Aussie rookie Massey off to flying start at Daytona Beach Invitational 2012
With all the hype and passion, Australian Courtney Massey got off to a flying start at the Daytona Beach Invitational 2012 as she carded a 66 to grab an early lead.
Massey is a rookie, but her flawless performance in the first round of Symetra Tour tournament reflected that the young golfer has what it takes to clinch a victory this week.
The three-round tournament is featuring plenty of battle-hardened players from across the globe, with a total purse of $125,000.
Massey kicked off the first round with plenty of enthusiasm as she did not let other contenders take advantage of the favourable course conditions. She drained her first birdie on the first
hole and parred the next four holes.
She then reeled off another birdie on the difficult par-3 6th, ramping up pressure on her nearest rivals. Although some holes troubled her, the Aussie golfer remained consistent
throughout the 18 holes.
She sent the crowd cheering at Daytona Beach after she shot two back-to-back birdies on the 8th and 9th hole.
On the back nine, the rookie kept her momentum going and played perfect strokes on almost all the holes. Her birdie on the 11th hole helped her further cement her lead in the opening
round.
Massey spoke to the media at the end of the first round on Friday, saying she enjoyed playing among talented players and did what she has planned to do. She said that the course was amazingly
well as she found it easy to handle the ball on the greens and fairways.
“I hit almost every fairway and hit 16 greens, so that comes in handy around this golf course,” she said.
American Brooke Pancake has once again proved her mettle on the Symetra Tour as she posted a 67 in the opening round of Daytona Beach Invitational to grab the second position on the leaderboard.
On the other hand, Ulrika Van-Niekerk of South Africa, Andy Jun of Paraguay and six other contenders shot a 69 each on Friday to share the third position on the leaderboard.
Commentators said that the weather conditions remained favourable throughout the day, which means that the next rounds will be tougher.
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