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Reigning Zambia Ladies Open champion Stacy Bregman leads the Sunshine Ladies Tour challenge in the sixth edition of the Turkish Airlines Ladies Open in Turkey.
Bregman carded a 73 in the opening round of the €250,000 Ladies European Tour event at the National Golf Club in Belek.
The South African, who has been in threatening form this season, started on back nine and dropped three shots on her way to the turn. She reeled in three birdies coming home, though, to erase the damage and join the bus of nine players at even-par.
Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies champion Kim Williams confronted the afternoon showers with a one-over-par 74. The LET rookie had four bogeys, offset by three birdies to tie for 29th.
Defending champion Lee-Anne Pace got off to a rocky start with back-to-back bogeys, but rallied with a pair of birdies at the 14th and 15th to even the score.
She turned in two over after another brace of bogeys at the 17th and 18th, but the eight-time Ladies European Tour winner reeled in four birdies from the first to get in touch with first round pacesetter, Heather MacRae from Scotland.
Pace’s challenge was derailed by a triple at the par-four sixth and a bogey at the seventh and the former number one signed for a 75 to finish eight shots behind MacRee, who set the target at six-under-par 67.
The Scot leads by one from of Denmark’s Malene Jorgensen and Gwladys Nocera of France.
Meanwhile Ladies European Tour rookie Nicole Garcia opened with an 82, while Laurette Maritz got her campaign in Turkey underway with a 77. Sunshine Ladies Tour regulars Nobuhle Dlamini from Swaziland and Namibia’s Bonita Bredenhann tied for 84th after both scoring 79s.
