory since taking the title here in 2014.

MO MAKES LONG-AWAITED DONATION

Last night, Moriya Jutanugarn was among more than 1,500 people to donate hair to Pantene Beautiful Lengths; today she fired an opening-round 66 to sit in a tie for fifth.

“I’ve been really want to donate my hair since last year, when it doesn’t get long enough, so I think this year was a good chance,” Jutanugarn said. “I really happy to be, you know, one part of (this). I can help people, and they can use my hair for something, which is very nice.”

Pantene Beautiful Lengths creates real-hair wigs for women in the community who are battling cancer and provides them to the patients for free. Donors must have at least 8 inches of untreated hair to cut to be eligible to donate. This year, Jutanugarn and Tiffany Joh were the LPGA players who donated their hair to the cause.

QUOTABLE

“Why would I prepare any different from a tournament that I play well at versus a major? It’s still a golf ball, a little hole and some golf clubs. If you can have that attitude, I think, for me, that is what works best for me.” - Gerina Piller, on her preparation for majors; the LPGA has three majors in the next six weeks

QUICK HITS

Rookie Sung Hyun Park has never missed the cut in her 19 career LPGA tournaments, with a scoring average of 69.45
Mel Reid’s first-round 66 is tied for the lowest round of her LPGA career; she previously returned that score at the 2017 Volunteers of America Texas Shootout presented by JTBC and the 2010 Evian Ladies Masters
Ally McDonald’s first-round 65 is the lowest round of her LPGA career, besting the 67s she shot in the first and second rounds of this year’s Bank of Hope Founders Cup
For the second consecutive year, So Yeon Ryu shot a 6-under 65 in the opening round at Pinnacle C.C.
Park, Reid and McDonald are making their Walmart NWA debuts, while Ryu has made the cut in all five previous appearances (2012-16)
Felicity Johnson got in to the field when Sei Young Kim withdrew approximately 30 minutes prior to her tee time; Johnson closed with five consecutive birdies for a 5-under 66
McDonald and Karine Icher hit all 18 greens in regulation on Thursday, while four players – Katherine Kirk, Sherman Santiwiwatthanaphong, Thidapa Suwannapura and Ayako Uehara – hit all 13 fairways
Joanna Klatten leads the field in driving distance at 305.5 yards
Play was suspended at 2:29 p.m. CDT due to lightning in the Rogers area and resumed at 3:15 p.m. CDT

Lewis Off To A Good Start and More from Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G

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