Yang Chae-lin takes late lead to end 1st round at KG Edaily

By shooting a bogey-free round, Yang Chae-lin ends the first round of the 9th KG Edaily Ladies Open with KFC at Sunning Point Country Club in Yongin, Gyeonggi as the sole leader on Friday.

With seven birdies, Yang shot seven under par, 65, to take a one shot lead ahead of Cho Jeong-min. Until the final hole, Yang was tied for the lead with Cho but as she finished her round with a birdie, she is now the sole leader.

Yang’s lead is quite a surprise as she is win-less so far this season. This year, Yang is ranked 45th on the money ranking and 42nd on the KLPGA Tour’s point ranking. Of the 17 tournaments she has competed in this season, excluding this tournament, Yang has missed six cuts. Throughout her career, she’s only won one tournament, the Mirae Asset Daewoo Classic in 2016.

For Cho, her round is also an impressive one as it’s the first time in two months that she has shot a round in the 60s. Since the Munyoung Queens Park Championship 2019 in July, Cho had been struggling. In her four recent tournaments, she missed one cut, and her best finish was 33rd at the Hanwha Classic, the most recent tournament.

However, looking at her season overall, Cho is having another solid year as she has already won two tournaments and is ranked third in the 2019 season prize money ranking on the KLPGA Tour. She is also ranked fourth in the KLPGA Tour points standing, which determines the player of the year.

By Kang Yoo-rim