Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club – East Course
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
October 13, 2011
First-round notes and interviews
Na Yeon Choi -5, Rolex Rankings No. 4
Maria Hjorth -5, Rolex Rankings No. 20
Brittany Lang -5, Rolex Rankings No. 30
Dewi Claire Schreefel -5, Rolex Rankings No. 204
Azahara Munoz -4, Rolex Rankings No. 51
Aretha Pan (a) +4
Rolex Rankings No. 4 Na Yeon Choi, No. 20 Maria Hjorth, No. 30 Brittany Lang, and No. 204 Dewi Claire Schreefel lead an elite field of 72 players after the first round at the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia. The four players all shot a 5-under 66 for a one-shot lead over Azahara Munoz and Paige Mackenzie.
Lang tallied six birdies and one bogey en route to setting the early lead. Schreefel used two birdies in her final five holes to capture a share of the lead and Hjorth birdied her final hole to finish tied atop the leaderboard with the other three players. And Choi followed up her runner-up finish at last week’s LPGA HanaBank Championship by shooting 66 to put herself atop the leaderboard once again.
End of year boon: Na Yeon Choi already has nine top-10 finishes in 2011 and is considered one of the most consistent players on the LPGA Tour, but the four-time winner on Tour feels that she’s just starting to hit her stride this season.
Choi has recorded five of her top-10 finishes in 2011 in the last six events, including two runner-up finishes (Safeway Classic Presented by Coca-Cola and LPGA HanaBank Championship).
“I played well the last two months,” Choi said. “I finished in contention almost every week, so I feel great about my game.
“Every year in the beginning of the season play so so and then getting better, better,” she added. “So I think my style is gradually getting better at the end of the year.”
On a roll…Three of Brittany Lang’s five top-10 finishes this year have come in the last 2 ½ months of the season. Lang got this strong stretch started by finishing second at the RICOH Women’s British Open, tying her career-best finish and earning her enough points to lock up a spot on the 2011 U.S. Solheim Cup Team.
Lang then finished seventh at the Safeway Classic Presented by Coca-Cola in August and in a tie for fourth at the Navistar LPGA Classic. She also kicked off the LPGA’s current Asian swing with a T13 at last week’s LPGA HanaBank Championship.
So what has been the difference for Lang recently?
“I think I really simplified things,” Lang said. “I really just tried to get out of my own way and have more fun and just go back to kind of playing like you do when you’re a kid. I’ve had more energy, I’ve had more fun, and I’m playing better. I’m just happy that I came to that realization.”
Sophomore season: Azahara Munoz enjoyed great success during her rookie campaign on the LPGA Tour in 2010, earning the honor of Loui
Full Article: LPGA.com News & Entertainment
Related posts: