Japan’s Akie Iwai carried her winning momentum into the Canadian Women’s Open, firing a seven-under-par 65 on Thursday to take a two-shot lead after the opening round.
Fresh off her maiden LPGA title in Portland, the 20-year-old rolled in seven birdies, including back-to-back gains to close out her round at Mississauga Golf and Country Club.
“So last week I won, but already it’s in the past,” Iwai said. “I changed the mind – good focus this week.”
Canadian amateur Aphrodite Deng lit up the early stages with a five-under 66, joining world No 1 Jeeno Thitikul, Ireland’s Leona Maguire, Mexico’s Gaby Lopez and American Megan Khang in a share of second.
Deng, just 15, opened with consecutive birdies and added two more on the front nine before dropping a shot at the 15th. She responded with birdies at 17 and 18 to cap an impressive performance.
“It’s really cool,” Deng said. “Definitely something that I dreamed about.”
Jeeno, who recently returned to world No 1, recovered from a slow start to make five birdies on the back nine.
“The front nine I didn’t hit that close, the back nine I did,” she said. “That’s why I holed the putts.”
A five-time LPGA winner, Jeeno admitted she is still adjusting to the renewed spotlight.
“I just told myself you can think about it, you can worry, you can be nervous, but at the end of the day you’ve got to pass this as well.”
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Photo: Thananuwat Srirasant/Getty Images
Article Link: Iwai takes two-shot lead at Canadian Women’s Open