The first round of the 2024 Maybank Championship was played on Thursday, October 24 at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, Malaysia. Competition was very close with 10 players within three shots of the lead and 54 players under par.
LPGA Tour sensational rookie for the 2024 season, Mao Saigo, leads the Maybank Championship at 9-under. Haeran Ryu is just one stroke behind.
2024 Maybank Championship Day 1 Leaderboard
Here is the Maybank Championship leaderboard after the first round. Only the top 50 are included:
- 1 Mao Saigo -9
- 2 Haeran Ryu -8
- T3 Wei-Ling Hsu -7
- T3 Ruixin Liu -7
- T5 Amy Yang -6
- T5 Minami Katsu -6
- T5 Kristen Gillman -6
- T5 Narin An -6
- T5 Maja Stark -6
- T5 Yuka Saso -6
- T11 Jennifer Kupcho -5
- T11 Wichanee Meechai -5
- T11 Gemma Dryburgh -5
- T11 Nataliya Guseva -5
- T11 Chanettee Wannasaen -5
- T11 Paula Reto -5
- T11 Grace Kim -5
- T11 Mirabel Ting (a) -5
- T11 Jeeno Thitikul -5
- T11 Celine Boutier -5
- T11 Ruoning Yin -5
- T22 Madelene Sagstrom -4
- T22 Hye-Jin Choi -4
- T22 Moriya Jutanugarn -4
- T22 Gaby Lopez -4
- T26 Pajaree Anannarukarn -3
- T26 Ariya Jutanugarn -3
- T26 Xiyu Lin -3
- T26 Yu Jin Sung -3
- T26 Georgia Hall -3
- T26 Bailey Tardy -3
- T26 Gabriela Ruffels -3
- T26 Emily Kristine Pedersen -3
- T26 Alexa Pano -3
- T26 Jasmine Suwannapura -3
- T26 Marina Alex -3
- T26 Lucy Li -3
- T26 Brooke M. Henderson -3
- T26 Megan Khang -3
- T26 Sarah Schmelzel -3
- T26 Ayaka Furue -3
- T26 Yealimi Noh -3
- T43 Bianca Pagdanganan -2
- T43 Allisen Corpuz -2
- T43 Peiyun Chien -2
- T43 Jin Young Ko -2
- T43 Hira Naveed -2
- T48 Linn Grant -1
- T48 Yuna Nishimura -1
- T48 Nasa Hataoka -1
- T48 Albane Valenzuela -1
- T48 Angel Yin -1
- T48 Linnea Strom -1
- T48 Hannah Green -1
Mao Saigo put in an exceptional performance in the first round of the Maybank Championship, carding 10 birdies and one bogey. The Japanese was so close that she needed just 22 putts to complete the first 18 holes.
Saigo is seeking her first LPGA Tour victory, but she has posted 11 top-10 finishes in 2024. Those results have propelled her to the top of the leaderboard and into contention for the tour's Rookie of the Year award.
Coincidentally, former Rookie of the Year (2023 season) Haeran Ryu is in second place at the Maybank Championship. The Korean had eight birdies without a bogey although she said she did not feel well during the day. This is part of what she said (via LPGA Tour News Service):
"I don't remember my play today because today my body feels not good, so I just want a good finish. 8-under is pretty good."
Defending champion Celine Boutier finished the first round at 5-under and tied for 11th place with nine other players.