Saso rallies but trails by 6 in Pelican opener

MANILA, Philippines – Running out of holes, Yuka Saso didn't run out of hopes, coming through with two late frontside birdies to save a 68 at the start of the Pelican Women’s Championship in Belleair, Florida Thursday (Friday, Manila time).

Though she stood six strokes behind a hot-starting Leona Maguire of Ireland, the reigning US Women’s Open champion could work on her late surge to help fuel her bid in Friday’s second round and enhance her ranking heading to the weekend play of the $1.75 million event.

In high spirits coming off a long haul from Japan to US following a joint 22nd place in the TOTO Classic last Sunday, the ICTSI-backed Saso flaunted a superb long game and awesome putting although she struggled with her irons that hampered her drive in the early going of the 72-hole championship featuring the world's leading players.

Starting at the backside of the par-70 Pelican Golf Club, the world No. 6 double-bogeyed the par-3 No. 12 and scrambled her way to regain those precious strokes. She birdied the next par-3 (No. 15) but dropped another stroke on the next before closing out her backside start with back-to-back birdies. Heading for regulation with a run of pars at the front, she finally hit her fourth birdie in the day at No. 7 then rode on that feat to gain another stroke on the next but missed making it three-in-row at the par-3 ninth.

She thus moved to a share of 23rd that includes world No. 2 Jin Young Ko, Thais Patty Tavatanakit and Moriya Jutanugarn, Koreans A. Lim Kim and Jeongeun Lee6, French Celine Boutier and Americans Lauren Stephenson and Brittany Linlicome.

Ranged against world No. 1 Nelly Korda and No. 11 Daniella Kang in one of the featured threesomes, Saso blasted an average of 295 yards off the mound and missed just one fairway. But she groped on her way to the greens, reaching regulation just 11 times although she more than made up for her struggle with her irons by coming through with 25 putts.

Korda, who actually regained the top ranking without competing the past two weeks, lived up to her billing, birdying three of the first five holes to set her campaign in motion. She hit three more against a bogey at the front to fire a 65 in a tie with Kang, who broke a roller-coaster backside start of four birdies and two bogeys with three frontside birdies, at third.

But Maguire proved peerless in a day of torrid scoring, rattling off eight birdies on a perfect 14-of-14 driving feat and a 24-putt performance for a 62. She led by two over defending champion Sei Young Kim, who spiked her equally solid 64 with an eagle on the par-5 No. 14.

The LPGA Tour's big guns also got into the early mix to guarantee a fierce title chase with American Lexi Thompson and Japanese Nasa Hataoka matching Korda and Kang’s 65s along with Jennifer Kupcho, Monday qualifier topnotcher Lauren Coughlin, Christina Kim, all of the US.

German Esther Henseleit, Taiwan’s Wei Ling Hsu, Mexico’s Gaby Lopez and Yu Liu of China all carded 66s while Maria Fassi, also of Mexico, Canada’s Brooke Henderson and American Jessica Korda led the 67 scorers who include Finland’s Matilda Castren, American Brittany Altomare, Taiwanese Ssu Chia Cheng, Thai Pornanong Phatlum, Aditi Ashok of India and New Zealand’s world No. 5 Lydia Ko.