The Saratoga, Calif. native carded six birdies and one bogey to take a one-shot lead over South Korea’s Jacey Chun, Florida State Seminole Lacey Agnew and Florida Gator Hannah Yun.
The Wellesley College graduate got off to a hot start with a birdie on the first hole and carded two more before making the turn. Her only bogey came on the par-5 11th hole, but quickly turned her game back around with birdies on the par-4 15th and par-5 18th.
With 26 putts on the Sweetgrass Golf Club, Jenq said her comfort on the greens helped her deliver the low-round of the day.
“I didn’t hit that well today but I hit a ton of par putts from about 15 feet,” said Jenq. “Making those putts really got it going for me. No three putts today either so that’s great. It’s just all thanks to my putter.”
Yun teed off on No. 10 this morning and carded three birdies before making the turn
and followed up with three more to take the lead through 14 holes. But the San Diego, Calif. native fell to 4-under after bogeys on Nos. 6 and 8.
Yun, who has been a Symetra Tour member since 2008, is playing in her third event of the year at the Island Resort Championship and is looking to tally her second top-10 finish. Through two events, Yun has a scoring average of 69.8 which has been her target week-in and week-out.
“My goal every week has been to just shoot one-under on each side,” said Yun. “If I get more then I’ll take it but I’d be happy if I shot one-under on each side.
“I’ve been working really hard on my game and it’s starting to come out. I’m just trying to keep it going and try to enjoy it. I’ve had a lot of fun out here.”
Agnew and Chun shot similar rounds with only one blemish after five birdies. It was partly cloudy with windy conditions during Friday’s first-round, but Agnew’s patience on course helped her adjust her sails to fire a 5-under 68.
“We’ve had pretty perfect weather all day,” said Agnew. “The greens were a little softer today than we had seen earlier in the week. I got off to a slow start but I had to stay patient. I had to kind of learn how to adjust to that half way through the round and then fired at the pins a little more.”
The new girl… A 2008 graduate of Wellesley College in Massachusetts, Jenni Jenq debated whether or not her college career was enough preparation to take it to a professional level.
For the next four years, the California native competed in amateur events across the state and captured six wins including the California Women’s Amateur Championship in 2011. Her first professional win came in 2012 while on the Grasshopper Tour with her second coming in late February. It was at that point she knew she was ready to start her professional career.
Jenq, a 27-year-old rookie, is competing in her fifth professional event on the Symetra Tour this week. Being on the road for the third week in a row, Jenq was feeling fatigued and slightly unprepared heading into the Island Resort Championship.
“I actually only got one practice round on this course because I was so tired from playing two weeks in a row,” said Jenq. “Those two tournaments I played 18 holes every single day before the first round. So I took a few days off this week. I got kind of nervous because I wasn’t sure where to miss it since I had only played it once, but it seemed to work out to my advantage.”
The rest seemed to be just what Jenq needed as she fired a 5-under 67 to take the first-round lead. She says it’s all part of the learning experience.
“I was really nervous in my first event in Charlotte,” said Jenq, who missed the cut. “I
was on the alternate list in the beginning of the season, but after I made a cut in Asheville and that helped me through the reshuffle. That gave me more opportunities to play and I got the hang of just getting to play every week.”
Eagle Alert! Spain’s Elisa Serramia ended her round with a smile on her face after carding the only eagle of the day at Sweetgrass Golf Club.
From the middle of the fairway, Serramia was sitting at 77-yards from the green but with the wind in play she had to play it differently.
“I decided to play a 85-yard shot,” said Serramia, who didn’t trust her caddy’s yardage at first. “It’s at a weird angle depending on where you are at in the fairway. But I followed his instruction and it ended up going in. He’s been giving me a hard time about it.”
Serramia received $100 for her eagle today, which is matched by the Island Resort Casino and given to the player’s chosen charity. Serramia is an advocate for Wounded Warrior Project.
Rave Reviews for Sweetgrass… Wind and rain can be a blessing and curse during golf, and today it proved to be both. Each night this week, Harris, Mich. has experienced heavy rain which made the course a bit soggy during Friday’s first round.
Although the Symetra Tour pros saw less roll on the fairways, they were able to fire at the pins to give themselves birdie opportunities.
Canada’s Nicole Vanderware started her round with 4 birdie through the first five holes but the wind picked up when she made the turn, causing her to adjust her game.
The wind seemed to have won though, as she carded three bogeys on the back to finish at 2-under for the day. Despite the weather conditions, Vanderware feels Sweetgrass Golf Club perfectly suits her game and has a better idea of how the weather will affect her game.
“The course is awesome,” said Vanderware. “I feel like it really suits my eye. I was able to get hot to begin with. The winds were coming in and out on a few holes so had to change my strategy a few times. It was just trusting my game a little more. You could be a lot more aggressive hitting at the greens which I liked.”
Since the Tour’s first stop in Harris, Mich. in 2011, the Island Resort Championship has drawn in one of the largest crowds of the season, and the players definitely notice.
“This might be the most fans I’ve ever seen out here supporting us,” said Vanderware. “There are so many out here on nine and 18, clapping and cheering for you. It’s been awesome. I’ve never been here before and it’s been great, everyone is so friendly.”
(This story courtesy of the Symetra Tour and www.symetratour.com)
