UNIQA Ladies Open round one ends in close competition
Marina Stutz posted a lead at the UNIQA Ladies Open that is taking place in Austria. She shares the first group lead with Rebecca Hudson, Nikki Garrett and Julie Greciet.
The 17-year-old produced a round of 6 under 66 at the Golf Club Foehrenwald course in Wiener Neustadt. She and three other players were followed by Melissa Reid, Christel Boeljon, Marta Prieto and Federica Piovano on 67.
Joint leader, Nikki Garrett started the round very slow but on her way to the back nine she scored her first birdie on the 8th hole. She holed her second shot at the twelfth green with a wedge and later posted three consecutive birdies after the 15th hole. Nikki is standing at 48th spot of the Henderson Money List and this was her best round in the entire season. The last time Nikki posted a victory was back in 2007 when she won two major titles but ever since she has been winless.
The next joint leader is 31-years-old Rebecca Hudson, who holds the title of 2008 Tenerife and Ladies English Open champion. She started the front nine with a cautious approach but eventually she loosened up and carded six birdies on the back nine. Hudson has been suffering from a back injury and this has been the reason behind her deteriorating game. According to experts, Hudson demonstrated control over the ball throughout the round. All she needs is practice and she will get back to her winning ways. Rebecca Hudson is currently standing on the 58th spot of the Henderson Money List.
The third lady on the leader board, is the three-time tournament winner Julie Greciet. The 23-year –old carded seven birdies and one bogey in the second round of the UNIQA Ladies Open. Julie was experiencing trouble with her putting but eventually she changed her PING B60 Nickel putter for a PING Half Wack-E. The results were outstanding and for the first time in this season she was able to find the greens. Julie is currently ranked 118th on the Henderson Money List.
Apart from the first group another player by the name of Stutz gave a superb performance. She started strong and birdied six of her first twelve holes. On the whole she took 14 putts to complete the front nine and 12 putts for the back nine. According to media reports, Stutz did some brilliant putting on the course especially the first birdie which she posted on the first hole. The player is a four-time Austrian Youth Stroke play champion and she finished at the 53rd spot in last year’s UNIQA ladies Open. Moreover, she was the first amateur to win on the Ladies European Tour event of 2006 ANZ Ladies Masters at the age of sixteen. According to the player she is very happy with her performance, as the last time she shot a five under was back in 2006.
Moving forward to the much sensationalized, Lee Ann Pace, the lady is a living legend on the Ladies European Tour as she posted two victories and a second spot finish in the last three weeks. However, this week she was kind of tired and it reflected in her game. She finished the round at par.
This is it for the first round of the UNIQA Ladies Open that was taking place at the Golf Club Foehrenwald in Wiener Neustadt. The overall round was satisfactory as the ladies performed with great energy and a crowded leader board is evidence of the high level of competition between the players. With three more rounds remaining it is still anyone’s Open.
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