March 28-31
Aviara Golf Club, Carlsbad, California
$1,800,000
Round 2, Round 3, Round 4

South Korea's Chella Choi birdied her last three holes on the way to a seven-under-par 65 on Thursday and a two-shot lead in the LGPA Kia Classic in Carlsbad, California.

Choi took a little while to warm up on a chilly morning at Aviara Golf Club, but she finished with seven birdies and no bogeys.

"My putter really helped me, so I really enjoyed it today," said Choi, who won her lone LPGA Tour title at the 2015 Marathon Classic.

"I like this golf course," Choi said. "I have really good memories here.

"The fairways are easy and the greens are small -- If I hit the fairways and greens a lot of birdie chances out there."

Stephanie Meadow made her Kia Classic debut with a bogey-free 67.

“Just hit a bunch fairways and a bunch of greens and rolled some putts in,” said Meadow, who finished the day in solo second. “Pretty stress-free golf, which is always nice.”

For the 27-year-old from Northern Ireland, it was doubly refreshing to finally be back in playing shape and on the LPGA Tour. In July 2017, Meadow suffered a stress fracture of the L5 vertebrae in her lower back, an injury that went misdiagnosed for 10 weeks. That season saw Meadow miss 14 of 17 cuts and after she failed to better her status at Q School, Meadow spent 2018 rehabilitating both her back and her game on the Symetra Tour. She returned to the LPGA Tour after finishing sixth in the 2018 Volvik Race for the Card, which awards LPGA status to the Symetra Tour's top 10 money winners.

“It was definitely hard in the beginning. Obviously, it's a different kind of feeling when you go to tournaments, so it was kind of swallow your pride,” said Meadow. “But you know what? There are some really awesome girls out there that are really good players. I kept saying to people, If you win on Symetra and you can Top 5 every week, you're going to be able to compete out here, too. The Tour has gotten so much better in the last five years.”

Nine of the top 10 players in the world are in the field for the last tournament before the first major of the year -- the ANA Inspiration.

Only sixth-ranked Nelly Korda is taking the week off.

It was déjà vu all over again for Cristie Kerr , who for the second year in a row witnessed an ace at Aviara's par-3 14th. In 2018, Kerr watched as Eun-Hee Ji made a hole-in-one on Sunday to secure her third career LPGA Tour victory. This time, it was Kerr with the fireworks, rolling one in from 143 yards as this time Ji stood to the side and celebrated.

“It was just incredible, because Eun Hee, last year she won the tournament but also made a hole-in-one on that hole,” said Kerr, who won this tournament in 2015. “The odds of the two of us playing in the same group and her having won it and then me doing it, that was pretty cool.”

Kerr's hole-in-one adds another $20,000 to the season-long CME Group Cares Challenge - Score 1 for St. Jude, which benefits St. Jude Children's Hospital. The tally currently stands at $120,000, with an ace at every tournament except the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. Kerr finished the day tied for 90th at 2-over 74.

Player Notes

Rolex Rankings No. 78 Chella Choi (65)

Choi's first-round 65 is her lowest round of the 2019 LPGA Tour season, besting the 68 she shot in the third round of last week's Bank of Hope Founders Cup

She hit 13 of 14 greens and 17 of 18 fairways

Choi is in her 11th season on the LPGA Tour; she won the 2015 Marathon Classic presented by Owen Corning and O-I

This is Choi's fifth event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is T34 at last week's Bank of Hope Founders Cup

She is competing in her 10th Kia Classic; her best finish is fourth in 2014 and she has three other top-20 finishes

Rolex Rankings No. 310 Stephanie Meadow (67)

Meadow's first-round 67 is tied for the second-lowest round of her LPGA Tour career; she shot 66 twice in 2016 and has four previous 67s, including in the second and third rounds of last week's Bank of Hope Founders Cup

She hit 13 of 14 greens and 15 of 18 fairways

Meadow was a LPGA Tour rookie in 2015; after a stress fracture in her back derailed her career in mid-2017, she returned to the Symetra Tour for 2018, where she had one victory and regained her LPGA Tour card via the Volvik Race for the Card

This is Meadow's fourth event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is T40 at last week's Bank of Hope Founders Cup

She is competing in her first Kia Classic

Meadow won the LPGA Tour's 2015 Heather Farr Perseverance Award in 2015; her father Robert was diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer at the beginning of the season and Meadow left the Tour for three months to help care for him before his death in May 2015 

Quick Hits

25 players in the top 20 represent 12 different countries (Republic of Korea, Northern Ireland, Thailand, USA, Mexico, Colombia, China, Australia, Japan, Philippines, France and Canada)

Cristie Kerr wins a 2020 Kia Telluride for her hole-in-one on the par-4 No. 14, made with her 9-iron from 143 yards

Maddie McCrary withdrew during the first round, citing a wrist injury