Leona Maguire tried to be kinder to herself and received her reward by opening with a two-under 70 within the KPMG Girls’s PGA in Washington State.
The Co Cavan star, who missed the minimize within the first two majors this season and completed sixty fifth in her defence of the Meijer LPGA Traditional on Sunday, admitted she’s her personal harshest critic.
However she was kinder to herself at a troublesome Sahalee Nation Membership and ended the day simply two strokes behind first spherical chief, Lexi Thompson in a 11-way tie for fourth.
“I‘ve most likely have been very harsh on myself,” Maguire stated after making 4 birdies and two bogeys.
“I’d say these days most likely too harsh. I believe I’ve had individuals round me, household, individuals on my group, inform me you must be you must be kinder to your self.
“So I believe that was type of the message this week, to not likely put an excessive amount of strain on myself, not have too many expectations and simply type of embrace the problem that here is going to convey like another main.
“I suppose it is very tempting to try to be too excellent at a significant understanding that the type of penalties are increased in the event you miss a shot, however yeah, to try to be a bit kinder to myself this week was the massive objective.”
Beginning on the again 9, the world quantity 32 rolled in an 11-footer for birdie on the tenth and adopted a bogey on the par-three thirteenth by making a 47-foot bomb on the subsequent to get again into the pink.
Out in a single beneath, she birdied the primary from eight ft and the 162-yard fifth from 13 ft to seize a share of the lead.However whereas three-putted the seventh from lengthy vary for bogey, she parred her means residence.
“For essentially the most half, I felt like I gave myself loads of possibilities,” she stated after lacking an eight-footer for a closing birdie two.
“I left just a few on the market, however total, it was a very strong spherical of golf.
“I believe I stayed very affected person. I’ve been fighting my driver off the tee fairly a bit not too long ago, however I drove a bit higher at present, which was good, and received myself out of hassle fairly nicely once I did get offline behind a few timber.
“It’s simply accepting that that is going to be a part of this week round right here. You’re going to need to need to form just a few round just a few timber.
“I gave myself loads of possibilities — it will have been good to gap a pair extra putts, however we have nonetheless received a lot extra golf to play.”
Thompson, who introduced her intention to retire from the tour on the finish of the season, shot a four-under 68 to steer by a shot from world primary Nelly Korda and Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit.
Jordanstown’s Stephanie Meadow was 107th after a 77.
