Irish amateur Aine Donegan carded an opening round 69 in the Women's U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, despite playing with a replacement driver ©Getty Images

Rookie Irish amateur Aine Donegan finished the first round of the Women's U.S. Open at Pebble Beach joint second on 69, despite playing with a replacement driver on a day when China’s Xiyu Lin and Hyo Joo Kim of South Korea shared the lead on 68.

Donegan, playing in her first tournament on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour, arrived after helping Europe reclaim the Vagliano Trophy in Scotland - but her clubs did not reach California until Tuesday (July 4) and, when they did, her driver was broken.

She finished on 69 along with five other players, including her compatriot Leona Maguire, who led the second and third rounds of of last month’s women’s PGA Championship before finishing 11th.

Also on 69 in the third women's major of the year were South Korea’s Han Ran Ryu, Nasa Hataoka of Japan, and home players Bailey Tardy and Allisen Corpuz.

China's Xiyu Lin shares the joint lead at the end of the first round of the U.S.Open after shooting 68 at Pebble Beach in California ©Getty Images
China's Xiyu Lin shares the joint lead at the end of the first round of the U.S.Open after shooting 68 at Pebble Beach in California ©Getty Images

Tardy had to go through an eight-round qualifying process last year to get onto the LPGA Tour having narrowly missed out for three previous years.

World number nine Lin, the highest-ranked player without an LPGA Tour win, was first home in 68 and later joined by Kim, five times a winner in LPGA major events, who holed a 20-foot birdie at the 17th to draw level with her rival.

Lin, 27, has played on the LPGA Tour since 2014 and has yet to win one of its tournaments, although she finished joint third in last month’s Women’s PGA Championship which was won by fellow Chinese player Yin Ruoning.

The challenging course, which has hosted six men’s US Open events but is staging the women’s version for the first time, played havoc with the ambitions of some leading players.

World number one Jin Young Ko of South Korea finished way off the pace on 79, and world number two Nelly Korda, the 2020 Olympic champion, carded a 76.

The 11-times LPGA winner Lexi Thompson finished on 74.

Home play Amy Olson, 30, is playing the tournament seven months pregnant.

Meanwhile Michelle Wie West, who announced this will be her final tournament before retiring at the age of 33, looks likely to be making an early exit after carding an opening 79.

Sweden's 52-year-old Annika Sorenstam, President of the International Golf Federation and winner of 10 LPGA Majors, drawn back by the lure of playing the famous Pebble Beach Golf Links having stepped away from tournament play in 2008, shot an opening round of 80.

The prize pot for the women's US Open is a record $10 million (£8 million/€9 million), including $1.8 millon (£1.4 million/€1.6 million) for the winner.