H&R Staff Writer
DECATUR — Forgive Rachel Connor for thinking about shooting below 60 after nine holes on Thursday.
The 19-year-old rookie on the Duramed Futures Tour was having the round of her life at the Tate & Lyle Players Championship and wanted to stay aggressive after five early birdies.
Connor didn’t quite make enough shots for the 59 she wanted, but after five more birdies on her final nine holes the Brit opened up a healthy lead thanks to 9-under, 61.
Chelsea Curtis and Jenny Shin sit four strokes back at 5-under.
“I feel really confident playing here,” Connor said about Hickory Point Golf Course. “It’s similar to an English golf course, so I think that’s why I feel comfortable playing it, but my game just felt solid today.
“I felt like I was in my own little world. I enjoyed it. I really enjoyed it.”
Connor started her day off unlike she normally does.
She ignored the leaderboard and convinced herself to shoot for pins while trying to win the event. She was rewarded early and often for that approach.
Her day started with a birdie thanks to a 15-foot putt, which was a sign of things to come. After a bogey on her fourth hole, where the putt was only five feet, she reeled off three straight birdies with putts of 17, 10 and 16 feet. After another par on her eighth hole, she hit the turn after a 15-foot birdie putt on 18, too.
She didn’t slow down, either. After a “terrible” second shot, Connor sunk a 20-foot putt to start her 5-under final nine holes.
“I’m usually playing it a bit safe, but it’s not been working lately,” said Connor, who had trouble remembering each birdie as they blurred together. “So, I was like ‘you know what? I’m just going to do it, see what happens,’ and this is what came out.”
It’s a pleasant change of pace for Connor, who’s missed the cut in the past three tournaments she’s played in. After switching from a draw shot to a fade, she struggled, but she handled her new swing well in Round 1.
“I’ve been said Connor, who finished with a round-best 24 putts. “My coach said ‘just go for everything, you’ve got the game, just believe in it’ and that’s what I did today.
Heading into the second day, Connor has no plans to change her aggressive approach that helped her beat her previous career round by six strokes.
“I’m going to just go out with the same thought process really,” said Connor, who was hopeful her parents back home in England stayed awake for a phone call at 1 a.m. “It’s more just believing in my swing
“If I can trust it, I can do this again. That would be pretty cool.”
It wasn’t until Connor came along late in the day that Curtis, a rookie from Georgetown, lost her lead.
Curtis also used an efficient putter to position herself well, including a 50-foot birdie on her seventh hole, with her 5-under, 65. Along with the 50-footer, Curtis had three more birdies in the first nine holes and didn’t have a bogey all day.
“I definitely hit the ball close and gave myself a lot of opportunities,” said Curtis, who’s best finish on Tour this year is third. “I just had everything kinda going for me today.”
Jenny Shin also fired a 65 without having any trouble. She used birdies on two of her final four holes to put herself in a tie for second.
Esther Choe and Elisa Serramia sit in fourth at 4-under with four players locked at 3-under.
A total of 38 players shot under par in Round 1.
Action gets under way at 8:30 a.m. today. Connor is in the first group off tournament hole No. 1, while Shin goes off at 10:20 on No. 1 and Curtis at 1:20 p.m. on one.
lbridges@herald-review.com|421-6970
Published in the Herald & Review in June 2010.
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