CLPG Tour makes history with JLPGA co-sponsorship in Jiangsu

Chinese amateur Xu Ying and Lin Qianhui set the early pace at the Mitsubishi Electric Automation Women's Open on Thursday, as each shot two-under 70 in the first round to share a one-shot lead on a tight leaderboard in Jiangsu province.

On a historic occasion when the CLPG Tour regulars teed off with their JLPGA contemporaries in the co-sponsored event at Suzhou Taihu International Golf Club, Japan's Miyuki Takeuchi and Nao Ohbayashi were one shot back on 71, tied with China's Ji Yuai and Cao Xinyu.

Thailand's Saranporn Katesuwan, Japan's Rui Hiraoka and China's Sui Xiang and Liu Wenbo were equal seventh on even-par 72 at the JPY25 million tournament.

Beijing native Lin started her day on the back nine and was surprised to be atop the leaderboard after a "messy round" where she carded four birdies, a double bogey, a triple bogey and a rare albatross two. It was the fifth albatross in CLPG Tour history, the last coming from Li Shuying at the 2024 CLPGA Championship.

"The highlight of my day was capitalizing on birdie opportunities. Even though I had some short putts and three-putts, my mid-to-long range birdie putts were dropping more consistently. On the 482-yard fifth hole (her 14th hole), I made an albatross! My second shot, from about 180-185 yards with a five-iron, rolled straight into the cup," said the 21-year-old pro who has never finished higher than equal sixth at a CLPG Tour.

"For tomorrow, I don't have any big goals – just to stay calm, minimize major mistakes and focus more on my mentality and tempo, playing more steadily."

Xu, who was celebrating her 16th birthday, also started from the back nine, putting together a round featuring six birdies and four bogeys, the final one coming on her last hole (the ninth).

"On the final hole, I actually wanted to play safe for par to complete the goal I set for myself on the back nine. But life is full of ups and downs. You have to accept mistakes. This course has surprised me, and I must accept my own errors too," said the Zhuhai teenager, the equal runner-up at the Orient Women's China Open in December.

With a spot in the field for October's JLPGA Hisako Higuchi Mitsubishi Electric Ladies Golf Tournament on offer for this week's winner, Xu, 80th on the World Golf Amateur Ranking, said she would be happy to take the prize.

"If I win this championship, I'll compete on the Japanese tour. My original goal of turning pro remains unchanged, but I want to first secure a China LPGA Tour victory before turning professional. If I win this event, I plan to turn pro in the second half of this year or by year-end."

Ji, last year's CLPG Tour Order of Merit winner, carded three birdies and two bogeys after starting her morning round from the back nine.

"As the 2024 China LPGA Tour money leader, I participated in the first-tier Korean LPGA tournament (Blue Canyon Ladies Championship in Thailand) last week. It was my third consecutive tournament and I missed the cut by just one stroke. Although I wasn't in top form, this experience has motivated me to work even harder," said the 20-year-old Dalian native.

"It was a bit chilly when I went out this morning, and I wore several layers of clothes. At the beginning, I had a hard time controlling my ball trajectory. The ball was flying around erratically. As a result, on several challenging holes, I didn't perform well and made a few bogeys. However, after I gradually warmed up things got much better."

Veteran Takeuchi also started on the back nine with a birdie on her first hole (the 10th), one of four she would make on the day along with three bogeys, two of them coming on her final two holes (the eighth and ninth).

"The greens here are especially tough. You need pinpoint accuracy on approach shots. I actually enjoy that style of challenge so I'll stick to my game plan tomorrow."

Suzhou Taihu International Golf Club is a 6,503-yard, par-72 layout designed by Graham Marsh Golf Design.

Mitsubishi Electric Automation Women's Open first round leading scores

Players are from mainland China unless indicated *denotes amateur

70 – Lin Qianhui, Xu Ying*

71 – Cao Xinyu, Ji Yuai, Nao Obayashi (JPN), Miyuki Takeuchi (JPN)

72 – Sui Xiang, Liu Wenbo, Saranporn Katesuwan (THA), Rui Hiraoka (JPN)

73 – Fumie Tsune, Holly Victoria Halim (IDN), Wang Xinying, Chen Hsuan (TWN), Aoi Ohnishi

74 – Li Gengshan, Zeng Liqi, Zhang Jingwen, Prima Thammaraks (THA) Tang Rongze*