American Ally McDonald and German Sophia Popov posted 5-under 67s to take the first-round lead at the Chico’s Patty Berg Memorial at the Cypress Lake Country Club. Symetra Tour member Chien Pei-Yun (錢珮芸) had the best round among Taiwanese golfers, turning in a 1-under 72 and standing in a tie for 12th.

There is a fifteen-player Taiwanese contingent that includes three Symetra Tour players and twelve top professionals and amateurs selected by the TLPGA. The TLPGA Tour and the Symetra Tour forged a partnership in the off season to put two co-sanctioned tune-up events on the schedule-- the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic this past week and the Chico’s Patty Berg Memorial-- to help TLPGA players get acclimated to playing in the U.S. ahead of the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic in San Francisco in late April.

McDonald pulled off six birdies, needed just 25 putts in a nearly perfect round with only one bogey on the eighth hole. Popov used a solid iron play, landing 16 of 18 greens in regulation, to make also six birdies against one bogey.

15-year-old next-gen prospect Chang Ya-Chun (張雅淳), who finished T2 last week in Lake Wales, had a slow start with her putter on the front nine and over-did the long game on the inward nine, finally settling with a disappointing 1-over 73 at equal 36th.

“It was really windy, and we had to play directly into the wind on the first few holes, so that made it really tough,” said Chien, who finished last week solo eighth and now at number 9 on the Volvik Race for the Card money list. Year-end top 10 on the money list will win the 2017 membership on the LPGA Tour.

“It fell short of the green on the first hole and I had to chip into the grain. Fell short again. Two-putted for bogey. Not the best start but I tried to remain calm.” Chien seized good scoring chances on the par-5s on the seventh and the eleventh and picked up another shot after a tap-in birdie on the twelfth.

However, she drove right into the palm trees on no.16 and hit the trunk on the first try to put the ball back in play. Chien finally carried the ball out of a bunker on the fourth shot and closed the hole with a double-bogey.

“It was unlucky. But I felt l was striking the ball well. The greens are rolling fast so you need to be very careful with the reads,” said Chien. “I missed a few mid-range birdie putts. But I’m happy I ended with a nice one from 36 feet away.” Chien had 14 of 18 greens in regulation and needed 30 putts. She was the best-performing Taiwanese.

Chien’s fellow country woman and Symetra Tour member Cheng Ssu-Chia (程思嘉) carded two birdies and two bogeys due to missed downhill putts. “The grass is fast. There is definitely room for improvement on my short game,” said Cheng. “I’m just glad I was driving very solid. I didn’t miss any fairways out there.” Cheng got on 16 greens in regulation but couldn’t quite convert them into birdies as she took 34 putts.

Also in the TLPGA contingent, Yeh Hsin-Ning (葉欣寧) and Chen Szu-Han (陳思涵) carded 74s at T64, Chen Meng-Chu (陳孟竺), Lin Tzu-Chi (林子麒), and Pan Yen-Ling (潘彥伶) registered matching 75s to stand in a tie for 81th.

The Chico’s Patty Berg Memorial, in memory of former LPGA superstar and founding member Patty Berg, has doubled the purse since its inaugural event in 2014 when the prize money was US$100,000 and the winner had US$15,000. In 2015, the purse increased to US$150,000 and this year, the total prize purse hit US$200,000 and the winner will walk away with US$30,000.

Berg was an active figure on the LPGA Tour during 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. She has won 15 majors, which remains an all-time record, and 60 career titles. Berg has been a member of the Hall of Fame since 1951.

Thirty former LPGA greats will come and join in the Cypress Lake Country Club in the Legends Tour event on Saturday for a purse of US$150,000 and a winner check worth US$19,500. There are a combined 327 LPGA Tour wins in the field and three players each contributed more than 40- Nancy Lopez (48), JoAnne Carner (43) and Sandra Haynie (42). Seven of them have been inducted to the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Play will begin tomorrow at 7:30 in the morning and the second wave tees off at 12:20 in the afternoon. The Symetra Tour field will be cut the low 50 and ties following Friday’s second round.

The Chico’s Patty Berg Memorial is the second tournament on the 2016 Legends Tour. The Legends Tour event will conclude simultaneously on Sunday.