‘Super Rookie’ Bang Shin-sil, who is being tipped as the next big star to lead the Korean Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) with a ‘super long hit’ of over 300 yards, is once again in contention for the title after shooting a four-under-par first day.

Bang shot a 4-under 68 with five birdies and one bogey in the first round of the 11th E1 Charity Open (total prize fund of 900 million won¤winner’s purse of 162 million won) at Seongmunan CC (par 72) in Wonju, Gangwon Province, on Saturday. He was tied for the lead with Ji Han-sol and Kim Min-sun7.

After birdies at the second (par-4) and ninth (par-5) to cut her first-round deficit to two strokes, she bogeyed the 10th (par-4) but bounced back with birdies at the 12th (par-3) and 14th (par-4). She dropped another shot at the 16th (par-5) to finish at four under par, tied for the lead with Kim Min-seon 7 and Ji Han-sol.

She hit her driver 293.3 yards off the tee on the par-4 first hole, a rare long shot for a female player, and 148.2 yards with a pitching wedge for birdie on the par-3 12th. On the par-4 13th, where most of the other players hit drivers, he hit a 279.8-yard drive with a wood.

The highlight was the par-5 16th. A 545-yard par-5, he hit his 3-wood 283.9 yards off the tee, then hit his second shot with the same wood 245.1 yards for a two-on. He was left 16.6 yards from the cup for eagle, but he made birdie with plenty of time to spare, showing his long-hitting prowess.

“I’ve heard rumours that she’s a long hitter, but she not only has a lot of distance, but she also has a very good short game and a very good putting game,” said Choi Hye-jin (2-under par), a fellow senior national team member.

Despite being a ‘conditional seed’ this season after finishing스포츠토토 40th in last year’s seeding, Bang Shin-sil has had two top-five finishes in her previous four tournaments this season, including the KLPGA Championship (fourth) and NH Investment & Securities Ladies Championship (third).

“It was a great experience to play with Hye-jin and learn a lot from her,” said Bang, who smiled sheepishly at her senior’s praise before adding, “I thought it was going to be a tough day because I had a cold and wasn’t feeling well before today, but fortunately, I felt good with my shots and my putts were falling well, which led to a good result.” “I intentionally teed off with a wood instead of a driver on the 16th hole because of the narrow fairways,” he added, “but I’m not looking to win, I’m just looking to stay in the fairways, focus on each shot and do my best over the next two days.”