LANCASTER >> Nelly Korda entered Thursday at Lancaster Country Club as the largest betting favorite heading into any U.S. Open since Tiger Woods in 2000.

That one was held at Pebble Beach, you may recall, and Woods wound up winning by an astonishing 15 strokes. Nothing like that is going to happen for Korda at the 79th U.S.

Women’s Open. Not after the 25-year-old American – the World’s No. 1 player – suffered through a truly disastrous hole that overshadowed everything else during opening round action.

The only storyline that came close was a gutsy 2-under-par 68 by Japan’s Yuka Saso to take a one shot lead into Friday’s second round ahead of three chasers at 1-under. The 22-year-old Saso was near the top of the leaderboard all day, but she finished with back-to-back birdies at Nos. 15 and 16 to become the only player in the field to get to 3-under-par.

She then however, gave one back with a bogey at 18. “It’s a U.S.

Open. It’s a major. It’s the biggest major championship, and I think it’s one of the most difficult weeks that we’ll play in a year,” Saso said.

“Obviously I don’t tell myself to be confident or anything like that. I think (it’s) more like trying to enjoy and have fun with playing partners and just be comfortable.” It was a sun-drenched, breezy day in Lancaster with wind gusts of up to 20 miles per hour.

That meant fast, dry conditions on the undulated greens, which resulted in just – players breaking par 70. It wound up one of.