KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Gemma Dryburgh’s first and only LPGA Tour victory came three years ago in Japan. On Thursday, the 32-year-old Scottish player shot a 7-under 65 at the Maybank Classic to put herself in position for a second win in Asia.
Dryburgh’s seventh birdie of the day on the 18th hole at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club left her one stroke shy of Hye-Jin Choi’s first-round lead. Choi’s 64 included an eagle on the par-5 3rd hole and a birdie on the 18th.
Dryburgh finished joint second with Benedetta Moresco from Italy.
“It was a very stress-free round,” said Dryburgh.
The humid and warm weather was very different from her native Scotland, but her hometown in the United States – New Orleans, where she attended Tulane University – helped prepare her for the conditions.
“Yes, it was very different to Scotland, but living where I live now has helped me on a day like today,” Dryburgh said. “I like that the greens look a little like where I play in New Orleans, gritty. So it kind of suits my eye.”
Among the seven players who finished in fourth place with 66s, two strokes behind Choi, were Lydia Ko, Hannah Green, Ingrid Lindblad, Arpichaya Yubol and Somi Lee.
Choi said she hit some good recovery shots on Thursday, which helped her take the first-round lead.
“I had a lot of situations where I could make bogeys because of rough and dangerous behavior, but I made a lot of good pars,” Choi said.
Defending champion Ruoning Yin shot 68, as did world No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul.
Thitikul, the only multiple winner on the LPGA Tour this year after winning the Mizuho Americas Open in May and again in Shanghai almost three weeks ago, has finished second the last two times she has played in Malaysia.
“I think it just feels kind of comfortable playing here,” she said ahead of the first round. “The course, the weather and also the fans seem like a second home to me. I have the feeling that it is a mini Thailand.”
Last week, Australia won the International Crown team event in South Korea. Next week, the LPGA ends its five-week Asian swing with the Japan Classic in Shiga, the site of Dryburgh’s 2022 victory.
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