April 21, 2017
1. Katelyn Dambaugh Round 1: 68 (-4) Round 2: Round 3: To Par: -4 Place: T-1st |
2. Ana Pelaez Round 1: 70 (-2) Round 2: Match 3: To Par: -2 Place: T-7th |
3. Marion Veysseyre Round 1: 72 (E) Round 2: Round 3: To Par: E Place: T-19th |
4. Ainhoa Olarra Round 1: 76 (+4) Round 2: Round 3: To Par: +4 Place: T-52nd |
5. Jia Xin Yang Round 1: 77 (+5) Round 2: Round 3: To Par: +5 Place: T-60th |
HOOVER, Ala. — Paced by senior Katelyn Dambaugh’s 4-under 68, South Carolina women’s golf concluded day one of the SEC Championship near the top of the leaderboard through 18 holes at Greystone Golf & Country Club. The No. 11 Gamecocks, who also received an under-par round from freshman Ana Pelaez, sit four strokes off the lead in fourth place following their 286 (-2) Friday.
Dambaugh’s efforts handed the Goose Creek, S.C., native a share of the individual lead, while Pelaez stands in a tie for seventh place after carding a 2-under 70 in round one.
No. 20 Texas A&M posted a first-round 282 (-4) to finish atop the leaderboard through one day, while No. 13 Arkansas (283, -5) and No. 8 Florida (284, -4) round out the top three. The individual lead is shared by Dambaugh, Vanderbilt’s Alexandra Farnsworth and Arkansas’s Alana Uriell.
Dambaugh found her stroke down the stretch of the front nine, tallying birdies on Nos. 6, 7 and 8. The Carolina standout made the turn at 4-under 32 before displaying steady play over her final nine holes. She notched seven pars following the turn and capped off her day with a tap-in birdie on the par-5 18th after reaching the green in two.
Pelaez totaled four birdies Friday in her postseason debut for the Gamecocks. She recovered from a bogey on No. 5 and notched back-to-back birdies on the par-5 sixth and par-4 seventh, and the Malaga, Spain, native dropped to 2-under on her day following a birdie on No. 10. Pelaez shot par or better on each of her final five holes in a stretch highlighted by a birdie on the par-3 17th.
Marion Veysseyre opened her week with an even 72 to end the day in a tie for 19th place. Her round was sparked by a strong back-nine showing, as the sophomore registered three birdies after the turn. Two of them came over the final three holes, including a birdie hole-out from the greenside bunker on the par-4 16th.
Junior Ainhoa Olarra sits in a tie for 52nd place following her first-round 76 (+4), while senior Jia Xin Yang shot a 5-over 77 to end the day in a tie for 60th. Olarra saw a strong finish to her round with birdies on Nos. 16 and 18, and Yang added three birdies of her own Friday.
Quoting Coach Kalen Anderson
“The pins were pretty tough to access today, but the greens and the golf course were in perfect shape. We got off to tough start, but the team rallied back and finished so strong. I’m so proud of them. We’re right where we need to be, and I’m looking forward to the weekend. Kate loves this golf course. She was on fire on the front, and she’s putting it so well.”
Round Changer
Katelyn Dambaugh quickly grabbed momentum in the opening round after tallying a birdie on four of her first eight holes. The senior’s five birdies Friday led the Gamecocks.
Notable
- South Carolina was one of five schools to have multiple golfers finish under par in Friday’s opening round.
- The Gamecocks led the field with 18 birdies on day one at Greystone Golf & Country Club.
- Senior Katelyn Dambaugh has shot par or better in five of her last seven rounds at the SEC Championship dating back to 2015.
- For the second-straight season, a Gamecock shot under par in her debut at the SEC Championship. Ainhoa Olarra posted a 3-under 69 last season, and Carolina freshman Ana Pelaez shot a 2-under 70 Friday.
Up Next
The Gamecocks are back on the course Saturday morning for the second round of the SEC Championship. Day two pairings can be found on Golfstat.com later today.