NAPLES, Fla. — Austin Ernst leads the tournament, Sei Young Kim leads the race for $1 million and Lydia Ko has edged closer to everything else that's at stake this weekend.
So as expected, the LPGA's finale for 2015 is off to a hectic start.
Ernst shot a 6-under 66 Thursday to take a one-shot lead over South Korea's Mi Hyang Lee after the opening round of the CME Group Tour Championship. Kim, part of a group two shots off Ernst's pace, would win the season-ending $1 million bonus if the tournament ended in its current order.