Redwood City’s Li cards 1-under 71 in LPGA major
Lucy Li, a 14-year-old golf prodigy from Redwood City who earned a spot in this week’s LPGA major championship near Palm Springs, did more than just show up on the first tee — she went out and played superbly.
Li shot 1-under-par 71 in Thursday’s opening round of the ANA Inspiration at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage (Riverside County). That placed her in the top 25 and also put her in great position to make the 36-hole cut Friday.
Li, who in 2014 became the youngest player ever to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open — at age 11 — stitched together her strong round while playing alongside Michelle Wie, one of the biggest names in women’s golf. Wie shot 4-under 68 and was one shot behind the leader when the first round was suspended because of high winds.
As for Li, she made two birdies (at Nos. 3 and 16), one bogey (at No. 13) and 15 pars. That kind of steady hand should serve her well at a major, where course conditions typically are tough.
“I played pretty well today,” Li told Golf Channel after her round. “I hit a lot of good shots. I could have made a couple more putts, but overall I played pretty consistently.”
Thursday’s round was Li’s lowest score in a major. She shot 78-78 and missed the cut in the ’14 Women’s Open in Pinehurst, N.C.
France’s Karine Icher shot a 5-under-par 67 to take an early lead. Half of the field in the LPGA Tour’s first major of the year — formerly the Dinah Shore — was still on the course when wild winds in the Coachella Valley forced an early halt to play. The first round will resume Friday morning.
Lydia Ko, the defending ANA Inspiration champion and world No. 1, was 2 under through five holes before play was suspended. PGA Tour: Rickie Fowler shot an 8-under 64 for a one-shot lead over Sung Kang after the first round of the Houston Open in Humble, Texas.
Fowler had his best round in six appearances at the tournament, topping a previous low score of 68. Fowler overcame damp conditions and a chilly, breezy morning.
Fowler won last month at the Honda Classic and is trying to keep momentum going into the Masters next week. The Honda Classic win snapped a 13month, 25-start drought for Fowler.
Fowler held a three-shot lead over Vaughn Taylor and Keegan Bradley when he finished his round in the afternoon, then Kang closed the gap with his 65. The 29-year-old South Korean missed a putt from less than 5 feet to bogey on 18. Still, compared to last year’s final round at the Houston Open, when he shot a 6-over 78, he said he was satisfied with the improvement.
Kang is among the 115 players who need a victory to qualify for the Masters. Among the 144 players in the Houston Open field, 29 already have invitations to play. It would have been 30, except Dustin Johnson decided to take the week off after winning the Dell Technologies Match Play for his third straight victory.
Behind Fowler and Kang, Stewart Cink, Jhonattan Vegas and Kyle Stanley all shot 6under 66. Jordan Spieth struggled at times and shot 3-under 69. Defending champion Jim Herman shot 2-over 74, and 2015 Houston Open winner J.B. Holmes shot 1-over 73. Chronicle staff writer Ron Kroichick contributed to this report.