Amy Yang fires 66 to grab the first-round lead in Kraft Nabisco Championship
Amy Yang played amazingly well in the first round of the Kraft Nabisco Championship 2012, as she posted a solid 66 to climb atop the leaderboard.
Yang is part of the fearsome field comprising most of the leading players on the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association).
Yang got off to an impressive start at the Dinah Shore Tournament Course in Rancho Mirage, as she gained a 1-shot lead over Lindsey Wright.
Although she faced trouble on some holes, she managed to keep pressure on her rivals throughout most of the first day.
She fired 8 birdies, which helped her consolidate her position on the leaderboard. The weather conditions at the course were good enough for the players to score well.
According to Yang, she was thrilled to find the top spot, as the field was stronger than she had anticipated.
The field featured the current world number one Yani Tseng and the defending champion Stacy Lewis.
Yani Tseng also put up a tough fight in the first round, but could not outperform Yang due to lapses on some of the holes. Tseng fired a 68 to seize the third spot.
Wright, who stood at the 2nd spot after she scored a 67, found herself in better position. She gave the leader a tough time right from the start and drained 6 birdies.
Wright stunned the spectators when she made 3 straight birdies on the par-4 first, par-5 second and par-4 third hole.
Despite playing well on most of the holes, Wright faltered on the par-4 16th and ended up scoring a bogey.
Speaking to the media at the end of the first day, Wright said that she faced a little trouble putting, but held her nerve to keep the pressure on her nearest rivals.
The Aussie star said that she is relieved to find her name on the second spot of the leaderboard.
"I'm really enjoying my golf," Wright said. "It's not a grind anymore. I'm actually enjoying it, the good and the bad".
"It's hard to explain other than from a physical standpoint. People think, 'Depression, oh, just get over it.' It really impacts you physically, and playing on this tour, grinding it out each week when you're not sleeping and you can't concentrate or focus,
it just gets you down, and it's a bit of a nightmare," the 32-year-old Wright said.
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