Cristie Kerr off to sensible start in Florida
American Cristie Kerr performed well in the first round of CME Group Titleholders 2012, as she carded a 67 to grab the share of fourth position with three other contenders.
Kerr, who is among the favourites for the four-day Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) tournament, lived up to the expectations of her fans after she capitalised on her vast experience
of a local course.
The tournament is being staged at the prestigious TwinEagles Club, Naples, Florida, with American spectators rooting for the national players.
Shooting a 67 in the opening round boosted Kerr’s confidence, but what gripped her fans’ attention was her avoiding bogeys throughout the round. She launched five birdies, but managed to avoid
sloppy shots on the greens.
The greens are large enough to trick players, but the first round saw most of them display a much better short game.
Kerr opened the round on Thursday by parring the first two holes. She then shot her first birdie on the par-4 third. After parring another two holes in a row, the American star launched her
second birdie on the 6th hole.
On the back nine, Kerr remained cautious and moved up on the leaderboard after she reeled off two consecutive birdies on the 13th and 14th. She cheered the local fans
once again when she made another birdie on the par-4 16th.
Speaking to the media at the end of the round, Kerr said that she played well on the opening day, despite her poor round on the practice range this week.
“I was an absolute zombie yesterday in the pro‑am, an absolute zombie. I hit it all over the golf course, but I knew it was because I was tired,” said Kerr who put an end
to a months-long victory drought by winning a title at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational last week.
She went on to say that she has been quite tired after playing on a hectic tour in Asia and Mexico, but it was heartening to subdue most of her rivals in the first round of the ongoing tournament
in the United States.
“I was mentally tired. I got 10 hours of sleep last night. I just did a little practice, I didn't overdo it, and I'm going to go and I'm going to rest, and I think if there were signs of
fatigue you would have seen it today”.
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