Paula Creamer and Ashleigh Buhai lived up to their status as two of the biggest names in the field at Final Qualifying for the 2017 Ricoh Women’s British Open when they shot a pair of four-under-par 68s at The Castle Course, St Andrews, on Monday morning.
A field of 111 players are battling for 22 places in the field for the Major Championship, which starts at Kingsbarns Golf Links on Thursday August 3rd.
Lydia Hall, Ayako Uehara, Min Lee and Jing Yan all returned solid 69s in the 18-hole qualifier. Dame Laura Davies, Scots pair Heather MacRae and Laura Murray, Isi Gabsa, Laura Sedda, Nicole Broch Larsen, Christie Wolf and Amelia Lewis all recorded two-under-par 70s as the sun shone brightly on the Home of Golf.
Creamer has also been one of the most popular figures in the women’s game since 2005, and counts the 2010 US Women’s Open among her list of ten Tour titles. Her best finish in the Ricoh Women’s British Open came back in 2012 when she claimed third place at Royal Liverpool. She is aiming to qualify for her 13th outing at the Championship.
She said after her round: “It was a beautiful golf course. My caddie worked really hard, because it was the first time I had ever seen it. I teed off at 7:22 so I couldn’t do much preparation. After I played yesterday I came out and hit some putts and walked the last three or four holes. It’s an awesome little gem here. What a fun golf course to play.
“I had an eagle on the seventh. I hit driver, six-iron and it was literally hanging over the edge, it was almost a two. It was pretty cool. I birdied 17 and 18 and then birdied nine. It was a good birdie on 17, because that was a tough par 3. I made a good two on there with a putt from about 20 feet.”
Buhai said: “I’m very happy and I think that anything under par today was going to be good. I hit a lot of good shots and only missed two greens and the ball striking was really good. I left a few putts out there but overall I’ll take it. You’ve just got to be steady in qualifiers and take your birdies when they come. It’s more about keeping the bogeys off the card. I love the Women’s British Open and I missed getting in by a week this year, so I’ll be very chuffed to be able to play at Kingsbarns.”
Davies is looking to extend her remarkable streak of 31 consecutive appearances in her home Major, after having won the Women’s British Open back in 1986, as well as the 1987 US Women’s Open, the 1994 McDonald’s LPGA Championship, the 1996 McDonald’s LPGA Championship, the 1996 du Maurier Classic and almost 80 other titles around the world.
After playing on The Castle Course for the first time, she said: “I think it’s a great course and we could have the Open on this course.
“I think two-under is plenty good enough if the wind stays like this all day, but if it lies down, there are five par-5s round here and five par-3s, which usually sets you up for some really good scoring. It’s one of those nervous afternoons. If I had to put a bet on it, I’d say I’d get in, but golf is a funny game.”
After rattling in a 25-foot putt for birdie on the 12th, she said: “That putt I hit on 12 was the longest putt I’ve holed for two years. I’m not joking. It’s incredible. I feel like I’m stroking it great. We’ll see. I’ve never played Kingsbarns, so I don’t know if it will suit me or not.
“I’ve never had to qualify. It’s a new experience for me and I don’t like it.”
Play will continue until approximately 7pm. Follow the latest scores here.
