Who is Linnea Johansson? World No. 358 golfer beats stacked field to take early lead at JM Eagle LA Championship

Linnea Johansson took the lead at the LPGA JM Eagle LA Championship after the first round. She played a round of -7 to register a one-stroke lead over Gemma Dryburgh.

Johansson is a Swedish professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. She was born on August 25, 1993, in Vaxjo, Sweden, and grew up in Almhult. Johansson started playing golf at the age of 10. She attended Rikdsidrottsgymnasiet and later played for the Bastad Golf Club.

Linnea Johansson was a member of the Swedish national team in 2010 and represented her country at the European Ladies Team Championship and won the bronze medal in 2017.

She played college golf in America while attending Nova Southeastern University before being transferred to Oklahoma State University.

Johansson turned pro in 2017 after completing her graduation and started playing on the Symetra Tour. She made steady progress and finally earned an LPGA Tour card in 2020. She started her LPGA journey by finishing second at the Mission Inn Resort and Club Championship in 2020.

In 2021, she left two strokes behind Meghan MacLaren to win the Prasco Charity Championship. Last year, she made the cut in 11 of 20 tournaments to finish at the 120th position on the Points List and was forced to return to the LPGA Q Series to secure her card. She finished in eighth place and earned a spot to play in the 2023 season of the LPGA Tour.

Linnea Johansson is yet to win a professional tournament. Hopefully, the American golfer will extend her lead at the JM Eagle LA Championship to win her first trophy. Speaking about her game, she said:

“I’ve been working a lot on my swing and trying to get a little bit more consistent ball flight, and I think that was very helpful today because I was able to attack a little bit more of the pins out there and give myself chances. The greens can be tricky, a lot going on, but I managed to read them and match the speed today, and they dropped for me.”

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"It’s tough for everybody"- Linnea Johansson talks about the JM Eagle LA Championship

The JM Eagle LA Championship is underway from April 27 to 30. The tournament features some of the best female golfers in the world. Still, Linnea Johansson, who ranks 358th, dominated the game after playing the first round of 64.

Johansson played a bogey-free round with seven birdies to take a one-stroke lead in the game. In an after-round press conference, she said:

"Obviously it’s been a little ride for me the past couple of years, struggling a little bit out here. The girls are good. It’s the best players in the world, so it should be tough, and so it is. It’s tough for everybody.

The game is tough but Linnea enjoys playing alongside the top-ranked golfers in the world. She went on to say:

“But days when it clicks and when you really hit the shots that you want and manage to roll putts in, that’s the days you really enjoy it a little bit more, and it’s competitive out here, but starting off the tournament here like this, it’s great.”

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2023 LPGA JM Eagle LA Championship Day 1 leaderboard

• 1.Linnea Johansson: -7
• T2. Gemma Dryburgh: -6
• T2. Minjee Lee: -6
• T4. Aditi Ashok: -5
• T4. Caroline Inglis: -5
• T4. Danielle Kang: -5
• T7. Hae Ran Ryu: -4
• T7. Cristie Kerr: -4
• T7. Alison Lee: -4
• T7. Pernilla Lindberg: -4
• T7. Amy Yang: -4
• T12. Linnea Strom: -3
• T12. Hannah Green: -3
• T12. Cheyenne Knight: -3
• T12. Allison Emrey: -3
• T12. Ruoning Yin: -3
• T12. Yuna Nishimura: -3
• T12. Xiyu Lin: -3
• T12. Ryann O'Toole: -3
• T20. Celine Borge: -2
• T20. Ayaka Furue: -2
• T20. Jaravee Boonchant: -2
• T20. Chella Choi: -2
• T20. Haeji Kang: -2
• T20. Jasmine Suwannapura: -2
• T20. Pavarisa Yoktuan: -2
• T20. Perrine Delacour: -2
• T20. Nelly Korda: -2
• T20. Dani Holmqvist: -2
• T20. Lilia Vu: -2
• T20. Hye-Jin Choi: -2
• T20. Yu-Sang Hou: -2
• T33. Maria Fassi: -1
• T33. Nasa Hataoka: -1
• T33. Jennifer Kupcho: -1
• T33. Lauren Stephenson: -1
• T33. Atthaya Thitikul: -1
• T33. Lauren Coughlin: -1
• T33. Patty Tavatanakit: -1
• T33. Jennifer Chang: -1
• T33. Minami Katsu: -1
• T33. Hinako Shibuno: -1
• T33. Ines Laklalech: -1
• T33. Carlota Ciganda: -1
• T33. Brooke M. Henderson: -1
• T33. Sarah Kemp: -1
• T33. Hyo Joo Kim: -1
• T33. Stephanie Meadow: -1
• T33. Lizette Salas: -1
• T33. Emma Talley: -1
• T33. Maddie Szeryk: -1
• T52. Muni He: E
• T52. Wichanee Meechai: E
• T52. Gina Kim: E
• T52. Grace Kim: E
• T52. Yuka Saso: E
• T52. Matilda Castren: E
• T52. Stephanie Kyriacou: E
• T52. Narin An: E
• T52. Maja Stark: E
• T52. Min Lee: E
• T52. Marina Alex: E
• T52. Brittany Altomare: E
• T52. Jodi Ewart Shadoff: E
• T52. Eun-Hee Ji: E
• T52. Ariya Jutanugarn: E
• T52. Azahara Munoz: E
• T52. Jenny Shin: E
• T52. Peiyun Chien: E
• T52. Ally Ewing: E
• T52. Lucy Li: E