Esther Henseleit opened her week at The Amundi Evian Championship with a round of 67 (-4) to be in a share of sixth place at the end of the first day.
The German didn’t get off to the best of starts with a bogey on the first, but she soon put that behind her to produce a scorecard that leaves her in a good position.
Birdies on the fourth, sixth and ninth holes ensured the 24-year-old made the turn in 33 (-2), while she added two more birdies on her back nine including one on the last for her round of four-under-par.
“I played well,” she said. “I hit many fairways and feel like that’s kind of the key out here, when you don’t hit it you always in trouble. I hit a lot of fairways and greens. I think I only missed maybe two.
“It was just pretty easy golf really. I didn’t hole any long putts or anything. I just had good short birdie putts. I missed couple chances coming in, but it was a good day.”
Henseleit, who won the LET Order of Merit and Rookie of the Year titles in 2019, is playing in the Championship for the fifth time with her best result of T27 coming at last year’s tournament.
As she gets more accustomed to teeing it up around Evian Resort Golf Club, the two-time LET winner is enjoying the challenge the golf course brings.
She explained: “It’s fun. I really like this course and I feel like every year I’m coming back I’m getting a bit better. It’s a good challenge. As I said, just hit the fairways and you’ll be fine. The greens are tricky, too, but they’re rolling really nice, so you can have some chances and take advantage of that.”
Having put in such a solid first round, Henseleit is hoping to do the same tomorrow when she tees off at 12.39 pm (local time).
While being back in Europe is also something Henseleit is relishing, and she was able to go home to Germany last week and visit her family.
“I always love coming back to Europe! I saw my family last week, and, yeah, this really isn’t too far from Germany,” she continued. “So, the food is always good. The weather is good as well, I enjoy being back here.
“I’ve been playing well. Yeah, slowly getting better. I’ve seen some results which is nice, and putting some good rounds together, so I’m confident with my game. I feel really good out on the course so I’m looking forward to it.
“The plan is just the same as today. To just keep hitting fairways, hitting good shots into the green. Miss it, if you do, on the right side and just do what I did today.”
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