Foster fires even par effort on Tigers debut

Anna Foster returned an even par round of 72 as the Auburn women’s golf team played its best round of golf of the season on Monday.

The Tigers shot a 283 (-5) in the first round of The Ally at Old Wavery to climb into second place, three shots back of Florida as freshman Foster overcame a triple bogey on the first hole to shoot level, leaving her in tied-21st overnight.

Foster made a birdie on No. 9 and carried that momentum to the back nine where she made four more birdies and went 4-under.

The Elm Park player made the move stateside off the back of a 2019 season that saw her  win the 2019 Irish Girls Order of Merit and make the Round of 32 at the 2019 British Women’s Amateur Championship at Royal County Down

As for her Tigers teammates, it was another freshmen in Elina Sinz, making her Auburn debut, who jumped out to a quick start with four birdies on the front nine and finished with six on the day to card a 68 (-4) in the first round.

It’s the second straight year an Auburn freshman has shot below 70 in the first round at Old Waverly Golf Course. Last year, Megan Schofill fired a 69 (-3) in the first round of the Magnolia Invitational.

Sinz, who is currently tied for second on the individual leaderboard, paced the Tigers who made 18 birdies as a team and shot 4-under collectively over the last five holes.

“We discussed last night that you can’t win a tournament on the first day, but you can lose it. I saw great grit out there from all five players. I love how strong they played the last five holes,” Auburn head coach Melissa Luellen said.

“I was really impressed with our freshmen and their ability to make some birdies,” she added. “Looking forward to a good sleep, so we can come back ready for the second round.”

Schofill, who is making her season debut this week, also fired a 72 (E) in the first round and is tied with Foster for 21st overall. She knocked in three birdies, all on the front nine.

Coming off a top-10 performance in the Blessings Collegiate Invitational, Kaleigh Telfer is back in the top 10 at The Ally after shooting a 71 (-1) on Monday. The junior co-led the field with 15 pars on the round and added two birdies, both on Par 5s.

Fellow junior Mychael O’Berry carded a 76 (+4) to place in a tie for 46th overall.

Florida leads the field at 8-under par (280), followed by Auburn (283), Ole Miss (284), South Carolina (287), LSU (288), Tennessee (290), Mississippi State (293), Arkansas (294), Alabama (294), Georgia (297), Vanderbilt (297), Missouri (299), Kentucky (302), Texas A&M (306) and Southern Miss (318).

Auburn will be paired with Florida and Ole Miss for the second round and is scheduled to tee off at 9:30 a.m. CT from the first hole. Live scoring can be found on Golfstat.com.

Team Standings

1. Florida – 280 (-8)
2. Auburn – 283 (-5)
3. Ole Miss – 284 (-4)
4. South Carolina – 287 (-1)
5. LSU – 288 (+E)
6. Tennessee – 290 (+2)
7. Mississippi State – 293 (+5)

T8. Arkansas – 294 (+6)

T8. Alabama – 294 (+6)

T10. Georgia – 297 (+9)

T10. Vanderbilt – 297 (+9)

12. Missouri – 299 (+11)
13. Kentucky – 302 (+14)
14. Texas A&M – 306 (+18)
15. Southern Miss – 318 (+30)

Auburn Individuals

T2. Elina Sinz – 68 (-4)

T10. Kaleigh Telfer – 71 (-1)

T21. Megan Schofill – 72 (E)

T21. Anna Foster –72 (E)

T46. Mychael O’Berry – 76 (+4)