But it was all about Charley Hull, who ended her long and active day without any blood seeping through her sock, capturing the outright lead with a nine-under-par 63.
Key to Hull’s round at Whirlwind Golf Club was her driver, and she wasn’t even sure what to expect. She tweaked the club early in the week and had a TaylorMade official work on it.
“And I really, really, really hit it well today,” Hull said.
“I felt like that put me in a lot of good positions. I putted pretty well. I chipped pretty well. I hit it pretty well with my iron shots.”
Hull’s bogey-free card gave the Englishwoman a one-shot lead over Dane Nanna Koertz Madsen.
Kyriacou had six birdies in her first 11 holes before cooling off in a five-under round of 67.Â
World No.1 Nelly Korda, returning to work after skipping the Asia swing, rallied with four birdies on the back nine and also opened with a 67 in her bid to catch up to Hull.
Like Hull, Koertz Madsen made nine birdies, while Canadian Brooke Henderson and South Korean Sei Young Kim were among eight players at 65 on a day of low scoring.
But Hull was the story.
She awoke at 2am to call her family in England, then headed to the gym at 4am and ran 7km on the treadmill.
The 29-year-old is big on fitness these days.
Hull’s biggest goal she has set for 2025 has nothing to do with golf, but rather her bid to run 5km in under 20 minutes.
She went so hard at it earlier in the week that Hull noticed blood from her toe oozing through her sock.
Embed from Getty Images
She also made a $10,000 bet with fellow pro Ryan Evans she would quit smoking.
All seems to be going well, especially on the golf course. She was rarely out of position on Friday and was putting for birdie or better on every hole – despite thinking it could have been better.
“I feel like I left actually a good four shots out there,” she said.
“Like the last, I lipped on the left edge. The hole before, I left it like an inch short. Went in the jaws on a few holes before and it just stayed out.
“Then I missed birdie putt on the front nine, and that was like from like six feet. So I’m looking back thinking, ‘Oh, I could have done more.'”
© Golf Australia. All rights reserved.
