Yan Liu, Ashleigh Buhai share lead at 63 at LA Championship

LOS ANGELES — Yan Liu birdied the final three holes in chilly conditions Thursday afternoon for a 9-under 63 and a share of the first-round lead with Ashleigh Buhai in the LPGA Tour’s JM Eagle LA Championship.

With the temperature barely reaching 60 degrees at El Caballero Country Club, Liu overcame an opening bogey to play the next nine in 7 under – making a 6-foot eagle putt on the par-5 16th and five birdies.

“I got bogey and next hole I tell myself, `You have to be calm and you have to be confident and be brave. You can do it,′” Liu said. “Yeah, just talk with myself.”

After straight five pars, she birdied the par-5 seventh and made short birdie putts on Nos. 8 and 9. Seeking her first LPGA Tour victory, the 27-year-old Chinese player had the lowest score of her tour career.

“Everything perfect, but not my driver,” Liu said. “But just little things. Right now my driver is a little too much fade, but I will figure out tomorrow.”

Buhai had nine birdies in her bogey-free morning round. The 35-year-old South African player won the 2022 Women’s British Open for the first of her two LPGA Tour victories.

“The pins were in locations we could access them today as long as you use the slopes correctly,” Buhai said. “If you hit it into the right bowls you’ll get good results. Otherwise, you can short side yourself very easily.”

Frida Kinhult birdied the last three holes for a 64 in the second-to-last group of the day off the first tee.

The tournament is being played at El Caballero because of renovations at Wilshire Country Club. It will return to Wilshire next season.

Madelene Sagstrom, coming off a victory two weeks ago in the T-Mobile Match Play in Las Vegas, closed with a hole-on-one to join In Gee Chun, Miranda Wang, Jeongeun Lee6 and Jenny Shin at 65. The ace on the 120-yard ninth was the Swede’s first in competition and the only one on the tour this season.

“It’s weird because I actually got to see it,” said Sagstrom, who played in the morning alongside top-ranked Nelly Korda and two-time defending champion Hannah Green. “That’s the best part. You get to see it go in.”

Sei Young Kim was at 66 with Lauren Coughlin, Aditi Ashok, Akie Iwai, Saki Baba and Yu Liu.

Korda opened with a 67 in her final start before her title defense next week in Houston in the major Chevron Championship.

“Hit 18 out of 18 greens, so my bogeys were three putts, which I made one on the last hole, so I am not feeling too great about that,” Korda said. “But other than that, I played really solid off the tee and into the greens.”

Four of the top five in the world ranking are playing the final event on the West Coast swing. Second-ranked Jeeno Thitikul overcame a late double bogey with an eagle in a 68 in the afternoon, and No. 4 Lilia Vu and No. 5 Green each shot 69. No. 3 Lydia Ko skipped the event.

California teenager Asterisk Talley shot 69, playing on a sponsor exemption. She was the runner-up at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. Last year, she was second at El Caballero in the U.S. Girls Junior.