Defending champion Miyu Yamashita of Japan led the way for the Asians with a brilliant seven-under 65, just one stroke behind French golfer Pauline Roussin-Bouchard, who took the first-round lead at the Maybank Championship 2026 after carding an impressive 64 at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club (KLGCC) on Thursday (Oct 29).
Yamashita of Japan and American Sophia Schubert shared second place after both carded seven-under 65.
Yamashita is aiming to become the first golfer to defend the US$3 million (RM12.3m) LPGA Tour title at the KLGCC and said much will come down to consistency in the next few days.
"So I think a lot of consistency with my shots is really important, because there are lots of tricky holes out here. So I'll focus on hitting second shots well, and hopefully that will keep me in the mix for the overall title.
Speaking to reporters after the round, the 26-year-old said she was pleased with how she handled the opening round after a poor performance last edition.
She hoped to maintain the same approach for the remaining three days of the tournament.
"Honestly, today I made some really, really good shots, great putting.
"My challenge today was just to keep the inside voice pretty calm, because I'm not a calm person, but just kind of under control, try not to plan ahead or just like get ahead of myself in any situation," she said.
American Sophia, tied second with defending champion Miyu, also impressed in her first appearance in Malaysia, and credited her extra training on the driving earlier here helped her to cope with the conditions in KLGCC.
In her first year in LPGA, the rookie golfer said she was happy with the KLGCC course, and the fast greens also helped her.
"The golf course here is just excellent. The extra hours I put in here also helped my opening round and also made fewer mistakes. I'm just hoping to keep my good form here," said Sophia. -- BERNAMA / Agencies
Leading first-round scores:
64: Pauline Roussin-Bouchard (Fra)
65: Miyu Yamashita (Jap), Sophia Schubert (US)
66: Charley Hull (Eng), Perrine Delacour (Fra)
67: Arpichaya Yubol (Tha), Hye-Jin Choi (S. Kor), Robyn Choi (Aus), Liyana Durisic (Mas), Youmin Hwang (Kor), Julia Lopez Ramirez (Spa)
68: Ruoning Yin (Chn), Minji Kang (S. Kor), Nataliya Guseva (Una), Aki Iwai (Jap), Maja Stark (Swe), Ayaka Furue (Jap), Achiraya Sriwong (Tha), Amy Yang (S. Kor), Gina Kim (US)
69: Mi Hyang Lee (S.KOR), Yuri Yoshida (JPN), Celine Boutier (FRA), Linn Grant (SWE), Angel Yin (USA), Lindy Duncan (USA), Jin Young Ko (KOR), Cassie Porter (AUS), Yan Liu (CHN)
70: Aditi Ashok (Ind), Esther Henseleit (Ger), Wei-Ling Hsu (Tai), Karis Davidson (Aus), Erika Hara (Jap), A Lim Kim (S. Kor), Soo Bin Joo (S. Kor), Nanna Koerstz Madsen (Den), Yu Liu (Chn)
