ÉVIAN-LES-BAINS, France — Paula Creamer is leading a major tournament again after shooting a bogey-free, seven-under 64 on Thursday in the first round of the Evian Championship.
When Creamer last topped a major leaderboard, she won the 2010 United States Women’s Open by four strokes to get her ninth title on the L.P.G.A. Tour.
At the Evian Resort Golf Club, where she had a signature win as a teenager, Creamer, a 32-year-old American, moved one shot clear after making her seventh birdie on the par-5 18th.
“I feel really just in control,” said Creamer, who is ranked No. 156 and whose last top-10 finish in a major and last tournament win were both in 2014. “It’s been several years where I felt like just all-in-all good in my shoes.”
Creamer dressed in black as temperatures rose to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. She took 31 shots to reach the turn and stayed clear of four players who peppered the back nine with birdies.
At six under were Brittany Altomare, who earned a career-best runner-up finish at Evian in 2017; the seven-time major winner Inbee Park; second-ranked Jin Young Ko; and Mi Hyang Lee.
Two shots behind Creamer at five under were Jennifer Kupcho, who was the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur winner in April, and Melissa Reid of England, who got the day’s only eagle at the 18th.
Top-ranked Sung Hyun Park was among three players who were four under, three shots back.
The picturesque, 6,527-yard course at Evian, on a hillside overlooking Lake Geneva, was ideal for Creamer to confirm her return to form after some tough seasons.
“Coming here obviously puts a big smile on my face,” said Creamer, the 2005 rookie of the year, who at age 18 won the Evian Masters before it got its current status.
In the 2017 Evian, Creamer withdrew injured before having surgery on her left wrist. That led to a 2018 season with no top-10 finishes, not helped by a marriage breakup.
“It’s been crazy these last four or five years in my life,” she acknowledged. “It’s hard enough out here, then you bring your other life into the mix of things.”
A 10-time winner on the L.P.G.A. Tour, she said she felt “like mentally I’m in a very, very strong place.”
There was another comeback attempt Thursday, by the player whom Creamer followed as rookie of the year.
Shi Hyun Ahn, runner-up at the 2004 L.P.G.A. behind Annika Sorenstam, carded a one-under 70 in her first round at a major tournament since April 2011. Ahn had returned to South Korea, given birth to a daughter who is now 7 and played on the domestic tour in her home country.
Kupcho, 22, is perhaps this season’s must-see rookie after becoming the first woman to win a tournament on the Masters course at Augusta, a longtime bastion of men-only membership.
She turned professional several weeks ago after a stellar college career at Wake Forest. She felt right at home at Evian, where she helped a United States collegiate team win the 2018 Arnold Palmer Cup.
“It’s kind of nice to have a familiar place to go,” Kupcho said. “Before last year I had never been over to Europe, so coming over jet lag definitely messed with me a little bit.”
Kupcho had six birdies and one bogey in her 66.
Americans at the other end of the leaderboard included the defending champion, Angela Stanford, who shot five-over 76; and third-ranked Lexi Thompson, who three-putted the 18th for a 77.
The Evian Championship went back to July in the calendar after being moved to September when receiving major status in 2013. The switch aimed to avoid seasonal rain, which twice made it a 54-hole event.
Still, storms and rain are forecast for the weekend, and organizers moved Friday’s tee times forward by 30 minutes in a bid to beat the worst of the weather.
