Four days after Celine Boutier hoisted a trophy on the Ladies European Tour, she’s in contention once more. But this time, it’s on the LPGA Tour.

Boutier, who won the LET’s Aramco Team Series – Shenzhen last Sunday, managed to ride the momentum of that victory to the top of the leaderboard on day one of the Buick LPGA Shanghai in which she carded a bogey-free, 8-under 64, which was highlighted by six consecutive birdies.

“I think definitely the time change and traveling, just the week ahead, it definitely helped me to fight the jet lag and being able to get accustomed to the time zone and the temperature,” Boutier said about the benefit of having played last week in the People’s Republic of China. “And then having also a solid week last week has definitely helped (me to feel) more confident this week.”

Boutier’s boost in confidence comes in the midst of what has been a challenging year for the Frenchwoman, who has struggled to maintain the same sort of success she found last season.

In 2023, Boutier enjoyed a career-best season on the LPGA Tour in which she won four times, including her first major victory in her home country of France at The Amundi Evian Championship. She amassed a total of eight top 10s last season, including her wins, a testament to not only her consistency week to week on the LPGA Tour but also year to year, as she has recorded 26 top 10s in the last three seasons.

But this week, Boutier arrives in the People’s Republic of China having earned just one top-10 finish so far this year, the fewest she has recorded in a single season on Tour since 2018.

That’s due in large part to the struggles Boutier has dealt with in her game, as she’s hitting fewer fairways and fewer greens than she did last season. Those issues have been compounded by struggles she has endured with her putter, dropping from 39th to 96th in putts per round as she’s averaging more than 30 strokes for 18 holes.

In April, Boutier outwardly expressed her frustrations with her game when she posted on social media, “Have been trying to get my putter to love me back for a minute ,but it’s a process. Any tips are welcomed.”

But Thursday at Qizhong Garden Golf Club, Boutier needed just 25 putts and missed only two fairways and three greens, showing signs of the form that lifted her to the top of the women’s game in 2024.

“You have to be pretty straight because the rough is really thick, so whenever you spray it a little bit, you get really penalized,” Boutier said about her strategy on Thursday. “I think there is definitely a premium on the fairways. Once you're on fairway, you can be a little bit aggressive. Greens are a bit softer as well, so I think I was able to manage that pretty well and was able to hole some putts.”

Continuing to find fairways and greens will be critical to Boutier’s success through the next three rounds as she’ll look to keep pace with Sei Young Kim, who opened with a 10-under 62 to lead Boutier by two.

“My long game has been really steady,” Boutier said about her recent form. “I put myself in a lot of birdie chances, and I was able to make a few, which was good. Very positive first round.”

Celine Boutier in Contention at Buick LPGA Shanghai Fresh Off LET Victory

Related Articles