Three LET rookies share the clubhouse lead in the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open after carding a trio of 70s in windy conditions at Royal Beroun Golf Club this morning.
Alexandra Forsterling of Germany is tied with New Zealand pair Wenyung Keh and Momoka Kobori on two-under-par as play continued in much cooler temperatures than earlier in the week.
Keh made the most of her 7.45am tee time, making the turn in level par before picking up shots on the short fourth and long seventh coming in.
The 26-year-old from Auckland, who plays at Titirangi Golf Club, said afterwards: “We were first off ,and I think that was an advantage for us. The wind picked up gradually and so we were pretty lucky to just get it on the back nine.
“The wind was playing a two-club difference, so you had to be really smart and patient, sticking to a game plan and hitting to solid targets.
“This course is quite familiar to home, and some of the courses I’ve played in America. It is quite a tough walk with the hills, but it helps me keep my mind off my game.”
Kobori, who graduated to the LET from the LET Access Series after two wins last year, in the Montauban Open and the Hauts de France, was one-under-par on both her front and back nine.
The 24-year-old from Christchurch, who plays at Pegasus Golf Club, is also used to playing in the wind.
“I’m from New Zealand and the area where I grew up in in Christchurch, we do get quite a bit of wind, so I’m used to that back home. It helped me a little bit today.
“I think the course suits me. It’s not overly long but there are some tight tee shots and quite a few holes where you can have wedges in,” Kobori said.
“I think today I kind of managed to keep in the mindset of playing patient golf. It wasn’t very easy with the gusts blowing up from the morning, so I did well to play some of the harder holes pretty smart and then take advantage of the par fives where you’ve got wedges in, or the short par fours.
“My goal is to get a win this season and enjoy my time out here. It’s not often that you get to travel the world doing a job you love so we’re very fortunate.”
Forsterling had a mixed scorecard, featuring six birdies, a double bogey and two bogeys. The 23-year-old from Berlin said: “It was crazy windy, and I actually left a lot of shots out there. I had three three-putts, which is a lot.
“On the fourth hole, there is a stone wall on the left and I hit it five metres left of the pin and it hit the wall and went 30 right into the rough, so then I couldn’t get it out there because it was so thick. It went in the bunker and I didn’t get up and down from the bunker. It was really unlucky after two birdies, but then I made two birdies again after this and I holed out from almost on the tee box, from 30 metres, because I hit it so far right, but then straight into the hole.
“It was really, really windy out there and brought me back to La Manga, where we had Qualifying School, because there was a lot of wind there, but I played well. I was thinking about that week and doing the same again.
“I had some crazy birdies but I also had some really solid birdies and birdied the par fives and then I got an up and down. I had a crazy birdie where I holed out from 30 metres on a par three. It was a bit of luck.”
Earlier in the day, Sweden’s Louise Stahle made a hole-in-one on the 11th using a 7-iron. Moments earlier, she was recalling the hole-in-one that she recorded on the same hole, in the same round, in the same tournament, last year. The only difference was that she used a 9-iron to make the ace 12 months ago.
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