Beth Bader surprises fans after grabbing the first-round lead at Hawaii
Beth Bader played surprisingly well in the opening round of the LPGA Lotte Championship, as she posted a 68 to grab an early lead. The $1.7 million tournament is being played at Ko Olina Golf Club, with a fearsome roster.
Bader faced a strong field that comprises LPGA titans like the current world number one Yani Tseng and Suzann Pettersen, but kept her cool on most of the holes on the first day.
Yani Tseng fired a 69 to stand tied for the 2nd spot on the leaderboard. However, analysts said that Tseng could have piled up a much better score if she had held her nerve on some holes.
The 38-year-old Bader kicked off the opening round with plenty of confidence, she drained her first birdie on the first hole.
She parred 3 straight holes, but stunned the spectators after birdying the par-5 5th, par-4 6th and par-4 7th hole.
Analysts said that although Bader surprised just about everyone on the course by displaying an exceptional game, her rivals and fans had not expected her to outshine big stars, such as Tseng and Paula Creamer.
Bader has been seeking to prove her worth on the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) Tour, as she has not been able to record a victory so far.
Sharing her thoughts after grabbing the top spot on the leaderboard, Bader said that she did not expect to perform so well on the opening day, but was glad to put her rivals in trouble.
She said that she has been looking to prove her mettle on the LPGA Tour for years, but staying off the course took a serious toll on her performance.
Finishing tied for the 47th in the 2008 Kraft Nabisco Championship was her best performance, but she has been trying to improve her game since then.
On the other hand, Tseng also exhibited a good game, as she scored four birdies on the front nine. The Taiwanese star cheered her fans when she drained three straight birdies on the par-4 7th, difficult par-3 8th and par-4 9th
hole.
Speaking to the media at the end of the round, Tseng said she was happy with her performance and will try to further improve her position in the next rounds.
"Overall, I stayed patient and I made lots of good putts," Tseng said. "I still missed some, but I hung in there. It's only first day of the tournament, so I'm pretty happy today".
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