There are seven major winners on The Chevron Championship 2022 leaderboard at the end of day one, with Jennifer Kupcho and Minjee Lee tied at the top after shooting opening rounds of 66 in the relatively benign morning conditions. Jennifer Kupcho, a 24 year old from Colorado, who recorded five top-10 finishes in 2021, including a season-best runner-up finish at the LPGA Drive On Championship at Golden Ocala and made her Solheim Cup debut last year. She finished tied 6th at the 2022 Honda LPGA Thailand and is seeking her first LPGA victory: Yeah, I played really well. I really like the layout of this golf course, the beautiful shape that it's in every year. It always is so fun to be here, so just taking advantage of how much I like the course and the atmosphere.” “I mean, everyone gets nervous. But, I mean, I think it's more of just getting used to it and figuring out how to deal with it, learning different tactics. That's what I've definitely done through the big events I played in. Minjee Lee, who won her first major title last year at the Evian Championship and finished T2 at the 2022 HSBC Women’s World Championship: I think, yeah. I know I have one (a major) under my belt, but I do want a little bit more. So, yeah, I just think I have a little bit more belief in myself and my game so I can be a little bit more comfortable just hitting the shots that I choose. Last year’s winner, Patty Tavatanakit, is in third place and her impressive opening round of 67 included seven birdies and was the lowest opening round of any defending Champion at Mission Hills since the tournament was upgraded to major in 1983: Honestly, after I walked off that 9th hole I was like, it's done. I feel like first round is a little bit nerve-wracking. You want to start off great, if you don't, what can you do afterwards. Fortunately, I was able to walk away with a great round. But, you know, another round tomorrow. It's still golf. You still have to execute and play. So it's a long week ahead. The 2016 Champion Lydia Ko, 2021 and 2018 Women’s Open Champions Anna Nordqvist and Georgia Hall are among six players on four under in fourth place. Ko, who finished last year’s Championship with a dazzling 62, fired an impressive round of 68 in the trickier afternoon conditions said: I played really solid overall. When I missed a green I was able to make up and down for most parts, and when I did miss a fairway I was able to recover well with the second shot or third shot coming in. Overall I think a lot of positives to take from today. On my back nine there were a couple putts that shoulda, coulda, woulda gone in but didn't. I feel like that's the case in any round. I know the afternoon is normally breezy and it picked up in on the back nine for us. It wasn't playing super easy out there. Yeah, I'm happy with the start.

Hinako Shibuno, the 2019 AIG Women’s Open Champion, added a birdie-filled 66 to her opening round of 69 to lead The Chevron Championship 2022 by a single shot. This is the first time Shibuno has led a major at the half way stage since the 2020 US Open where she eventually finished fourth. Shibuno, who missed the cut here in 2021, showed good form in Thailand last month when she finished T8 at the Honda LPGA Thailand. Known as the ‘Smiling Cinderella’ on her home Tour in Japan and now, around the world, Shibuno charmed the world’s media when she won the ’19 Women’s Open on what was her first international foray as a professional. When she triumphed at Woburn, she introduced the charmed media to her love of snacks and that remained the theme three years later as she told the attending media at Mission Hills her plans for the weekend: “I'm going to do just same thing, and I'm going to eat and I'm going to sleep.” She explained when she first played at Mission Hills she thought it would be a hard course for her to play but now she felt she had found the right approach: “If I'm swinging harder on the tee shot and make more, you know, decent shot on the second shot. Yeah. The rough, it's a power from the rough.” When asked how she’d changed since winning the AIG Women’s Open in 2019, Shibuno cheerfully delivered, “My game, golf game is not a lot different than I won 2019 British Open, but my personality is not different at all.” Adding with an engaging chuckle, “I eat a lot more snacks.” Defending Champion Patty Tavatanakit and Americans Annie Park and Jennifer Kupcho are in T2 at -8 with Park shooting a 67, the second lowest round of the day behind Shibuno. Tavatanakit, who finished with two closing birdies to sit only one shot back said: “This is actually the first time I actually kind of feel like I know what I'm doing on the putting green. But other than that, I'm really proud with my approach shots as well. I been working really hard on that with my coach, Grant Waite, and keep improving.”

Jennifer Kupcho takes a six shot lead into the final day of The Chevron Championship 2022 at Mission Hills after a third round 64 put her at -16 under and saw her break away from the chasing pack. Kupcho addressed the media post her third round with an overwhelming self-confidence that belies the fact she has yet to win on the LPGA Tour. She commented “Everything was working. I mean, seriously this week I think my putting is definitely the props. I have putted really well, and you got to make putts in a major championship.” When asked to recall some moments which stood out as highlights of the day she could not recall any details explaining: “Honestly it's all a blur. I mean, I hit the fairways, hit the greens, and really was just trying to put smooth putting strokes on them. That's what I did, and they fell.” Jessica Korda, a six-time LPGA winner and seeking her first Major win made her way gracefully up the leaderboard from 15th to third place after a 67. Korda was certainly not counting herself out despite being seven shots adrift as she observed: “It's a major so you know the girls up front are going to be nervous, and we're kind of chasing them down and they know that. You always just kind of got to think that you have a chance no matter, and that's kind of the mentality you got to go in there with.” Korda is another player who knows her game rather suits this course: “I love the grass. I don't know, Palm Springs is so nice. I'm definitely really sad that we're leaving. It's one of the golf courses you always look forward to coming back to because you know it, and the more that you know to the better you're going to play out here. It is definitely about learning the golf course and learning the breaks, and it's been really nice to be here. It's going to be sad, but also we're really looking forward to what the future has for this event.” Playing alongside defending Champion, Patty Tavatanakit, who was visibly disappointed following her third round 70 which included six birdies and four bogeys. She quickly found a positive angle ahead of the final round here at Missions Hill, saying “I like chasing. Yeah, for sure. Better feeling. You play without fear and I love doing that.” Overnight leader Annie Park was another who was choosing to see the positives of her third round 73 as she sits in solo fourth place; “I think I'm pretty good. I think I was most worried about my putting and my putting was pretty solid today, so going into tomorrow I'm feeling pretty good. I think with just new clubs and going back to my old swing but kind of reverting back to a new technique, so still getting used to it. I'm right around the corner and feel pretty good.”