MELISSA MURPHY
AP Sports Writer
HARRISON, N.Y. — South Korean Jenny Shin kept moving up the leaderboard, chasing Hall-of-Famer Karrie Webb.
Shin eventually caught her, shooting a bogey-free, 7-under 66 Thursday for a one-stroke lead after the opening round at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, the second major of the season.
“I was chasing the leaderboard all day, and I was surprised that Webby was at 6 under at one point,” said the 22-year-old Shin. “I got there and was like ‘Maybe I can get one more on the 18th hole,’ and I did.”
Canadian teenager Brooke Henderson had a three-putt bogey on her final hole at the ninth to drop a shot back after Shin birdied No. 18 at the Westchester Country Club.
“I hit it well all day, I’m disappointed with the finish on the last hole,” said the 17-year-old Henderson, who was playing on a sponsor exemption.
Webb birdied three of the first four holes and finished at 68. The 40-year-old Webb started her round in hazy conditions at No. 10 and shot a 4-under 33 on the opening nine. She had a bogey-free round until she dropped a shot on the seventh when she missed the fairway left and hit the front bunker.
“I hit a wedge to a foot and a half on 10 and that settled me in,” Webb said. “Hit the green in two on 12 and had about a 15-footer for eagle. I really put some very solid swings on it early on.”
Shin had five birdies and an eagle on the par-5 15th. She spoke to her sports psychologist on Wednesday night to help calm her nerves.
“I was freaking out for this round, so I tried to play as comfortable as I can, just like any other tournament,” Shin said. “I tried not to think of it as a major and it turned out great. I had a couple of bogey-free rounds last week, so I think I’m on a good run.”
Americans Brittany Lincicome, Lexi Thompson, Cristie Kerr and Stacy Lewis were in a large group that finished four strokes back at 70 in steamy temperatures that reached the mid-80s. Lincicome, the winner of the first major at the ANA Inspiration in April, eagled the par-5 15th and followed with a birdie on 16.
Two-time defending champion Inbee Park shot a 71. Top-ranked teenager Lydia Ko was another stroke back, and Suzann Pettersen, coming off a win in Canada, finished at 74. Michelle Wie, bothered by a hip injury, shot 75.
Shin, who is seeking her first major, had three birdies on the front nine to gain on Webb, a seven-time major winner.
Henderson, who turned pro in December, is below the LPGA Tour’s age requirement of 18. But she made the most of her sponsor exemption.
Henderson birdied No. 10, her opening hole, and added birdies at Nos. 3, 5, 6 and 15. For her eagle on the par-5, 274 yard 12th hole, she hit a 7-wood 204 yards and the ball landed three feet from the cup.
Then came the three-putt on her final hole, where she “tried to hit it a little too hard and had an 8-footer to save par.”
The 29-year-old Lincicome, who is seeking her third major, is one of the longest hitters on the tour. She used a 4-iron from 203 yards out and got within 30 feet for her eagle on the par-5, 497-yard 15th.
“The putt, if I hadn’t hit the hole, it probably would have gone off the green,” she said. “(My caddie) asked if I had dented the cup.”
Park finished with a birdie on 18, one of five on the day along with a bogey. The South Korean has won five majors, including three straight in 2013.
Kerr had a bogey on the par-5, 551-yard fifth hole and four birdies on the West Course that she often plays when in New York. She’s familiar with the sloping greens at the longtime home of the PGA Tour event now called The Barclays.
“The front nine, I had a bunch of chances and a couple putts lipped out,” Kerr said. “I just tried to stay patient and got off to a great start on the back nine.”
• Palmer, Koepka, Owen shoot 64s for lead at St. Jude Classic
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Ryan Palmer, Brooks Koepka and Greg Owen each shot 6-under 64 Thursday for a three-way tie atop the leaderboard after the opening round of the St. Jude Classic.
Palmer, a three-time PGA Tour winner, turned in a bogey-free round with six birdies in the afternoon to join Koepka and Owen atop the leaderboard at TPC Southwind. Koepka, who won in Phoenix earlier this year, matched his low round of 2015 with eight birdies and two bogeys, while Owen shot his best round this year with no bogeys and six birdies.
Scott Brown, Steven Alker, Brian Davis and Richard Sterne each shot 65s. Defending champ Ben Crane tied four others with 66s.
Boo Weekley was tied with six others at 67, and Phil Mickelson was in a group of 11 at 68.
Palmer had seven holes left after reaching 6 under, but he had to scramble down the stretch and needed to get up and down on his 18th hole, No. 9, to keep a piece of the lead. His last victory came in 2010 at the Sony Open, though he tied for second in Phoenix and tied for sixth at the Texas Open this year.
His key Thursday was his putter. He needed only 24 putts with his closest birdie putt at 6 feet with a couple 20 feet and longer.
“I’ve been trying to get comfortable with the putter,” Palmer said. “I finally found the position I had last year from the British Open through the playoffs when I putted some of my best I felt. And I get on the putting green this morning and found it. The ball position, the width of my stance, where my shoulders and feet were, and it paid off today.”
Koepka has had three Top 20 finishes since his win in February, but he also withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March before missing the cut at The Players Championship. Needing to play better before heading to Chambers Bay in Washington for the U.S. Open prompted him to add Memphis to his schedule. He said he was playing good golf but not scoring well enough. He gave himself a nice confidence boost, especially finishing with back-to-back birdies for a share of the lead.
“To me, it’s been expectations,” Koepka said. “My expectations have been a little too high. When you’re able to kind of put it in the center of the greens, give yourself uphill putts, that makes this golf course a lot easier, and being in the fairway helps a lot.”
Owen has played 213 PGA Tour events since turning pro in 2005. He’s back on tour thanks to a Web.com Tour exemption. He topped the 66 that had been his low round this year back in April in New Orleans in the opening round where he wound up tied for 43rd.
Owen said his game started coming around at the Byron Nelson where he shot in the 60s his final three rounds and tied for 46th.
“I’m healthy and fit and I’m putting well,” Owen said. “That’s a big bonus for me, confidence with the putt.”
Crane was the only player to get to 7 under as he rolled in seven birdies in nine holes. But he started hitting shots into the rough and wound up with bogeys on three of his final five holes.
“Obviously had it going pretty low there for a while, and all in all, I feel like my game is going in the right direction,” Crane said. “Feel very comfortable on this golf course. I love this place.”
Mickelson was at 4 under after a quick start with four birdies over his first seven holes starting on the back nine. A couple bogeys on the par 3s on the front nine dropped him to 2 under.
“I had a couple of opportunities coming in that would have really made the round a few more shots lower, but they didn’t quite fall,” Mickelson said. “That happens. But I made a bunch on the front. Made some good putts on the front, so it’s going to come down to … you got to get some putts to fall because it’s not a course you can overpower. It’s a course if you hit some poor shots will bite you.”
Divots: Dustin Johnson, the highest-ranked player in this event at No. 7 in the world and the 2012 champ here, withdrew after nine holes. Johnson opened with three bogeys and had six pars. Crane played with Johnson, who told him he wasn’t going to make it on the ninth hole. “Clearly, he wasn’t feeling good,” Crane said.
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