GOLF.com: Former Junior Prodigy Alexa Pano Fires 5-Under 67 to Contend at KPMG Women's PGA

Alexa Pano, 21, made a strong statement in the opening round of the KPMG Women's PGA Championship at Hazeltine National, carding a clean 5-under 67 to sit T3 heading into Friday as the low American. Ina Yoon's scorching 63 later in the day claimed the outright lead, but Pano's round showed the kind of controlled, course-aware golf that wins majors.

Eagle Ignites Back-Nine Charge

Pano reached the turn at even par before a pivotal moment on the 11th: she holed out from 69 yards for eagle, sparking a run of birdies on holes 14, 16, and 17. The back nine alone yielded 4-under golf and briefly put her atop the leaderboard.

"Hitting it straight is the most important thing on this golf course," Pano said. "The rough is very patchy and has some really thick spots."

From Prodigy to Patient Professional

Pano's story is well known in golf circles — she starred in the Netflix documentary The Short Game at age 7, competed in multiple Drive, Chip and Putt events at Augusta National, and was the youngest entrant in the 2019 U.S. Women's Open. She turned pro at 17, earned her LPGA card through Q-Series, and won the ISPS Handa World Invitational on her 19th birthday in August 2023.

Now in her fourth full LPGA season, she credits patience as the defining lesson of her professional journey. "You lose a lot more than you win out here," she acknowledged. "You really have to trust the process."

Strokeslab's Take

At 273.4 yards average off the tee, Pano has the length to challenge Hazeltine's layout. The key differentiator this week — as her own commentary suggests — will be SG: APP quality derived from accurate driving. Her course-management instincts appear to be maturing at exactly the right time.