– Carla Tejedo (-1) is still on cloud nine. This Thursday she completed her ninth round on the LPGA Tour and it was her eighth under par. She keeps beating the odds. She doesn’t even lose at a venue as demanding for golf as Las Vegas. And if there’s one thing the 24‑year‑old golfer from Castellón especially likes, it’s a challenge. And the Shadow Creek course in Las Vegas is a real test. Nothing like last week’s birdie storm at the Ford Championship. This is a stern test where every green won is celebrated with a fist pump as if it were a birdie putt.
– Carla’s under‑par round, with two late birdies on holes 7 and 9 to erase a painful double bogey at 18 (her ninth hole), puts her in a fine 15th position. In other words, right in the thick of those who have come to Las Vegas to win the tournament. It was a day with a lot of movement, but above all with many birdies (six) and an outstanding level with the putter. Just another day at the office.
– Tejedo shows once again that her place is among the best of the best on the world’s top circuit. Nobody is giving her anything. She is playing her first Aramco Championship because she earned it on the course with two excellent performances at the Founders Cup and the Ford Championship. In fact, she got in through the category for this year’s top LPGA ranking players who were not exempt. She earned it fair and square and wastes no time proving it’s well deserved.
– The Shadow Creek is one of the most demanding courses of the year on the LPGA Tour. This Thursday 26 rounds were played under par and Carla’s -1 is two shots off the top 10 and four off the lead shared by Miyu Yamashita (-5), Nasa Hataoka (-5) and Lauren Coughlin (-5), crème de la crème. A shot off the lead are Jing Yan (-4) and the two hottest players in the world, the pair who have been battling over the past two weeks for the tournaments: Hyo Joo Kim (-4), the terror of the LPGA right now, and Nelly Korda (-4).
– As for the other Spanish players, Julia López (PAR) also posted a very good start. She reached -2 on the day, her eyes fixed on the lead, and then recovered from a heavy blow, a double bogey and a bogey on holes 6 and 7, the closing stretch of her round. She finished with a birdie on 9 to end on a positive note. The player from Malaga is also in the fight for everything.
– Also, Luna Sobrón (+2) is just inside the cut after a masterful short‑game session (only seven fairways hit), and Carlota Ciganda (+3) and Nuria Iturrioz (+7) will have to fight back on Friday to make the cut and play the four days. Carlota and Nuria really struggled with their long game. The Navarrese player hit only eight greens, while Iturrioz managed three fairways and seven greens. Always playing catch‑up.
– Beyond the Spaniards, a good start from Jeeno Thitikul (PAR), world No.1, although she will have to tighten up to avoid falling out of the victory fight, and a bad day for Hannah Green (+3), who comes in having won three consecutive tournaments, and, above all, Minjee Lee (+7)
