Staff WriterAndrea Lee opened the Mizuho Americas Open with the sort of round that makes a leaderboard sit up straight and check its collar, signing for a six-under-par 66 to take the outright first-round lead at Mountain Ridge Country Club.
It was not merely tidy golf. It was disciplined, opportunistic and just the right side of ruthless. Lee made eight birdies, led the field in that department, and produced her lowest opening round since a 65 at the 2025 Amundi Evian Championship.
For a player who had missed the cut in her previous two starts, this was not so much a gentle reset as a firm thump on the table.
Lee Finds The Groove At Mountain Ridge
Lee arrived at the Mizuho Americas Open with a mixed 2026 season behind her: four made cuts from six starts, one top-10 finish, and a recent stumble at both The Chevron Championship and the JM Eagle LA Championship presented by Plastpro.
But golf, being the demented little puzzle box it is, can change its mind quickly.
Her 66 was her lowest 18-hole score at this event, improving on a previous best of 68, which she had shot three times. It also marked the first time she has held the outright lead after round one on the LPGA Tour.
That matters. Not because trophies are handed out on Thursday — they are not, unless someone has seriously misunderstood the schedule — but because early authority at a firm, fast venue gives the field something to chase.
Lee, Rolex Rankings No. 24, has pedigree. She won the 2022 Standard Portland Classic, has represented the United States at the 2023 and 2024 Solheim Cups, and owns 23 career LPGA Tour top-10 finishes with $5 million in official earnings.
This was her third start at the Mizuho Americas Open, where she finished T3 last year at Liberty National Golf Club and has never finished outside the top 25.
Andrea Lee On Her Low Round Of The Season
“Yeah, I think this is a great golf course for us, great test of golf. Honestly feels like a major championship just with how firm and fast the greens are and how tough the conditions are. So, the game plan is just to stay really patient. I feel like I’ve been playing really consistent golf lately. Had a couple not-great weeks in LA and Chevron, so really grinded last week and worked on the things that I needed to work on, and I feel like it’s all coming together a little bit now.”
There is the key word: patience.
Mountain Ridge is not the sort of course that rewards flailing at pins like a man trying to swat a wasp with a rake. Firm greens, awkward slopes and demanding approaches have made control the day’s most valuable currency.
Lee spent hers well.
Lydia Ko And Jeeno Thitikul Lurk One Back
One shot behind Lee sit Lydia Ko and Jeeno Thitikul, both at five under after opening 67s.
Ko’s round continued a useful pattern. It was her third opening round of 67 or better this season, a reminder that while she missed the cut at The Chevron Championship — her only missed cut of 2026 — she remains a player who does not stay quiet for long.
Thitikul, meanwhile, looked every inch the defending champion. She made four birdies and an eagle, and her 67 was her 91st LPGA Tour round of 67 or lower since the beginning of 2022. That is 15 more than any other player over the same span.
That statistic is not background decoration. It is a warning label.
Thitikul won this event in 2025 at 17-under-par, setting the 54-hole and 72-hole tournament scoring records at Liberty National. If Lee has the lead, Thitikul has the muscle memory.
Ko Praises The Mizuho Americas Open Format
The Mizuho Americas Open continues to carry one of the more distinctive formats in professional golf, pairing the LPGA competition with an AJGA event that gives elite juniors a front-row education in the rhythms, nerves and theatre of top-level tournament golf.
Ko, who knows a thing or two about being frighteningly good at a young age, sees the value clearly.
“Yeah, I think this event is more than just a golf tournament. The sponsors, Mizuho, have done a lot in growing the game and they’ve been adding different I think events outside of just the four days of golf that we play. A lot of the clients seem like they have a great time returning to here, and even to this new location for this event.
What Michelle has done by having the AJGA players I think is a really good opportunity and really good exposure for them. I wish that when I was a junior I had these kind of opportunities as well. So to kind of play alongside them on the weekend, it has been great.
They’re so good. It’s hard to believe that some of them are literally only like 14, 15 and they hit it just as far as me or further than me. You know, the finesse that they have, you wouldn’t think they’re in their mid to early teens. So, yeah, it’s a learning opportunity for me and it’s I think the sponsors and Excel, they do a really good job bringing a lot of generations together and kind of grow the whole game of golf.”
That is the clever bit about this tournament. It is not simply staging golf; it is staging the sport’s future alongside its present.
Thitikul Explains The Mountain Ridge Challenge
For all the attractive scoring at the top, Mountain Ridge did not exactly roll out a red carpet. The greens have already become the week’s chief topic of conversation, which is usually a sign that players are quietly developing trust issues.
Thitikul explained the challenge in wonderfully practical terms.
“I think every green on the yardage books you can see it’s square, not circle. Normally it’s like circle or not, but it’s just like square. It’s not really running if you hit it high on the slope in the front of the green, but you don’t want to miss long side because long side it’s always going to be a downhill putts or downhill chip to the hole. Just not a little down, it’s so down.
I think it’s just the things that everyone really concern about to keep it below the hole, not above. And then it just also hard calculating. The green is not that soft and the wind picked up and then also the front of the green, it’s kind of like a slope that where if you hit it high it’s not going to run out.”
Translated from elite golfer to civilian: miss in the wrong place and the course will make you feel like you have parked a shopping trolley on a ski slope.
That should keep the Mizuho Americas Open nicely uncomfortable over the next three rounds.
Minami Katsu Makes A Hole-In-One
Away from the very top, Minami Katsu provided the day’s loudest punctuation mark with an ace at the par-three seventh.
Katsu finished the round at two under, sitting T10, and while one swing does not make a tournament, a hole-in-one does tend to improve the mood of everyone except the player who has to follow it.
It also added a jolt to an opening day already rich with movement.
AJGA Leaderboard Adds Another Layer
In the AJGA competition, Amelie Zalsman leads after recording six birdies and three bogeys in the modified Stableford format.
Zalsman, currently No. 5 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings, posted a score of 39 to set the pace among the junior field. The format rewards assertive scoring, and six birdies on opening day is a sturdy way of announcing that the nerves have been left somewhere in the car park.
The AJGA element remains one of the defining features of the Mizuho Americas Open, not as a novelty act, but as a genuine development platform.
Michelle Wie West Returns To Competition
Michelle Wie West, the tournament host, played her first competitive round since 2023 and finished at 10 over.
The score was secondary to the occasion, though golf rarely misses the chance to be emotionally unreasonable. Wie West’s return was about perspective, presence and the wider tournament she has helped shape.
“Yeah, it’s all about putting it in perspective, right? My husband was talking me off the ledge the whole round, you know. Golf can take you places, and I went places today. But, you know, it’s just — you got to see the big picture at the end of the day. I’m so proud of what we built here. I feel extremely lucky to have the opportunity to have the space to play today. The back nine I made some good birdies. Putting felt a lot better. If you ever see me putt right-hand low ever again, just yell from outside the ropes, don’t do it. So, it was fun
It was honest, funny and very human. Golf has many ways of humbling people. Wie West sounded like someone who has made peace with most of them.
Tournament Records Still In Sight
The official Mizuho Americas Open scoring records remain tied to Liberty National Golf Club, where Hannah Green shot the 18-hole record of 63 in 2024.
Jeeno Thitikul owns the 36-hole record at 135 from 2024, along with the 54-hole mark of 202 and 72-hole record of 271 from 2025.
Whether Mountain Ridge allows similar numbers remains to be seen. Judging by the players’ comments, anyone going record-hunting will need more than a hot putter. They will need precision, restraint and probably a therapist on standby for the downhill chips.
A Leaderboard With Teeth
After one round, the Mizuho Americas Open has exactly what a tournament wants: a clear leader, elite names in pursuit, a demanding course, a returning host, and a junior competition adding texture beyond the ropes.
Andrea Lee owns the early advantage, but Lydia Ko and Jeeno Thitikul are only one swing back, and both have the kind of résumés that make leads feel rather temporary.
Lee’s 66 was calm, sharp and overdue. The question now is whether it becomes a launchpad or just the first act in a leaderboard scrap that looks ready to develop teeth.
