England’s Rosie Davies and Switzerland’s Elena Moosmann share the day one lead at the Investec SA Women’s Open after the pair opened with rounds of 66 (-6) at Erinvale Country & Golf Estate.
Despite bogeying her opening hole, Davies soon set the pace on a sun-soaked Thursday in Cape Town making three birdies in a row on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th.
A bogey on the 7th briefly halted her momentum before the 34-year-old lit things up on the back-nine, carding birdies on the 10th, 13th, 14th, and picturesque 17th to take the clubhouse lead.
“Some say that the best rounds start with a bogey,” Davies joked. “We definitely had the better of the weather conditions in the morning. It was nice and calm on the front nine, so I thought to myself if I can get a couple, whilst everybody is going to have to battle the wind in the afternoon, that will give me a little bit of an advantage.
“I rolled in the putts nicely, it was good. The golf course is stunning. It’s probably in the best condition that we play on in on the Tour. The greens are perfect, the views. South Africa is incredible. We love coming here. I’ve been really enjoying it.”
After birdying her opening hole, Moosmann shortly followed suit as she went bogey-free on Thursday to match Davies’ target.
The Swiss star and close friend of last week’s winner, Chiara Tamburlini, would birdie the 3rd, 5th and 7th to go out in 32, before adding red numbers on the 14th and 18th as the wind picked up.
Moosmann said: “I’m really happy. My drives were really good. I hit a lot of fairways and gave myself birdie chances. My putter was pretty hot today. I’m in pole position [with the wind picking up this afternoon].
“Winning how she [Chiara Tamburlini] did was definitely inspiring. I play with her a lot and we’re always on the same level. She’s sometimes better than I am and some weeks I’m better, so to see that it’s possible for us to win is definitely a little push.”
In solo third sits Norway’s Julie Boysen Hillestad on five-under par, a score which comes just days after the 24-year-old said she would stop playing at the end of the season.
“It feels amazing,” she said. “The interesting thing is that on Sunday, I said that I’m not going to play golf anymore [after this season]. So I came out here not trying to think about anything, just have fun. That’s what I did. So ending up five-under is a little bit surprising. Now I’m thinking golf is fun [again]. It’s really cool to see it worked out today.”
Seven players round out the top-10 in a tie for fourth on four-under par. The group includes Order of Merit number one Bronte Law, compatriots Annabell Fuller, Hannah Burke, and Liz Young from England, France’s Nastasia Nadaud, Sweden’s Lisa Pettersson and five-time winner Lee-Anne Pace.
The South African legend said: “I do love this event. But I really like this golf course as well. To be honest, I probably should have hone quite a bit lower, but then I figured some stuff out with my putting. My caddie was also great. He’s local here, [my] first time here this week. I just really enjoyed being out with him. And great sunshine.
“Lucky number six, I’m going for it! That’s for sure. I had so many messages this week about lucky number six. So it’s definitely in my mind and I’m trying to go for it.”
Round two of the Investec South African Women’s Open continues tomorrow at 7:15am local time. Follow all the action throughout the tournament on our socials – @LETgolf on Instagram, TikTok and X, and Ladies European Tour on YouTube and Facebook – #RaiseOurGame | #InvestecSAWomensOpen.
