THE WOODLANDS, Texas: Haeran Ryu and Yan Liu each shot bogey-free 7-under 65 to share the lead during the suspended first round of the Chevron Championship as top-ranked Nelly Korda struggled to a 77 on Thursday in her title defense.

The round was suspended late as a storm approached The Club at Carlton Woods, with 24 players unable to finish.

Korda won the event last year for the last of her five straight LPGA Tour victories and had hoped to rediscover that dominant form in the season’s first major. Instead, she made bogeys on four straight holes and was 4-over par after six holes.

Korda added two more bogeys on the back nine and was 12 shots behind the leaders and needing a big second round simply to make the cut.

Ryu of South Korea and Liu of China had no such problems.

Ryu birdied five of her first 10 holes to move in front and made her seventh birdie on her closing hole, the ninth.

Liu got going on her back nine with four birdies in a five-hole stretch. She, too, made a closing birdie to tie Ryu.

Hya Joo Kim was a shot behind the two leaders heading to her final hole, but took bogey on the 18th to finish with a 67.

The group at 68 included Ariya Jutanugarn, Hye-Jin Choi, Carlotta Ciganda, Manon De Roey and Brooke Matthews. Lucy Li also was 4-under par through 14 when play was suspended,

Among those unable to complete the round were Lexi Thompson, who retired from full-time tour golf last year, and LPGA rookie Ingrid Lindblad of Sweden, who won last week in Los Angeles in her third start as an LPGA Tour member.

Thompson was at 1-over par with her final hole, the ninth, remaining. Lindblad was at 2-over par with her last hole, the 18th, to play. Lindblad had a triple-bogey 7 on the par-4 14th.

Ryu, with two career LPGA Tour victories, changed putters midway through last week’s tournament in Los Angeles, liked how it felt and continued with it in Texas.

Ryu said she was more comfortable on the greens. She often opened the face with her former putter, Ryu explained, and was happy to make several tricky putts in her round. “It’s really good for me,” she said.

Liu, seeking her first LPGA Tour win, was not happy with her performance off the tee in Los Angeles last week and worked to get it corrected. “This week, I fixed my driver, so it feels very solid,” she said.

Little was solid for Korda, who began her season with a pair of top 10 finishes, but has not been as crisp as a year ago when she won seven events and was the Rolex Player of the Year.

When Korda walked off the 18th green following her round, she told a small group of media that she was headed back to work.

“I’m going to go and practice and see where it takes me,” she said.

Korda is seeking her third career major.

LONDON: If the first two days of Fight Week were about appearances, Day 3 was about pressure.
The Live Media Press Conference, held at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, stripped away the rehearsed lines and brand polish. What unfolded instead was a tense, theatrical showdown between Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn, just 48 hours before they meet in a ring already charged with legacy, accusations, and unfinished history.
From the moment Eubank walked in, dressed sharp and confident, the tone shifted. Benn entered quieter, focused but noticeably reserved. The crowd — a mix of media, fans, undercard fighters, and organizers — picked up on the contrast immediately. The flashbulbs didn’t wait. Neither did Eubank.
“He ran”
Standing before a packed room and a bank of cameras, Eubank delivered what felt more like a monologue than a media answer.
“Conor ran to Spain,” he said, pausing to let the tension land. “He couldn’t take the noise here — the chants, the headlines, the jokes. So he left. I stayed. I trained here. I spoke to the kids. I kept my feet in the city. The public's invested in this fight. I feel that every time I step outside. And believe it or not — most of that energy’s been positive.”
He wasn’t done.
“I’m happy with where I am mentally. He’s not. You’ll see that pressure on his face by Friday. It’s building. And on Saturday — it’ll crack.”
Benn holds back
Benn, to his credit, didn’t rise to the bait. He kept his responses brief, even measured. But that silence seemed to speak as loudly as Eubank’s taunts. The contrast was stark: one man played to the crowd, the other kept his fire under wraps. Neither showed signs of blinking — just two different approaches to the same storm.

But the silence raised questions. Was it composure? Or calculation?
More than just hype
This wasn’t the usual press junket. The room was crowded, the atmosphere sharp. Reporters leaned in. Even the undercard fighters — who had earlier spoken about their own bouts — sat up straighter as the main event men took the stage.
This is what happens when a fight is more than a fight. When it’s about fathers, and pasts, and public reputations. When it’s about three years of legal battles, insults, cancelled bouts, and a fanbase divided.
This is Eubank vs. Benn, but it’s also history vs. redemption.
Arab News on the ground
Arab News was on the ground throughout the press conference, reporting live as fighters from across the card took their seats, answered questions, and stared down expectations. From rising talents to headline names, the air at Tottenham was charged — a stadium preparing to trade goals for gloves.
What comes next
With Friday’s weigh-in still ahead, the emotional temperature continues to rise. Saturday’s Fatal Fury-themed fight night will be broadcast globally, with a packed card beneath the headline event. And while most fans will tune in for the fists, the mind games may prove just as decisive.
With the weigh-in coming Friday and the fight just around the corner, the noise isn’t fading. It’s building.