Garrett returns to form to lead ANZ

BY Bruce Young | ALPG Tour | 2008 ANZ Ladies Masters | Round One | 08 Feb 2008

As play drew to a close on day one of the delayed ANZ Ladies Masters it was the New South Wales golfer, Nikki Garrett, who lead the field posting a her five under par round of 67 very early in the day and watching and waiting as many tried but no-one could catch her over the rest of the day.

Out in the very first group on day one of the ANZ Ladies Masters, Garrett made a quick start to the tournament with birdies on the opening two holes and when she walked off the course at 11.15 she had the outright lead at five under 67.

Play began on time today with fine overhead conditions and a gentle breeze which not only tested the players, but further assisted in drying out the golf course and taking a bit of the sting out of the very humid conditions that had prevailed for much of the week.

The ideal early conditions lent themselves to good scoring on day one and that would soon become a reality with firstly Garrett then a host of others contending for the lead. By the end of the morning session however it was Garrett who had taken the lead, her birdie at the last moving her to five under leaving her one shot ahead of a large group of players at four under.

Garrett won twice on the Ladies European Tour in 2007 and although she missed out on her LPGA Tour card late in the season she is still considered by many to be one of Australia’s brightest young stars. The highlight of her round was an eagle at her 12th hole, the course’s third, where she holed a bunker shot to move to four under

Much of the Australian female game’s promotion in recent times has been based on the attractive 24-year-old from the Central Coast of New South Wales and she has backed up much of that fanfare with a good start to this event.

The 2006 champion, Amy Yang, looked to be the one to challenge Garrett for the early first round lead when she moved to five under at about the same time as Garrett was doing the same but a disastrous quadruple bogey at her 15th hole saw her drop back to 1 under par. Yang pulled her second left into the water and then missed a very short putt to further compound her problems.

To her credit the 18-year-old nearly holed her approach at the next and made the four foot putt for birdie, then got up and down from just behind the green at the par five last for another birdie and a very impressive 69 given the hiccup late in her round.

Just ahead of Yang was the 19-year-old Taiwanese golfer, Ya-Ni Tseng, who has often competed well on this golf course. Tseng is a player good enough to have finished runner up to Michelle Wie in the US Public Links Championship and to have gained her LPGA Tour card late last year. As a course record holder (63) on this golf course she has the credentials to go on with it over the weekend.

19-year-old West Australian amateur, Kristie Smith, who led the Australian Open through 36 holes last week before finishing fifth, played with Karrie Webb and Yang and relished the opportunity to do so. Despite being struck down with a flu-like virus earlier in the week, there was nothing that would stop the West Australian from playing in such a select opening day grouping.

“I have only just started to feel better today but with the chance to play with such class players as Karrie and Amy – well nothing was going to stop me from playing,” she said. “Today was the first time I got to play the course at all this week and feeling the way I have been then four under was a bonus.”

Karrie Webb took a long while to warm to her task on day one but, when she did, she put together one of her customary Royal Pines charges. Webb made the turn in a very ordinary even par but then birdies at her 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th holes has her knocking on the door of contention. Webb, looking for her 7th win in the event, then hit a good shot to the par four 7th (her 16th), but it bounced just over the back of the green and she was unable to make a four foot par saving putt. Neither was she able to birdie the reachable last and she finished with 69.

“It was a pretty ugly round really and I am pretty happy with a 69. I think five under is leading now and I will be surprised if anyone goes much lower as it is not all that easy out there with the wind.”

“There was quite a breeze early but when I made the turn at even par I still knew there was a chance to put together a good round as the back nine today is where you can make a score.”

Webb still looms large as the likely winner of the event however.

In a large group at four under, in addition to Smith and Tseng, are West Australian, Shani Waugh, Vicki Thomas and Leah Hart. Waugh is on the verge of golfing retirement hinting after her round that this may well be her last event. “I am going to set up a golfing school in Bunburry in West Australia. “I have never played well at this event but got off to a good start today and felt very relaxed. I had my good friend Desiree caddying for me and really enjoyed it out there.”

Thomas was a member of the Espirito Santo winning team in 2002 along with Katherine Hull and Lindsey Wright but has not really reached the heights of her teammates in professional golf. This start gives her a very good opportunity to follow up some good recent form on the ALPG Pro Am circuit. Australian Leah Hart played collegiate golf in the US before embarking on a professional career. She missed out on LPGA Tour status at the recent LPGA Tour School but has full status on the European Tour. She had a chance to join the leader after reaching four under with three holes to play but was unable to secure the one extra birdie she needed to catch Garrett.

It became apparent very early on in the afternoon that those out in the second half of the day would battle perhaps even more than is normally the case. The prediction of Karrie Webb after her morning round that she would be surprised if anybody was able to better or even equal Garrett’s early score appeared to be holding up until one of the late players in the day one field moved to four under with four holes to play, one of those a reachable par five for many in the field.

Unfortunately for Korean Hyun Ju Shin she was not one of those who could reach the last. The short hitting Korean saved par at her 16th hole, missed a makeable birdie at the 17th and then was well short with her second at the par five last and could only manage par.

She finished at four under and was one of only three players in the afternoon group would get within one of the lead. Australian amateur Stephanie Na who birdied two of her last three holes to have two amateurs amongst the ten players in second place was one of the three while the Spaniard Tania Elosegui was the other.

At the end of day one there were 26 players separated by only two shots at the top of the leaderboard, 49 players were under par and 65 were at even par or better suggesting a cut score of even par will necessary being necessary to make the weekend.