Championships - 1999
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31.07.2009
Sandra Gal takes the lead in Lytham
Germany’s Sandra Gal upstaged all the big names in women’s golf when she carded a three under par 69 to claim a one shot lead after the first round of the Ricoh Women’s British Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes.The German, who plays on the LPGA Tour, and majored in Advertising at the University of Florida, got up-and-down from off the right-hand side of the 18th green to go into the second round one shot ahead of America’s Angela Stanford and South Korea’s Song-Hee Kim and two in front Japan’s Yuko Mitsuka and another South Korean, Hee Young Park.
Swedish veteran, Maria Hjorth, dropped two shots on the last to finish on level par 72 while the quartet on one over par 73 comprised American Solheim Cup player Christina Kim, South Korea’s Kyeong Bae, Scottish qualifier Vicki Laing and America’s Michelle Wie, who this week is seeking her first Tour win since first hitting the headlines back in 2002 when she became the youngest golfer to qualify for an LPGA event at the age of 12 years, 4 months and 14 days.
Gal has never finished higher than tied-14th in an LPGA Tour event but she defied westerly winds gusting up to 33 mph to card five birdies and drop just two shots on the 160-yard par-3 12th and the 343-yard par-4 16th.
The birdie barrage started on the 542-yard par-5 seventh. That helped her to reach the turn in one under par 34 and she sailed home with further birdies on the 10th, the 11th, the 15th and the 17th where she holed out from just four feet after a glorious long iron into the green.
“The conditions were very tough but I played steady and kept the ball in the fairway most of the time,” said the 24 year-old. “I’m very pleased. You don’t win Majors in the first round, but it’s nice to be out in front.”
Stanford only arrived in Lancashire on Wednesday, after spending the first part of the Championship week on a sightseeing tour of Rome, but her laidback approach clearly paid off in abundance.
The American is the first to admit her record in the Ricoh Women’s British Open is far from distinguished which was one of the reasons why she chose to change her routine to take in a trip to the Eternal City after missing the cut at the recent US Ladies’ Open and then finishing in a disappointing tie for 52nd place at last week’s Evian Masters in France.
“The last couple of weeks have been kind of tough,” she said. “I come here every year and try to prepare as well as I can but, to date, my best finish is a tie for 13th in 2002 so I thought I’d go to Rome and try to take my mind off things.
“I got here yesterday afternoon. I had a great practice round in what was probably the best weather you have had all week and that got some positive vibes going.
“I think mentally I’m in a much better state than I would have been had I been here all week.”
Stanford opened her round with six straight pars but then moved onto the leader board with a spectacular eagle on the 542-yard par-5 seventh where she hit a 3-wood 242-yards onto the green and then holed out from 66-feet for a three.
“That was a real bonus and it also illustrates how you need the breaks on links courses,” she said. “I thought I’d hit the approach into a greenside bunker. It was going dead at the bunker but when we got up there we found it on the green and somehow or other I managed to roll in the putt.”
Stanford also birdied the 340-yard par-4 13th but dropped shots at the par-5 15th and par-4 17th before completing her round by holing from 40-feet for another birdie on the closing hole.
Kim belied the fact she was playing her first ever competitive round on a links course when she carded five birdies and three bogeys in a 70 that culminated with a curling 20-foot putt for a three on the 386-yard par-4 last.
“It was really tough out there,” she said. “I hit the ball high, which is not good in a wind like this, but this season I have been working on hitting a lower ball and it worked.
Wie, who was partnered by compatriot Natalie Gulbis and Japan’s Momoko Ueda, took many of the 10,900-strong crowd with her and they were rewarded for their support with a gutsy display which started with birdies on the 401-yard par-4 2nd and the 492-yard par-5 8th and also included a further birdie on the 487-yard 11th where she hit a 3-wood just right of the green, chipped to 9-feet and holed the resultant putt.
The American, who needs a strong display to attract the attention of the Solheim Cup selectors, was far from disappointed with her round, despite late bogeys at the 340-yard par-4 13th and the treacherous 419-yard par-4 17th, where many of her fellow competitors also faltered.
“Yeah, you know, it was tough out there,” she said. “The wind was strong. I felt I played fairly solid. I was proud of the fact that I was patient today. I felt like I made a lot of good pars and, hopefully, tomorrow morning the wind won’t be as strong and I will get some birdies early on.”
The wind caused havoc for many of the leading competitors in the field. World’s No. 5, Paula Creamer, shot a two over par 74 to go into the second round within touching distance of the top-10, but World No. 1, Lorena Ochoa, returned a 75, the same total as last week’s Evian Masters champion, Ai Miyazato.
Further down the leaderboard, America’s Christie Kerr recorded a four over par 76, former three-time winner Karrie Webb posted a 77 while veterans, Juli Inkster and Helen Alfredsson, were both one shot worse.
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