ELMHURST, Ill. –  History repeated itself at River Forest Country Club on Tuesday.

One year after she held the first-round lead at the Women's Western Amateur, Pimchompoo "Pinky" Chaisilprungruang opened the 126th edition of the championship with a 6-under par 66 to sit atop the leaderboard again.

Ranked No. 63 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), Chaisilprungruang wasted little time climbing the leaderboard, making birdie on three of her first six holes before making her lone bogey of the day on the par-5 eighth. She answered immediately with a birdie at No. 9, then played a flawless, bogey-free back nine, adding birdies on Nos. 10, 13 and 17 to take the opening-round lead.

"It’s all my mindset, I really had fun today just playing golf and enjoying the nature out there," Chaisilprungruang said. "It's such a pretty course."

The 20-year-old from Thailand is coming off a standout sophomore season at UNC Charlotte, where she won four tournaments, including the 2026 American Athletic Conference championship.

After her strong start, Chaisilprungruang said she isn't planning to change her approach for the remainder of the week.

"Do the same thing,” she said. “Just play my game."

Chaisilprungruang will take a one-shot advantage into Wednesday's second round as she looks to maintain her position against one of the strongest amateur fields of the summer.

Seventeen-year-old Zoe Cusack, of Potomac, Maryland, carded a 5-under 67 on Tuesday. Ranked No. 106 in WAGR (No. 6 in the Rolex AJGA rankings), the Virginia commit and member of the U.S. National Junior Team made seven birdies, including six in an eight-hole stretch. She birdied three consecutive holes – Nos. 6, 7 and 8 – and added birdies on Nos. 10, 12 and 13 en route to a bogey-free back nine.

"The course was in great condition," Cusack said. "The greens are getting faster, so leaving yourself below the hole is really key. I had some nice uphill putts and was able to make a couple. Just need to keep the momentum going."

Cusack arrived at River Forest during a summer that has already included starts in the U.S. Women's Open at Riviera Country Club and The Women's Amateur Championship at Muirfield Golf Club in Scotland, where she finished tied for 33rd. She said those experiences have helped prepare her for championship weeks like this one.

"It's great preparation," Cusack said. "The U.S. Women's Open is a really tough tournament. I had also never played in Scotland before, and that was just a completely different style of golf. All the variety of types of golf, and who I was playing with, helps me get more experience for tournaments like this."

Joining Cusack in a tie for second at 5-under par is Kaitlyn Schroeder, of Jacksonville, Florida. The North Florida standout made six birdies, including four during a five-hole stretch, to move into contention.

One shot behind them at 4-under-par are Raya Nakoa (Oregon State), of Kaneohe, Hawaii; Bentley Cotton (Texas), of Austin, Texas; and Gabriella Nicastro (Samford), of Huntsville, Alabama.

C.A. Carter (Kentucky) of Lexington, Kentucky, is alone in seventh at 3-under, while nine players are tied for eighth at 2-under: Louise Depadt (Tarleton State), Jaclyn LaHa (Virginia), Pimkwan Chookaew (Iowa State), Kylee Choi (Pepperdine), Emilia Doran (Wake Forest), Kaili Xiao (USC), Alli Wiertel (Alabama commit), Summer Lee (Oklahoma State) and Alexa Saldana (Houston).

Forty-four players are at even par or better entering the final round of stroke-play qualifying on Wednesday. After 36 holes, the field will be cut to the low 32 players for match play that will start Thursday. Five rounds of 18-hole matches will determine the 2026 champion.

For the full leaderboard, click here.

Held without interruption since 1901, the Women’s Western Amateur is among the oldest and most prestigious annual championships in women’s amateur golf. The tournament is conducted jointly by the Women’s Western Golf Association and the Western Golf Association.

The championship features the top amateur and collegiate players from across the globe. The winner at River Forest this week will join a list of past champions that includes legendary stars Patty Berg, Louise Suggs and Nancy Lopez as well as modern standouts like Cristie Kerr, Brittany Lang, Stacy Lewis and Ariya Jutanugarn.

Attendance and parking for the Women’s Western Amateur are free.