Queenslander Vicky Uwland and Amy Taylor from Norwich in the UK are tied for the lead after the first round of the Women’s NSW Open Golf Regional Qualifying event at Wagga Wagga Country Club.
On a day where the wind was challenging for most, Taylor kept her ball in play to card three under par.
“It was a little breezy but for me it was a calm day being from England. I love the wind. I went to college in the states, and it was super windy there too,” she said.
“Anything that presents a bit of a challenge, I’m here for it.”
Taylor faced a tough beginning but held her ground, drawing confidence from her impressive play and the love she holds for the course.
“It was a good round, I got off to a quick start. I started with two birdies and followed that with two bogeys. It was a challenging start, but I stuck in there. I knew I was playing well, and I really like the course so that gave me some confidence.”
After what Taylor describes as a hard year on Ladies European Tour (LET) battling injuries, she said she’s glad to be in Australia and ready to have some fun.
“I wanted to come out here, Australia has great weather, and the people are super friendly so it’s a great place to just enjoy golf again and just get back to why I’m playing.”
Sunshine Coast local Uwland said a great round during the Pro-Am event yesterday gave her a boost of confidence for the first round today.
“I got off to a slow start today and was one under with a few to go and I stuffed up 15 and 16 but I knew I had a couple of par fives coming up to finish and I managed to birdie three of them so that was nice,” she said.
Playing golf less frequently now, Uwland expressed satisfaction with her game.
“I’m pretty good with my wedges and I’m putting pretty well so I’m holing those six to ten footers which is really important around here because they’re quite quick. I’m not really putting myself in any trouble. I’m driving the ball well and giving myself lots of chances.”
“It’s a bit weird but it’s a nice feeling to know that you still play good golf even though I don’t really do it anymore full time. It’s nice to still show the young ones that there’s some fight in the oldies.”
Coming in third just one shot behind the leaders are Mollymook’s Kelsey Bennett, South Korea’s Nayeon Eum and South Australia’s Kristalle Blum.
Players will tee of at 8:25am tomorrow morning. The round will be broadcast on Kayo from 10am.
The Women’s NSW Open Golf Championship is proudly supported by the NSW Government
through its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW. For more information visit
womensnswopen.com.au