Thursday’s first-round of the US$1.5 million Foxconn TLPGA Players Championship was delayed for more than three hours under foggy conditions, which forced nine of the 90 players to take the course early tomorrow to finish their opening rounds. South Korean Hwang You-Min navigated through the challenges and carded a 6-under 66 to take solo lead in the TLPGA Tour major event.

Taiwan’s Hsu Wei-Ling (徐薇淩), Thai P.K. Kongkraphan, Bronte Law of England, and Korean player Lee Dong-Eun are sitting in equal second on 4-under 68.

Hwang, who dropped an early shot on the third hole, quickly bounced back with birdie-eagle-birdie from no.4 to 6. Another birdie on the 9th saw the World No.56 arrived at the turn with a brilliant 4-under 32.

“A little rust at the beginning, but I think I coped well with the weather and the conditions,” said Hwang. “The eagle on the fifth really gave me lots of confidence. It was a good tee off the middle, and then I had an amazing 3-wood to get on to the green. It was pretty far away; I got a 30-footer, but it just caught the hole and dropped for eagle. I also made a couple of great saves. I think I got a right strategy coming into today and executed well. I’m feeling good.”

Hsu Wei-Ling got off to a roaring start today at the Orient Golf & Country Club. She sank four birdie putts in just five holes to take an early lead. “I had a long travel back from Riyadh (PIF Saudi Ladies International), but I am feeling as fresh as ever. My iron was sharp, some very close birdie chances early on, and everything was kind of clicking. But then I had a slight lapse, probably because it went so surprisingly easy, said Hsu, who made the halfway on 2-under after bogeys on 6th and 9th. She resorted to a more conservative style of play on the back nine, which was a good move as she never committed another bogey and finished the round on 4-under.

Kongkraphan, a four-time TLPGA Tour winner in 2024, made her only bogey of the day on the 9th hole. She reeled off five birdies to also put herself in the four-way tie for second.

“My tee shots weren’t quite the way I wanted them today, but my iron game has really gone to another level, got me out of many troubles,” Kongkraphan said. “I enjoy the long layout. It’s difficult but I’m confident about my distance, and hopefully I can take advantage here with the length this week.”

Lee Dong-Eun shot six birdies, offset by two bogeys, to sit in equal second. “The greens is the challenging part. There are a lot of hidden slopes and you really have to keep the ball on the right side of the hole, or you are going to have a rough day,” Lee said. “So, I was really careful and focused on getting my second shots to the right spots. And I believe I was doing a great job on that.”

England’s Bronte Law found herself also just two shots off the lead after signing for a bogey-free 68 on Thursday.

Huang Ching (黃靖) is the only other local Taiwanese player in the top-10 at the moment. She registered four birdies and one bogey to sit in a seven-way tie for sixth at 69.

Foxconn (Hon Hai Technology Group) ambassador, 20-year-old Wu Chia-Yen (吳佳晏) is another shot adrift on 2-under 70, tying with fellow TLPGA Tour member Lee Hsin (李欣), Korean Yoo Hyun-Jo, who used her 7-iron to ace the 150-yard Hole 2, and nine other players in the crowded eleven-way tie for 13th. “I think I know the Orient course pretty well. I’m hitting great. And I feel I’ve improved my distance over the past year, which is an important weapon especially on this layout. I definitely have higher expectation this year than in the first edition,” said Wu, who found 12 fairways and finished strongly with two consecutive birdies today.

Defending champion Haruka Kawasaki, who emerged victorious at the first annual Foxconn TLPGA Players Championship after finishing on a 72-hole total of 2-under 286, was off to a slow start with a 6-over 78. The Japanese will have to work very hard to survive the cut to be made after the second round tomorrow. Only the top-50 and ties will make it to the weekend.

This year, the stakes are even higher at the Foxconn TLPGA Players Championship. Title sponsor Foxconn (Hon Hai Technology Group), one of the world’s largest electronics manufacturers, has made a 50% increase of prize money from US$1 million to $1.5 million. Ten of the world’s top 100 and a total of 90 players from seven countries will be battling out at the Orient Golf & Country Club, from Thursday to Sunday, and vying for a $270,000 champion’s check. Sunday’s victory will guarantee 18 precious women’s world golf ranking (WWGR) points for the lowest score.