Lydia Ko faces a tough task at Pebble Beach after her opening round of the LPGA major literally went off-course early on.
Ko spent the majority of her first round at the US Open trying to make up for a quadruple bogey on the par-three fifth hole this afternoon.
The horror hole was largely due to Ko shanking her tee shot with a 6 iron, instantly prompting “fore” calls from spectators and resulting in one woman running away from the incoming ball.
The shot ended up in a hedge to the left of the green and drew immediate stunned reactions from commentators.
“That is an incredibly bad shot,” one said.
I can’t remember when I’ve seen her hit a shot with an iron like that.”
Another suggested it was the type of shot you’d expect from a 15-handicapper.
“That’s the worst shot I’ve ever seen her hit with a 6 iron. Just mind-blowing, really, that she would make a mistake like that.”
Ko eventually made the green, but after missing her first putt from 10 feet was left with a quadruple bogey.
The world number 3 golfer managed to rebound immediately after with a bird on the par-five sixth – her second birdie after opening the day with one – but bogeys on the 12th and 18th saw those efforts erased.
That meant Ko finished her round with a four-over 76, leaving her in a tie for 83rd and eight shots off leaders Hyo Joo Kim of South Korea and China’s Xiyu Lin.
Fellow Kiwi Amelia Garvey unfortunately didn’t go much better, finishing with a six-over 78 with three birdies, seven bogeys and a double bogey.
Garvey is in a tie for 114th.
