Almost a year after turning professional, Rose Zhang checked a new career milestone off her list, recording her lowest round on the LPGA Tour on Thursday at the Cognizant Founders Cup.
Zhang began her day in the afternoon wave and wasted no time recording two birdies on two of her first three holes. She fired off four-straight birdies to end the front, placing her squarely towards the top of the leaderboard chasing the leading Swede, Madelene Sagstrom at 7-under. After making the turn, she rattled off two more birdies on Nos. 12 and 13 before ending her day with one final birdie to give her the two-stroke lead over Sagstrom.
“It was almost just auto-command kind of golf,” Zhang said. “I feel like in the last couple weeks it's been a little bit difficult. I've been struggling a little bit with the golf swing and gaining confidence in my preparation. But going into this week I kind of let it all go; let the expectations go a little bit more. I was able to free myself up a little bit, which was really nice to see some shots go in, especially on the greens. I was able to get some putting momentum in, so it was really nice.”
Her 9-under is not only her lowest round on the LPGA Tour, but also ties the 18-hole tournament scoring record at Upper Montclair Country Club set by Atthaya Thitikul, Sagstrom and Minjee Lee in 2022. Zhang was also one of six players to go bogey-free in their opening round at the Cognizant Founders Cup.
Sagstrom stormed up the leaderboard early thanks to a bogey-free start with three birdies and an eagle. One bogey on the back-nine holes was the lone blemish on her scorecard, but she quickly recovered carding three-straight birdies to keep her in contention. The Swede has had an affinity for Upper Montclair Country Club, finishing tied for 10th and tied for third in her last two starts at this tournament.
“Probably like -- everything always adds up together, right?” said Sagstrom. “This golf course first of all suits my eye really well. I've been playing around with the ball flight a little bit. My coach, Hans, is in town. This is the third year he's here, too. We love the golf course. It's tough off the tee which normally tends to work out well for me if I hit it straight. Putting is a big thing. You have to make putts. For some reason I just really see the reads on these greens. You don't know, some places you go you can't see anything, and here it's kind of good momentum. And obviously having good memories, good experiences here is key. You want to go back to a place where you really enjoy it. I'm staying with a great host family this week. They're some of my closest friends. I think it just adds up. I know I'm going to have a good time when I'm off the course and I know I am going to have good time on the conscious with Shane. Just everything. Good memories.”
Three players find themselves tied for third at 6-under. Ireland’s Leona Maguire bogeyed her second hole of the day before recovering, going bogey-free the rest of the way with seven birdies. Narin An tied for the most birdies in the opening round with nine, sharing the honor with first-round leader Zhang. Aussie Stephanie Kyriacou shared a similar card to Maguire, with an early bogey being the only fault on the day with seven birdies.
Rolex Women’s World Rankings No. 1 Nelly Korda ended her day 3-under at T18 looking to make her first cut at Upper Montclair Country Club in just her second start at the event. Defending champion Jin Young Ko finished T70 at even par. Monday qualifiers Laura Wearn and Sophia Schubert finished T48 and T89, respectively. Sponsor invite Bailey Shoemaker (a) ended her first round T119 and winner of The JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup, Ashley Shaw shot 81 after shooting a 73 on Monday to earn a spot in the field.
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