Nelly Korda is in the hunt after first round of Aramco Team Series event in New York

Nelly Korda is in prime position to make a run at her second Aramco Team Series win this year after posting an opening round of two-under-par 70 in difficult conditions that included rain and gusting wind.

Korda, 24, is the top-ranked American on the LPGA Tour. She won the most recent Aramco Team Series event, which was played in Sotogrande, Spain, in August by three strokes.

This week’s event is being contested at Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point in New York. Korda’s opening round included four birdies and two bogeys. She trails the tournament leader, 30-year-old Belgian Manon de Roey, by two shots.

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De Roey fired a bogey-free round of 68 (four under par) that featured four birdies. She plays primarily on the Ladies European Tour and, like Korda, already has an Aramco Team Series win on her resume this year, claiming victory by three shots in May at the Team Series’ first event of the year in Bangkok.

“I’m very pleased with my score today. It was tough out there. We had some rain, strong winds,” de Roey said after her round. “Today was solid, so I’ll try to keep tomorrow the same like that.”

Both Korda and de Roey will have plenty of competition over the next two rounds of the 54-hole individual portion of the event. Sweden’s Madelene Sagstrom is tied for second with Korda at two under par, while Lexi Thompson is only three shots back after an opening round of 71 (one under par) and Canada’s Brooke Henderson trails by four shots, locked in a six-way tie for 6th after firing an even-par 72.

The Aramco Team Series – New York continues with the second round at Trump Golf Links Ferry Point on Friday, October 14.

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