SINGAPORE - At 418 yards with the wind constantly changing direction, the par-four 18th is a tough closing hole at the HSBC Women’s World Championship, delivering some casualties in Thursday’s (Feb 3) opening round.

Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit was fortunate to walk away unscathed, sinking her par putt for a five-under 67 that gave her a slim one-shot lead at the Sentosa Golf Course.

The world No. 13 would have had more company at the top of the leaderboard if not for a string of mistakes by Park In-bee, Lydia Ko and Danielle Kang on the second hardest hole of the day.

All three stood at the 18th tee at five-under but failed to make par. A hooked drive out of bounds by Ko made her task almost impossible and she could only manage a double-bogey seven, settling for a 69 that left her tied-fifth in a big group that included world No. 1 Ko Jin-young.

Park and Kang found the fairway but misjudged their approaches into the thick rough surrounding the 18th green. Neither could conjure up the short game required to save par and fell back to 68, joint-second alongside Kim A-lim.

There were no such errors from Patty, the reigning LPGA Tour’s Rookie of the Year, as she recorded five birdies on a bogey-free scorecard.

Her comfort around the New Tanjong Course and the tricky greens – she needed just 25 putts – was down to an “inner peace” she found on a recent trip back to Bangkok.
Patty, 22, said: “I feel grateful too that I have a job that I like and I get to travel around the world.

“Going home helps calm me. I was just resting really well and enjoying myself.”
It will take more than a closing bogey to rattle Park, who is seeking a hat-trick of wins in Singapore after triumphs here in 2015 and 2017. 

The former world No. 1, who did not miss a single fairway on Thursday and hit 17 of 18 greens in regulation, brushed off that misstep.

She said: “Everything was good today. Except for the final hole where I mishit the hybrid, that was pretty much my only mis-shot out there today.”

Kang unsurprisingly cut a more frustrated figure after her round. She began with five birdies in eight holes but dropped three shots over her final four holes, including back-to-back bogeys at the end.

The world No. 4, who won the season-opener Tournament of Champions in January, said: “It was just getting so hot at one point. And unfortunately I just kind of checked out from golf for a little bit because I was more focused on trying to stay cool. And I haven’t been in this kind of heat in a while.

“I think my body got lazy towards the end and instead of birdie opportunities, I was just giving myself par ones, which was hard, especially when the winds are gusting like all over the place.”

Top-ranked Ko needed all of her battling qualities after a double-bogey on the fourth hole. She regrouped to shoot a 69 and was three-under alongside 13 others including Canadian Brooke Henderson and China’s Lin Xiyu.

Defending champion Kim Hyo-joo was a further three back after a 72 while Singapore’s Koh Sock Hwee, the country’s sole representative at the US$1.7 million (S$2.3 million) tournament, shot 80 and was 64th, one spot better than Chinese amateur Yin Xiaowen (81), who is in last place.

Ko made a three on the 18th hole and said it was “a huge birdie” as it gives her the right momentum for the next three days. “Just keep going and we’ll see what happens,” she added.

Scores (selected)

67 Patty Tavatanakit (Tha)

68 Park In-bee, Kim A-lim, Danielle Kang (USA)

69 Lydia Ko (Nzl), Brooke Henderson (Can), Atthaya Thitikul, Pajaree Anannarukarn (Tha), Lin Xiyu (Chn), Nanna Koerstz Madsen (Nor), Ko Jin-young

70 Carlota Ciganda (Esp), Caroline Masson (Ger), Lizette Salas (USA), Leona Maguire (Irl)

72 Kim Hyo-joo, Ariya Jutanugarn (Tha)

80 Koh Sock Hwee (Sgp)