France’s Anne-Charlotte Mora will take a two-shot lead into the weekend at the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open after firing a flawless 62 (-9) at Golfpark Holzhäusern.
On a day of low scoring in Switzerland, the one-time Ladies European Tour (LET) winner went bogey-free in the afternoon posting nine birdies to storm to the top of the leaderboard.
“Today was a good day,” Mora said. “Everything was good, especially my irons. I gave myself a lot of opportunities to make birdies and they all seemed to go in which was nice!”
Following a steady start, the Frenchwoman lit things up from the 3rd hole onwards birdying the 503 yard par-5 followed by three more on the 4th, 5th and 7th to go out in 30.
With compatriot Nastasia Nadaud setting the clubhouse lead earlier on with a round of seven-under par, Mora continued her momentum through the turn birdying the picturesque par-3 11th.
Two more red numbers on the 13th and 15th quickly moved the 26-year-old into the outright lead, with a wonderful birdie on the 18th extending her advantage late into the day.
“Usually my short game is good but not my long game,” Mora explained – who matched her career best round of nine-under par [set at the La Sella Open in July]. “But I went home [to France] on Monday and got to practice with my coach which was nice so I was ready for this round.
“I will try to do the same as today, tomorrow. I went bogey-free here too back then [in 2021 when shooting a 66 on day one], so I’m really happy to do it again.”
In a tie for second on seven-under par sit the previously mentioned Nadaud and Norway’s Madelene Stavnar – both of which going bogey-free just like the outright leader.
“It was a very good day,” Nadaud said. “I didn’t miss any shots at all. When you hit 16 greens [in regulation] in helps. I made a lot of big putts so that was a bonus. I really enjoyed the round.”
While Stavnar bettered her best ever score on the LET by three shots to match Nadaud’s number.
“I was not in a lot of trouble at all day,” the 22-year-old said. “I hit the ball much better than I have been doing the last few days. I felt like I sorted out my problem from the last few weeks so it was great to gain that confidence back.”
Three players sit in a tie for fourth on five-under par, a trio which includes Wales’ Chloe Williams, Germany’s Alexandra Försterling, and Sweden’s Moa Folke.
Continuing her fine form after finishing T4 at the Big Green Egg Open, Williams said: “I really like the golf course, it suits my game and it’s playing really soft which kind of makes it like target golf out there. I gave myself plenty of chances, putted well and converted what I had.”
Sweden’s Linnea Johansson and Finland’s Sanna Nuutinen share seventh on four-under par, with five players then making up the top-10 in a tie for ninth.
The second round of the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open gets under way at 8:00am local time on Saturday. After the conclusion of play, a cut will be made of the top 60 players and ties.
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