Roussin-Bouchard's Closing Birdie Burst Gives Her Maybank Classic Lead

Pauline Roussin-Bouchard finished in style in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, birdying her final three holes for an 8-under 64 and a one-stroke lead after the first round of the LPGA Tour's Maybank Classic. The French player, whose rookie season on tour was 2022 and who is still searching for a first LPGA victory, has three career top-10 finishes and now has the early advantage at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club. American Sophia Schubert, also a 2022 rookie still seeking a first win, sits tied for second after a 65 alongside Miyu Yamashita, who won last year's Malaysian tournament after a three-way playoff. Another French player, Perrine Delacour, shot 66 and shares fourth with England's Charley Hull, who also birdied two of her final three holes to stay within two shots of the lead. The round was played without the tournament's highest-ranked player, Haeran Ryu, who withdrew before her first-round tee time for an undisclosed reason, in the absence of world No. 1 Nelly Korda and No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul. Last week's BMW Ladies Championship winner Yuri Yoshida opened with a 69. The Maybank Classic is the penultimate event of the LPGA's four-week late-season Asian swing, which ends next week with the Toto Japan Classic at Omitama outside Tokyo, and Roussin-Bouchard will now look to turn a fast start into a first tour title.