GURNEE, Ill. – Charley Hull is fresh as a daisy, and England is dreaming big.

Hull and surprising England grabbed the lead in the UL International Crown on Saturday, and the United States advanced with a sweep against Japan.

Hull, who missed Friday’s four-ball session with a fever and trouble with her asthma, teamed with Melissa Reid for a 3-and-1 victory over sisters Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn of Thailand. Holly Clyburn and Jodi Ewart Shadoff routed Pornanong Phatlum and Porani Chutichai 7 and 5, helping seventh-seeded England to a Pool B-best nine points.

“We couldn’t have asked for much of a better day than we got today,” Clyburn said.

The U.S., which began the day with just three points, turned in its best performance so far in the rare team event on the LPGA Tour. Lexi Thompson and Cristie Kerr posted their second straight win with a 4-and-2 victory over Ai Suzuki and Ayaka Watanabe, and Stacy Lewis and Gerina Piller surged to a 3-and-1 win over Haru Nomara and Mika Miyazato.

Taiwan also wrapped up a spot in the fourth session before a lingering thunderstorm postponed play with two Pool A matches still on the course, leaving two spots open for Sunday’s 10 singles matches. The country with the most points at the end of the weekend wins a silver trophy, to go along with $100,000 and a crown for each of its four players.

Before the rain drenched the course, the players had to play through hot and humid conditions at the Merit Club about 40 miles northwest of Chicago.

“Have you ever seen the movie ‘Good Morning, Vietnam,’ where Robin Williams goes off into the tangent where it’s like, it’s hot, it’s sticky, it’s hot,” a smiling Kerr said. “It was pretty much like that.”

The 20-year-old Hull struggled to breathe for much of Thursday night and got some oxygen and an IV to help her feel better. She watched the back nine of Reid’s gutsy effort playing by herself in a close loss to Japan, and felt “fresh as a daisy” heading into the third session.

Shaking off a slow start, Hull and Reid won five straight holes to go from two down to three up. Hull had three straight birdies before she eagled the par-5 eighth. Reid closed out the string with a birdie on No. 9.

“Me and Mel both played awesome, so it was fun,” Hull said.

England did not make the field for the inaugural event in 2014, won by Spain with 15 points. It was considered an afterthought coming into this week, but the strong start has the women dreaming of what a victory could do for the sport in their country.

“You know, if we did win, hopefully it would inspire not only girls but women and men and some young guys and boys and stuff to want to take up the club and think that it’s fun and want to learn how to play this game,” Reid said.

The second-seeded U.S. was swept by England on Thursday, but it rebounded with three points against Thailand in the second session and picked up even more momentum against Japan. Piller finished her match with a birdie on 17, and Thompson beat the oncoming storm with a closing eagle on 16.

“We stuck with our pairings, and we just tried to stay positive with it and go out and play aggressive,” Thompson said. “We knew we had to make birdies and just go for it.”

Piller and Lewis were tied with Nomura and Miyazato before Piller rolled in a birdie from the fringe on 12. Piller got a good look at the putt when Lewis left one just short from right in front of her ball.

“Any time you get a free read is huge, and after she hit it, she told me what she put it at and where it ended up,” Piller said.

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Jared du Toit still can’t beat his friend and university teammate Jon Rahm.

The 21-year-old Canadian closed out the second round of the RBC Canadian Open on Friday with three consecutive birdies to tie for third with Rahm and American Kelly Kraft at 6-under par. Rahm and du Toit were teammates at Arizona State University last season and were roommates when the team was on the road.

“I’m playing out of my mind and I still can’t beat him,” said du Toit, with a laugh. “That was school, that was last semester, just in a nutshell right there.”

Du Toit, from Kimberley, B.C., is the low Canadian and low amateur at the PGA Tour event, hanging with seasoned professionals. For three holes he was tied for first with superstar Dustin Johnson and co-leader Luke List at 7-under par. A triple bogey on the par-5 No. 2 hole at Glen Abbey Golf Club knocked du Toit down the leaderboard, but he climbed back up thanks to the steady hand of Sean Burke, his caddy for the week.

“He kind of, you know, theoretically cracked me in the head and said ‘hey, get your head back in the game and stick to the game plan and keep doing what you’re doing,”’ said du Toit of his caddy’s advice.

Rahm and du Toit shared a brief moment together outside the official scorer’s tent on Friday as they crossed paths. Rahm, who was finishing with the morning group as du Toit was heading out to the course, gave the younger player some advice.

“It’s so cool, it’s a great feeling,” said Rahm of being on the leaderboard with his college friend. “Last time we played together and last time we were both on the leaderboard, it was still a college event. (…) To see him like that, it’s a great feeling.”

Only three other Canadians out of a field of 14 home-grown players made the cut on Friday.

Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., was much sharper, improving on his first-round par performance with a 2-under 70 to tie for 21st. Amateur Garrett Rank (75) of Elmira, Ont., was tied for 36th at par, while Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., just made the cut at 2 over.

Conners shot a 3-over 75 on Thursday and thought he’d played his way out of the event Friday after he double bogeyed on No. 9, his final hole of the second round. He finished with a 1-under 71 on Friday, putting him at 2-over par on the tournament, which, at the time, was a shot over the cutline.

“It’s over with now, but yeah, a little sour taste I guess on the final hole,” said Conners, who left the course before the projected cutline was moved, extending his weekend.

Adam Cornelson (73) of Langley, B.C., was at 4-over par. Nick Taylor (74) of Abbotsford, B.C., Graham De Laet (72) of Weyburn, Sask., and David Hearn (75) of Brantford, Ont., all tied at 5 over.

“It’s obviously disappointing but it’s another golf tournament, and I’m able to kind of get over it a little bit easier now than I used to be probably,” said DeLaet, who will represent Canada in men’s golf at the Rio Olympics along with Hearn. “Obviously I wanted to play well here this week, but there’s more tournaments to play.”

Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch (74) was 7 over, Branson Ferrier (74) of Barrie, Ont., wrapped up at 8 over, Mike Weir (75) of Brights Grove, Ont., was 9 over, amateur Blair Hamilton (79) of Burlington, Ont., was 12 over, amateur Hugo Bernard (76) of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., was 13 over and Montreal’s Dave Levesque (75) finished at 16 over.

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Luke List’s biggest challenge might just be tuning out the hoopla that comes with playing alongside Dustin Johnson.

List made a nine-foot putt on the 18th hole to draw even with Johnson on Friday evening to remain co-leaders after two rounds at the Canadian Open. Both finished 1-under 71 to stay tied atop the leaderboard at 7 under.

That means the two will be paired for Saturday’s third round and the sophomore PGA Tour player will have to get used to the hundreds of fans that follow the superstar Johnson from hole to hole at Glen Abbey Golf Club.

“If I can just forget about what everybody else is doing and stay in my mind set,” said List on what it will take to stay on top of the leaderboard. “I’ve had a really good frame of mind the last couple days.

“Just my attitude right now, if I can keep that up, I’ll be happy with the way I finish.”

Johnson got off to a slow start in the morning group, including a double bogey on his third hole, before recovering with four birdies in his back nine to take a one-shot lead over List, his co-leader from Thursday’s first round.

“I really don’t know what happened the first four holes. Just got off to a bad start. Hit it in a couple awkward spots. Made some bad bogeys,” said Johnson as List began his afternoon round. “But I fought back and turned it around and felt like I played really nicely from 14 on in.”

List cruised through the front nine, opening with a birdie on the first hole then holding par all the way to the 11th, which he bogeyed. Back-to-back bogeys on 13 and 14 seemed to take List out of the running, but he recovered with birdies on 16 and 18.

“Two more days of this golf course, it’s a challenge out there,” said List of the fairways and greens that have been baked dry, making them firm and fast. “Those valley holes, 11 through 13, 14, really play tough.”

“Looking forward to taking aim at those tomorrow.”

Although they’ve had identical results in the first and second rounds of the Canadian Open, Johnson and List’s experiences at Glen Abbey have been very different.

Johnson, as No. 2 in the world rankings, has fans cheering him every step of the way, following him around the course despite the heat advisory affecting all of southern Ontario. Even as he spoke with media fans shouted “Let’s go D.J!” at Johnson.

On the other hand, List is 309th in the world and spent the first and second rounds playing relatively undisturbed.

“(Johnson’s) one of the hottest players in the game, so playing with him or around him is always good right now,” said List.

Amateur Jared du Toit (71) of Kimberley, B.C., was briefly tied for first, but a triple bogey sank him into an eventual tie for third at 6 under, joining Spain’s Jon Rahm and American Kelly Kraft.

Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., was much sharper on Friday, improving on his first-round par performance with a 2-under 70 to tie for 21st.

Amateur Garrett Rank (75) of Elmira, Ont., was tied for 36th at par, while Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., just made the cut at 2-over par.

Conners was 3-over 75 on Thursday and thought he’d played his way out of the third round Friday after he double bogeyed on No. 9, his final hole of the day. He finished with a 1-under 71 on Friday, putting him at 2-over par on the tournament, which, at the time, was a shot over the cutline.

Adam Cornelson (73) of Langley, B.C., was at 4-over par. Nick Taylor (74) of Abbotsford, B.C., Graham De Laet (72) of Weyburn, Sask., and David Hearn (75) of Brantford, Ont., all tied at 5 over.

“It’s obviously disappointing but it’s another golf tournament, and I’m able to kind of get over it a little bit easier now than I used to be probably,” said DeLaet, who will represent Canada in men’s golf at the Rio Olympics along with Hearn. “Obviously I wanted to play well here this week, but there’s more tournaments to play.”

Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch (74) was 7 over, Branson Ferrier (74) of Barrie, Ont., wrapped up at 8 over, Mike Weir (75) of Brights Grove, Ont., was 9 over, amateur Blair Hamilton (79) of Burlington, Ont., was 12 over, amateur Hugo Bernard (76) of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., was 13 over and Montreal’s Dave Levesque (75) finished at 16 over.

INNISFAIL, Alta. – It was a pressure-packed final round of the 2016 Sun Life Financial Alberta Men’s Amateur Championship. Third round leader, Evan Holmes, battled with Matt Williams all around the golf course on a sun-soaked day at Innisfail Golf Club. Williams, who lead after rounds one and two, put pressure on Holmes by making four birdies on the front nine, making the turn with a score of 32. Holmes finished strong, making birdies on four of the last six holes. That clutch performance on the back nine sealed the deal for Holmes as he eventually won by a margin of three strokes.

It was a popular victory for the Earl Grey Golf Club member, as evidenced by the cheers from fellow competitors and the gallery alike. Holmes commented that, “it’s a big monkey off my back. I’ve been so close for the last few years. I really felt like I was playing well coming into this one so I’m glad that I actually showed it and got it done. It feels really good.” When asked about the strong start from Williams, Holmes said, “I kind of had images of a few years ago. He (Williams) was going low and I had a bad double on ten. But then we both made a lot of birdies coming in. It was a really fun match all day long.”

There was a playoff for the Team Alberta Inter-provincial Squad at the 2016 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship on August 8-11 at the Royal Ottawa G&CC & Eagle Creek GC. Geoff Fry (Glencoe G&CC), Andrew Harrison (Edmonton Petroleum G&CC), and Scott Secord (Country Hills GC) finished in a tie for third at seven under par. The trio headed back to hole #18 to playoff for the last position. Scott Secord hit a beautiful second shot on the par five, nearly holing it for an albatross. He tapped in for eagle and claimed the last position on the team. Evan Holmes earned a spot on the 2017 Pacific Coast Amateur Team to be played at Chambers Bay in University Place, WA on July 25-28, 2017.

For the full leader board, click here.

LISTOWEL, Ont. — Make it a junior stoke-play championship sweep for Langton, Ontario’s Peyton Callens. Callens, who won the Investors Group Junior Boys’ Spring Classic earlier this year, capped-off the feat on July 22 as he added the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Junior Boys’ Championship to his resume.

The 16-year-old from the Delhi Golf & Country Club entered the final round at Listowel Golf Club in a three-way tie for fourth place at 4-under. Playing in the second last group, the Team Ontario member birdied the opening hole. He added a second on the par-four sixth hole but bogeyed the eighth to make the turn at 1-under. On the back nine he made back-to-back birdies on holes 10 and 11 to move into a share of the lead. Callens bogeyed the 16th hole but made par on the 18th to capture the championship title at 2-under 70 for the day, and 6-under (71-67-74-70-282) for the tournament.

Callens spoke about what winning the championship meant to him. “Winning this event feels pretty good, it is one of the bigger events I have won. Winning both this and the Spring Classic means a lot to me, it has been a good Golf Ontario season, now I have to continue this play at the Canadian Junior.”

Callens admitted he wasn’t sure where he stood coming into the final few holes. “I hadn’t looked at the leaderboard. I thought I probably needed to get to 8-under to win. I was 7-under coming into 16 but I bogeyed so I thought I needed to birdie one of the last two holes. I got in with two pars and it turned out to be enough to win.”

For Callens, the strength of his game this week was his iron play. He talked about how it set him up on the greens. “I probably had at least 20 birdie putts inside 10 feet this week and that was all thanks to my iron play and ball striking.”

Now Callens will turn his attention to the Canadian Junior Championship. “My goal is always to win but this is the first time that I have played this event. I know it will be hard in Newfoundland, so I’m just looking to post good scores each day.”

Ancaster’s Ryan Murphy and Mono’s Isaac Maxwell finished the tournament at 5-under to secure their shares of second. Maxwell, from the Shelburne Golf and Country Club, began the day in sole possession of the lead and looked to be in good shape on the front nine. He birdied the first and fifth holes before a bogey on the seventh. He came back with a birdie on the eighth and was 2-under at the turn. It was the back nine where he faltered. A bogey on No. 11, followed by a double on 12 and another bogey on 14 created a swing that saw him give up the lead. Still, he managed to limit any further damage, carding a final-round 2-over 74 to finish the tournament at 5-under (75-66-68-74-283).

Murphy entered the day in a tie for second at 5-under. He found himself 2-under early in the round thanks to birdies on holes one, three, and five. After making the turn at 2-under, Murphy bogeyed the 14th and 18th holes to finish the round at even par (72). That kept his tournament total at 5-under (75-66-70-72-283).

In addition to playing for the title, the top 34 golfers received a quota spot to play in the Canadian Junior Boys’ Championship, Aug. 1-4 at Clovelly Golf Course in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Team Ontario was also named for the team competition at the Canadian Junior Boys’ Championship. Representing Ontario will be Callens, Murphy and Sudbury’s Tristan Renaud who earned the spot with a playoff victory.

For complete tournament information, including the final leaderboard, see the tournament site here.

GURNEE, Ill. – After a rough first day of the UL International Crown, the United States never considered new pairings.

Cristie Kerr and company knew it would work itself out.

Kerr and Lexi Thompson helped the U.S. to three out of four points against Thailand on Friday, and Melissa Reid drew praise for a gutsy effort for England after her partner was sidelined by illness.

Kerr and Thompson routed Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn and Porani Chutichai 4 and 3 for the Americans’ first two points after they were shut out in the first session of the LPGA Tour event. The U.S. almost got a sweep, but Gerina Piller and Stacy Lewis each missed a birdie putt on 18 and had to settle for a single point against Moriya Jutanugarn and Pornanong Phatlum.

Each of the four players were on the United States’ winning team in the 2015 Solheim Cup, and the victory in Germany helped convince them to stay with the same lineup after the opening session at Merit Club about 40 miles northwest of Chicago.

“I mean, we had so much success at Solheim Cup, and I just think we played so much together that why switch it up? It was never discussed,” Lewis said.

Lewis’ putt on 18 skirted the edge of the cup.

“I think if it was just a touch slower, 6 inches slower, it probably goes in,” she said. “But I thought it was perfect.”

With Charley Hull sidelined by a fever and complications from asthma, Reid was all alone for her four-ball match against Japan’s Haru Nomara and Mika Miyazato. Reid took it all the way to 18, where Nomura made a matching birdie to close out a 1-up win.

“For me, it’s a huge positive,” Reid said. “To get anywhere near the 18th was going to be a huge achievement, and I am just really, really pleased I gave the team a huge chance of even a point.”

Holly Clyburn and Jodi Ewart Shadoff halved their match against Ai Suzuki and Ayaka Watanabe, helping seventh-seeded England to the Pool B lead. Thailand and Japan were one back with four points apiece, and the U.S. was last after it finished sixth in the inaugural event in 2014.

Taiwan topped Pool A with six points after it split its two matches with top-seeded South Korea. Candie Kung and Ssu-Chia Cheng beat Amy Yang and In Gee Chun 2 and 1, but Yani Tseng and Teresa Lu trailed all day long in a 4-and-2 loss to Sei Young Kim and So Yeon Ryu.

South Korea was second with four points, and Australia and China were tied for third with three apiece. Australia also was shut out in the first session, but Karrie Webb and Rebecca Artis teamed for a 2-and-1 win over China’s Jing Yan and Simin Feng, and Minjee Lee and Su Oh halved their match with Xi Yu Lin and Shanshan Feng.

Lin’s birdie on 14 gave China a 2-up lead, but Lee birdied 18 to secure the point for Australia. Lee played with Artis on Thursday, and Webb was with Oh.

“I think if a few things had gone our way yesterday, we could have gotten points on the board, but it just turned out that these two pairings worked,” Webb said.

There are eight more four-ball matches Saturday. The top two teams in each pool and the winner of wild-card playoff between the third-place teams advance to Sunday’s singles matches, with each player from the winning country taking home $100,000 apiece.

The 20-year-old Hull, who helped England to a sweep of the United States on Thursday, sought medical attention when she arrived at the course. She is hoping to play on Saturday.

“I really wanted to join my partner Mel at some point during the match, but at the advice of the medical team, the best thing to do was to rest and get healthy for my team for tomorrow,” she said in a statement released by the LPGA Tour.

Reid holed out with a wedge from 70 yards on the par-4 13th, squaring the match. But Nomura birdied the final three holes to help Japan to the win.

“They finished birdie-birdie-birdie. I finished birdie-par-birdie,” Reid said. “There’s nothing you can really do. If you lose to a birdie, it’s fine.”

CARNOUSTIE, Scotland – Joe Durant birdied the par-4 18th hole Friday for a 3-under 68 and a share of the Senior British Open lead with Kohki Idoki.

The 52-year-old Durant birdied three of the first five holes on the back nine, the second two on the par-5 12th and 14th at Carnoustie Golf Links in 10-15 mph wind with some light rain.

Durant teamed with Billy Andrade to win the 2015 Legends of Golf for his lone PGA Tour Champions title. The four-time PGA Tour winner has five top-10 finishes this season, including a runner-up finish to Bernhard Langer in the major Constellation Senior Players in June.

Idoki, the 54-year-old Japanese player who won the 2013 Senior PGA Championship, had a 67 to match Durant at 7-under 137. He rebounded from a bogey on the par-4 17th with a chip-in birdie on 18.

Olin Browne (66), Jesper Parnevik (68), Carlos Franco (69), Tom Byrum (69) and Peter Fowler (69) were a stroke back, Mark O’Meara (70) topped the group at 5 under, and Tom Lehman (67) and Miguel Angel Jimenez (70) were another stroke behind.

Calgary native Stephen Ames shot 71 to sit T22 at 1-under.

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Jared du Toit didn’t know what to do with himself after signing his scorecard.

The amateur golfer from Kimberley, B.C., eagled the par-4 17th hole at Glen Abbey Golf Club then birdied 18 to tie for third in the first round of the RBC Canadian Open on Thursday. Americans Chesson Hadley and Kelly Kraft were also at 5-under 67, a shot behind co-leaders Luke List and Dustin Johnson.

Du Toit came down the steps of the scorekeepers trailer to calls from fans asking for his signature. Then a media relations person from the PGA Tour directed him to a waiting circle of reporters with microphones and cameras, all to the surprise of the Arizona State University player.

“It’s the first time I’ve had to sign autographs after a round, so that was awesome,” said a smiling du Toit. “It’s definitely in the top-three rounds I’ve played in my career, feeling wise.”

Du Toit, who was born in Calgary but moved to British Columbia as a child, hadn’t played at Glen Abbey before practice rounds on Monday and Tuesday. He relied on the advice of his caddie, a local golf teacher. The 21-year-old member of Golf Canada’s amateur team is just going to keep things simple heading into Friday’s second round.

“I don’t tee off until 2:30 tomorrow, so I shouldn’t have no sleep as an excuse,” said du Toit. “Just come out here, keep doing what I’m doing.”

Amateur Garret Rank (69) of Elmira, Ont., who is a professional hockey referee, was the second lowest Canadian behind du Toit. Rank, who was paired with du Toit, made an eagle putt from the rough edge of the green on 18 to finish at 3 under.

“I was a little uptight at the beginning, but Jared was playing well and just kind of told myself, ‘hey, played a lot of golf with him and there’s birdies to be made,”’ said Rank. “Just stayed really patient and closed strong and was 4-under on the last four.”

Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., shot a 72 to finish the first round at par, while David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., was 2-over 74. Adam Cornelson of Langley, B.C., Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., and Nick Taylor of Abbotsford are tied at 3 over.

Olympian Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., amateur Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont., and Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch all tied at 5-over 77, and Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., and Branson Ferrier of Barrie, Ont., were grouped together at 6-over 78. Amateur Hugo Bernard of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., was 9-over 81 and Montreal’s Dave Levesque was 13-over 85.

#TeamCanada amateur Jared du Toit sits T3 at the @RBCCanadianOpen after opening with a 5-under 67. #RBCCOhttps://t.co/TTVLwvrEEj

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) July 22, 2016

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Dustin Johnson and Luke List may be co-leaders, but it’s the weather that’s dominating play at the RBC Canadian Open.

Johnson made an eagle putt on the par-5 18th hole at Glen Abbey Golf Club to tie clubhouse leader List at 6-under 66 on Thursday. Johnson seemed well back after a double bogey on 14, but then recovered with a birdie on 16 to set up the climactic shot.

Most players struggled with the fast greens and fairways, making it tricky to play off the browned rough and not roll through the harder grass as a drought continues to dry out southern Ontario. High winds had flags ripping wildly and played havoc with high shots, making it difficult to play an accurate long game.

“It’s firm and fast,” said world No. 2 Johnson moments after stepping off the course. “It’s definitely tough to get the ball close to the hole. You’ve really got to land the ball on your numbers.

“With it being as windy as it was today, it was tough to do that.”

List had a birdie on No. 10, his first hole of the round, then followed it up with a birdie on Nos. 13, 15, 16 and 18 to take an early lead. He stayed steady through the front nine to finish ahead on a hot, sunny day. He pointed to his early start time _ 7:20 am _ as helping with his quick start.

“I was very fortunate that the first five holes there wasn’t much wind at all and then it kind of picked up,” said List, who was allowed him to miss the worst of the unforgiving weather.

Strong winds especially affected play on the back nine of Glen Abbey, which are mainly in a valley. High shots would get grabbed by the wind when the ball lofted above the valley’s walls, creating strange shots.

The seventh hole also frustrated several players, with a water hazard and several bunkers surrounding the green, forcing golfers to loft the ball above a tree line and then get victimized by the wind.

“If you miss the fairway, you’re pretty much done, there’s no chance of keeping it on the green,” said world No. 1 Jason Day, the reigning Canadian Open champion. “My mentality is just trying to get it up there as far as I can. As long I can just keep driving it straight, try to get up there somewhere around the green, if I miss it then I’ve got a wedge in my hand and hopefully I can hit it high and get it stuck on the green.”

Amateur Jared du Toit of Kimberley, B.C., eagled the par-4 17th hole at Glen Abbey Golf Club, then birdied 18 to enter the clubhouse in a tie for third at 5-under 67. Americans Chesson Hadley and Kelly Kraft were also at 5-under. Day was 3-under 69.

Du Toit compared playing at Glen Abbey on Thursday to playing in the desert.

“Going to Arizona State, I’ve played in a lot of dry conditions, so I think the conditions today were kind of in my favour,” said the 21-year old NCAA player, who added that “some of the drives are just running out outrageously.”

Amateur Garret Rank (69) of Elmira, Ont., who is a professional hockey referee, was the second lowest Canadian behind du Toit. Rank made an eagle putt from the rough edge of the green on 18 to finish at 3 under.

Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., shot a 72 to finish the first round at par, while David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., was 2-over 74. Adam Cornelson of Langley, B.C., Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., and Nick Taylor of Abbotsford are tied at 3 over.

Olympian Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., amateur Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont., and Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch all tied at 5-over 77, and Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., and Branson Ferrier of Barrie, Ont., were grouped together at 6-over 78. Amateur Hugo Bernard of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., was 9-over 81 and Montreal’s Dave Levesque was 13-over 85.

Today was the first time @Jareddutoit has had to sign autographs after a round. He’s T2 & sits as the top Canadian.https://t.co/WxdbjRCDJM

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) July 21, 2016

GURNEE, Ill. – For the United States and Taiwan, the first session of the UL International Crown was a repeat of the first day of the inaugural event two years ago.

Each country is hoping for a better weekend.

The U.S. lost both of its four-ball matches to England, and Yani Tseng helped Taiwan sweep Australia on Thursday in the rare team event on the LPGA Tour.

Lexi Thompson and Cristie Kerr lost 2 and 1 to Holly Clyburn and Jodi Ewart Shadoff, and Stacy Lewis and Gerina Piller fell to Charley Hull and Melissa Reid by the same score. Thompson, Kerr and Lewis also were on the American team that was swept on the first day of the first International Crown in 2014 and finished sixth.

“That’s what this format is. You play good golf and you’re going to lose matches, and that’s the way it goes,” Lewis said. “We’re going to go out there and play good golf again, and hopefully we get on the good side of it. We’re still in this thing, and we’ve just got to take care of business tomorrow.”

Next up is two more days of four-ball matches at the sprawling Merit Club about 40 miles northwest of Chicago. The top two teams in each pool and the winner of wild-card playoff between the third-place teams will advance to the singles matches Sunday, with each player from the winning country taking home $100,000 apiece.

With the course set up for low scores, world No. 6 Ariya Jutanugarn made seven birdies while playing with Porani Chutichai for Thailand, but they only managed a halve against Japan’s Ai Suzuki and Ayaka Watanabe. Jutanugarn’s sister, Moriya, teamed with Pornanong Phatum for a 2-and-1 win over Haru Nomura and Mika Miyazato.

Top-seeded South Korea, with each of its four players ranked in the top 12, split its two matches against No. 8 China. Amy Yang and In Gee Chun won 2 up over Shanshan Feng and Xi Yu Lin, but Jing Yan and Simin Feng got two points for China with a 1-up victory over Sei Young Kim and So Yeon Ryu.

“The Chinese girls just played really, really great,” Ryu said. “They made an eagle, they made a bunker shot. I think their teamwork was really nice.”

Tseng and Teresa Lu went off in the first match and cruised to a 3-and-2 victory over Karrie Webb and Su Oh. Tseng and Lu then watched as Candie Kung and Ssu-Chia Cheng posted a 2-up win over Rebecca Artis and Minjee Lee.

Taiwan also won its first two matches at Caves Valley Golf Club in Maryland in 2014, but didn’t score another point all weekend.

“We changed a little bit about the strategy about how we’re going to play this year because we both won on the first day, like four points, but we lose them on Friday and Saturday,” Tseng said. “We kind of changed it a little bit, the teammates and the strategy on the golf course. We tried to make as much birdies as we can instead of one play aggressive and one play more smart and safe.”

Thompson and Kerr never led in their match. Clyburn closed it out with a birdie on the par-4 17th.

“We played really well on the front, and on the back we didn’t play well enough to win,” Kerr said. “A couple more putts go in, a couple better shots. I left Lexi a couple times as a partner, and you can’t do that in four-ball if you want to win.”

China and England did not make the field for the inaugural event, which is determined by the cumulative rankings of the country’s top four players on a given date. They replaced champion Spain and runner-up Sweden.

“We were saying along the way, we’re all pretty big football fans, and obviously we had the Euros recently and we made more points in one day than England did in the whole tournament, so can I just point that out,” a smiling Reid said. “So we’re pretty proud of that, so we’re already on a winner.”

Hull and Reid won three straight holes to go from 1 down to 1 up heading to the back nine. The 20-year-old Hull had three straight birdies and Reid eagled No. 8, a 468-yard par 5.

After Lewis birdied No. 15 to square the match, Hull posted an eagle and a birdie to close it out for England.

“I just love playing in this kind of environment, especially when you are a bit of an underdog,” said Hull, who is headed to the Olympics next month. “I just like proving people wrong, and it just makes you go out there, gives you a little bit more of a buzz.”