Sara Byrne’s first Ladies European Tour start as a professional saw the Douglas woman get off to an excellent start with a two-under-par 70 that was good for a tie for 17th at La Sella Golf Club in Alicante.
A bogey on her opening hole – the 10th – was a far from ideal start, but she’d hit every green in regulation on the rest of the back nine and carded birdies on both of the par-5s to make the turn at -1.
Another bogey on the first was followed by three birdies in the next seven, but she’ll be disappointed to have signed off with a bogey on the par-5 ninth but satisfied overall with her day’s work.
Lauren Walsh and Olivia Mehaffey won’t quite be satisfied with their opening rounds as they shot matching three-over 75s to end the day tied for 89th and they’ll likely need something in the 60s to see weekend action.
It’s a tightly packed leaderboard at the end of the first day with Virginia Elena Carta, Helen Briem and Elina Nummenpaa sharing the lead on five-under-par.
Italian Carta rolled in birdies on holes two and three before adding another on the seventh, she then made two birdies in the last two holes to seal the clubhouse lead on five-under.
“It was a lovely day out there,” said Carta. “I felt like the game was back to where it has been for the whole year. I was very patient, and I think that got rewarded closing out with two birdies in the last two holes.
“It’s been a year of trying to build up my putting game. I must say it’s all thanks also to my long game being so consistent the whole year, otherwise I would not be standing here right now.
“I worked a lot on my long game to make sure I kept that the same and then I added a lot of work on putting. I have been working very hard, so I’m happy it paid off today and I could have made some short putts here and there, but I got rewarded for just being patient. I ended up making two really good putts in the last two.”
Carta has recently added two-time LET winner Becky Brewerton to her team as her caddie and has been enjoying working with the Solheim Cup player.
She continued: “Becky [Brewerton] is such a great addition to the team, it’s the best thing that probably could’ve happened to me, I think. I’m just so grateful and lucky to have her with me on the course. It’s very nice to have her with me.
“I struggled a lot with the really good long game I had this year, I would get quite emotional on the course and just frustrated when putts were not dropping so with her by my side, I’m able to stay present and stay focussed and hit one shot at a time.
“If a putt doesn’t go in, it doesn’t matter. The reaction right after is just a positive reaction and we move on to the next shot. I’m really happy and lucky to have her on the bag.”
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