Ardina, Ashok in the mix

Filipina golfer Dottie Ardina and India’s Aditi Ashok turned in a steady performance in the opening round of the Dow Championship in Michigan, Midland on Thursday, carding an even-par 72 to remain in contention in the LPGA’s only official team event.

The Ardina-Ashok tandem, who have shown chemistry in past international team formats, battled through a stretch of bogeys before closing strong with a birdie on their final hole. Their resilience kept them in the mix, tying for 20th place — just one shot clear of the projected cut line heading into the second round.

In contrast, Bianca Pagdanganan and her new partner Ana Belac of Slovenia showed early promise but struggled late in their round. The pair was 1-under through 10 holes, but a string of three bogeys derailed their momentum, forcing them to settle for a 2-over 74. They dropped into a tie for 38th, six shots behind the co-leaders.

Australia’s Cassie Porter and Scotland’s Gemma Dryburgh shared the top spot on the leaderboard after a sizzling 4-under 66 in the opening round. The Dow Championship, held at Midland Country Club, features an alternate shot format on Day 1 and best ball on Day 2 — adding strategic complexity to the already challenging team event.

Ardina and Ashok will look to gain ground in Friday’s best-ball round, where birdie opportunities are expected to be more plentiful. For Pagdanganan and Belac, the pressure is on to bounce back and avoid an early exit.

Dryburgh and Porter combined for five birdies to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the LPGA Dow Championship pairs event in Michigan.

Scotland’s Dryburgh and Australian rookie Porter teed off on 10 at Midland Country Club and grabbed four birdies in their first nine holes.

They answered their lone bogey of the day at the second with a birdie at the par-five third to finish the day one stroke clear atop a crowded leaderboard on which six duos shared second place on three-under 67.

The pair had picked up their first birdie of the day at the 12th, and their three birdies in a row at 14, 15 and 16 included a chip-in for Porter.

“We just rolled really well together,” Porter said, Dryburgh adding that their games complemented each other well in the alternate-shot format used for the first and third rounds, with best-ball rounds to come on Friday and Sunday.

“Tomorrow is about birdies and today was kind of more steady,” Dryburgh said. “Obviously we made a few birdies today, but we can make even more tomorrow.”

Among the teams on 67, the Japanese duo of Saki Baba and Yuri Yoshida had reached five-under with five birdies in their first 14 holes but dropped back with two late bogeys.

They were tied with China’s Liu Yan and Zhang Yahui, England’s Jodi Ewart Shadff and Taiwan’s Heather Lin, South Koreans Im Jin-hee and Lee So-mi, Americans Megan Khang and Lexi Thompson, and American Jennifer Kupcho and Ireland’s Leona Maguire.