England’s Charley Hull endured a sluggish begin to go away herself off the tempo on day one of many Chevron Championship, whereas Mimi Rhodes completed two photographs behind the early clubhouse lead.
Hull sat 5 photographs again and in a tie for twenty sixth on the time of ending her opening spherical after taking pictures a degree par 72 within the first girls’s main of 2026.
Fellow Englishwoman Rhodes carded a gap three-under 69 to take a seat on the tail of Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit and South Korea’s Somi Lee, each of whom produced a five-under spherical of 67 to set the tone.
Tavatanakit was bogey-free with 5 birdies throughout her first 18, whereas Lee shot six birdies earlier than dropping a shot on her remaining gap of the day.
“I think I felt ready,” mentioned Rhodes. “Getting right here on Sunday was most likely a profit to me that I used to be in a position to see the course a bit extra and simply be on website a bit extra.
“I feel a bit more comfortable getting my bearings around. I mean, I did as much prep as I could and, yeah, felt comfortable coming into this round. So, yeah, was just more about committing and being confident out there, which I thought I did.”
Rhodes added that she had taken classes from her spectacular efficiency on the HSBC Girls’s World Championship, the place she completed six-under in a tie for tenth.
“I feel like it was quite different mentally because I had got an invite into there and there wasn’t a cut so you could play more freely,” she defined.
“I’ve kind of taken those emotions out of there because I tend to play well in the first round if I’m confident in myself, if I’m committing to shots, if I’m not worried about the cut line. So that’s what I’ve come in to do here. You know, first major of the year. There is four more to go, so just play relaxed golf out there and not put too much pressure on myself.”
China’s Yan Liu adopted the early main duo on four-under after her spherical of 68, earlier than Rhodes nestled into a gaggle tied on three-under.
Rhodes got here out firing when she managed two birdies in her opening three holes, earlier than being pegged again by a bogey-five on the fourth. She mustered three extra birdies to make the flip in 32, earlier than a bogey on the eleventh served as the one blemish alongside her again 9.
Hull was blemish-free throughout a entrance 9 35 that included a birdie on the third, however got here unstuck by three bogeys after making the flip, albeit enhancing her scenario with two birdies both facet of a dropped shot throughout her remaining three holes.
Hull, who completed runner-up in 2016, stays in pursuit of her first main and returned to the event having missed the reduce in Texas this time final 12 months.
Mao Saigo enters the week as defending champion after beating 4 different performs to clinch a playoff victory in 2025.
Who will win The Chevron Championship? Watch the opening girls’s main of the 2026 season all through the subsequent week reside on Sky Sports activities. Dwell protection of the second spherical begins on Friday from 4pm on Sky Sports activities Golf and Sky Sports activities Predominant Occasion. Stream The Chevron Championship with no contract.
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