PORTLAND, Ore. — Two-time champion Brooke Henderson birdied all 4 par-5 holes for a 7-under 65 on Thursday in The Normal Portland Traditional, leaving the slumping Canadian a stroke behind first-round chief Adela Cernousek.
Henderson gained the primary of her 13 LPGA Tour titles at age 17 in 2015 by eight strokes at Columbia Edgewater and efficiently defended the next yr. Now 27, she is winless since January 2023 and has dipped to 52nd on the earth.
“I really like coming again to this place,” Henderson mentioned. “I do have a whole lot of the good recollections. A whole lot of good issues occurred to me right here.”
She opened her morning spherical with 4 straight birdies, two on par 5s. On her second 9, she birdied the par-5 fifth and seventh and the par-4 ninth.
“It is actually vital to hit a bunch of fairways this week,” Henderson mentioned. “You need to be hitting it actually straight. I feel I solely missed two fairways right now, in order that was good. Hopefully, hit all of them tomorrow.”
Subsequent week, Henderson shall be again dwelling in Canada for the CPKC Ladies’s Open in Mississauga, Ontario. She gained the nationwide championship in 2018.
Cernousek shot a 65 within the last group of the time without work the tenth tee. The 22-year-old Frenchwoman performed her last 9 holes in 7-under 29 — highlighted by an eagle on No. 7.
“I used to be hitting the ball very nicely,” Cernousek mentioned.
Sung Hyun Park was a stroke again with Henderson, Jeongeun Lee5, Gurleen Kaur and Miranda Wang. Park had eight birdies and a bogey in her afternoon spherical on the tree-lined course. The 31-year-old South Korean participant gained the final of her seven tour titles in 2019.
“As of late, my ball-striking and placing are beginning to really feel fairly snug and that is precisely what occurred right now,” Park mentioned. “I used to be capable of make assured swings and likewise really feel nice in regards to the strokes I made on the greens.”
Haeran Ryu was two strokes again at 66 with Perrine Delacour, Arpichaya Yubol, Ashleigh Buhai and Linn Grant. Ryu, at No. 9 on the earth, and No. 7 Angel Yin — who shot a 72 — are the one gamers from the highest 10 on the earth rating within the discipline.
Newbie Kiara Romero had a 67. The College of Oregon star gained the 2023 U.S. Ladies’ Junior and 2025 Large Ten title.
“All the pieces was rolling fairly easily,” Romero mentioned. “I used to be a bit of bit nervous on the primary tee, however nonetheless performed fairly good.”
Juli Inkster, the 65-year-old Corridor of Famer who gained the 1999 occasion, birdied three of the par 5s in a 69.
“I truly thought I putted rather well right now,” Inkster mentioned. “Hit a whole lot of good irons and I drove the ball nicely. I used to be pleased with that.”
She performed alongside 2017 champion Stacy Lewis and 2019 winner Hannah Green, who every shot 73. Defending champion Moriya Jutanugarn additionally had a 73.
The match is the longest steady occasion on the LPGA Tour apart from the majors, courting to 1972.
