SYLVANIA, Ohio — The first round of the Dana Open is officially in the books and Linn Grant and Jaravee Boonchant are tied for first place at -7 as play ended Thursday.
Ariya Jutanugarn and Emily Pedersen both finished the day a shot back of the lead, while nine others are tied for third place at -5.
Boonchant had three birdies in the first four holes to help set the tone for her day and then eagled on hole 10.
Grant finished the day strong with a birdie in her final three holes.
"It feels really nice because I didn't force anything," Grant said. "It was really smooth out there. I was really just enjoying playing and making as many birdies as possible."
Boonchant said her irons played a key role in her performance.
"My irons were really doing the work today," she said. "It just put me in a position that I could have a chance to make a birdie. I'm just not trying to look at the leaderboard too much and just focus on my game."
LPGA rookie phenom Rose Zhang had a strong showing in her Dana Open debut with a 66, putting her at -5 and just two shots back of the lead heading into the second round.
Another young golfer continuing to make a name for herself is 15-year-old Mia Hammond.
After winning the Monday qualifier to be able to play in the Dana Open, she shot -3 in the first round.
The second round will tee off starting at 7:15 a.m. Friday as players will look to avoid the cut heading into the third round on Saturday.