The first-round action of BGC Thailand Ladies Masters, a Taiwan LPGA Tour and Thai WPGA Tour co-sanctioned event, begins Wednesday at the Black Mountain Golf Club in Hua Hin, Thailand. Thai WPGA Tour money leader Patcharajutar Kongkraphan is eyeing on a third victory this season, opening her campaign with a bogey-free 8-under 64 to grab the lead. Kusuma Meechai turned in a 65 to sit just one-shot away in solo second.

Chang Ching-Ling (張靖翎) shot a 5-under 67 to sit in equal fifth, highest among the Taiwanese contingent. Recent YTS & SUNCITY Heritage Tour winner Wang Li-Ning (王莉甯) carded a 3-under 69 to put herself in a 11-way tie for 16th.

This 54-hole tournament is recognized by the WWGR (World Women’s Golf Rankings). Being the final tournament on the 2022 Thai WPGA Tour, the BGC Ladies Masters offers a season-high THB$4 million (NT$3.36 million) purse. Meanwhile, it’s the tenth leg of the TLPGA Tour, and the third oversea pitstop. 16 TLPGA members joined the 120-player field. There will be a cut to the top-50 and ties after 36 holes.

Making great use of the par-5s, Chang Ching-Ling started with a promising form scoring six birdies, offset by just one bogey. She missed a 24-foot eagle chance on the 2nd hole but it didn’t take anything away from her fabulous putting performance. She needed only 26 putts.

“I quite like the green speed here at the Black Mountain, so I played pretty confident,” said Chang. “With the way I was playing, I think I could’ve gotten closer to the lead. I lost a bit of concentration midway through the round but steadied the ship when I needed it, so I couldn’t complain.”

Fresh off a victory less than a month ago, Wang Li-Ning used her brand of aggressive golf to create a string of birdies opportunities for herself on Day 1 at the BGC Masters. She seized seven of them but also had some loose iron-play, dropping four shots along the way. “Yeah, some not-so-good iron shots cost me a few bogeys. That’s definitely one thing I’ll need to sharpen up tomorrow,” Wang said. She needed 29 attempts on the greens.

Another duo of Taiwanese players, Kuo Ai-Chen (郭艾榛) and Chang Ya-Chun (張雅淳) were in a tie for 28th at 2-under 70.

Kuo finished the first round with a miraculous 45-foot birdie putt, third such effort today. “The greens are really difficult. They are super fast, and hard to read with the ups and downs. You’ve got to play great second shots, put the ball on the right position, to make a good score here,” said Kuo, who hoped to improve her 31 putt count.

Pro rookie Chang Ya-Chun needed 30 putts. “Not the performance I wanted but I’m happy to see how I saved some of the shots on the greens,” said Chang, who has her dad by her side as caddie. A pair of eagle chances on the 13th and 18th only ended up birdies for Chang, but those were good enough to keep her at 2-under within catching distance.

The competition layout is set at 6,276 yards. The green speed is at 9.6. The first round was played with the “preferred lied” rule in place. The second-round action will start at 7:00 a.m. in the morning.