Florentyna Parker leading Omega Dubai Ladies Masters
English golfer Florentyna Parker posted a five-under par 67 in the opening round of the Omega Ladies Masters to take a one-shot lead in the tournament. The 21-year-old really set the Emirates Golf Club’s 6425-yard par 72 Majlis
Course on fire as she scored six birdies and a bogie at the DUBAL-sponsored event.
The Hamburg-based player was off to a great start as she shot back-to-back birdies at the long 10th and short 11th holes. Parker, who has been a member of the Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Lancashire for nine
years, picked up another birdie at the par-five 13th hole.
Playing on the Ladies European Tour for only two years now, Parker was on a roll as she hit her tee to only five feet from the flag on the 15th hole, resulting in another birdie. A consecutive birdie then came on the
16th hole from a wonderful 12-footer shot.
Parker later joked that it had seemed then that she was having a par spell and so she wanted to spice the game up with some birdies. She made birdie on the sixth hole but then dropped the shot on a very tricky eighth hole.
Meanwhile, Russian Maria Verchenova finished second, one shot behind Parker. She carded a four-under par 68 in the opening round. Verchenova is playing to save her European Tour card this week and hopes to be in the top 20 so she
won’t have to go through Q-school. Third place is shared between Marianne Skarpnord, Julieta Granada, In Kyung Kim, Morgana Robbertze and Bo-Mi Suh.
American Michelle Wie started off well but later slipped due to a triple bogey at the par-four eighth. Her round consisted of three birdies, a bogey, an eagle at the par-five second hole and a triple bogey at the eighth.
Overall, the star of the show was definitely Parker, who will be going into the second round of the tournament with a lead.
"I love Dubai and I love the course and yeah, I got off to a great start,” said Parker. “That's what I struggled with last year. I always struggled in the first round and was always a few shots behind and now I'm absolutely delighted
that I gave myself a good chance.”
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