Michelle Wie shatters course record to lead at Kingsbarns

Michelle Wie shattered the Kingsbarns course record to take the lead on the opening day of the Ricoh Women’s British Open after recovering from a ‘rocky’ start.

The 27-year-old made nine birdies and one bogey to shoot an eight-under-par 64, eclipsing the record set by Xiyu Lin from China in the Women’s British Open Qualifying in 2013, to head into the second round one ahead of Korean In-Kyung Kim.

“It’s definitely up there [among my best rounds] for sure,” said Wie, who has the lead at a major championship for the first time since her most recent win at the US Women’s Open. 

“Getting the course record today is a huge honour for me, especially at a place like Kingsbarns, and I’m really proud of myself for how I played today. I really took advantage of the conditions this morning.”

Read more – Wie to follow ‘unfortunate’ LPGA dress code

“I was a little pissed”

It didn’t start out so well for Wie though. She couldn’t have imagined breaking the course record after three holes as she was one-over-par following a skulled lob wedge on the par-5 second.

“I was like, man, you skulled a lob wedge,” she said. “It was definitely a rocky start, but I think that got me a little pissed. I was very angry after that, so I nuked a drive on the next hole, and that got me into a good position. I think birdieing the fourth hole really helped me out.”

Read more – Michelle Wie using Callaway 9 & 11-woods

Davies dazzles until 15th

“It’s ridiculous to suggest I can win this week,” said Dame Laura Davies in her pre-tournament press conference yesterday ahead of her 37th consecutive appearance in the championship.

Well, after 14 holes in round one she was being made to eat her own words after soaring up into a tie for third place on six-under-par.

However, immediately following the first of two afternoon delays due to threat of thunder and lightning, she was undone by a double-bogey on the 15th hole after twice getting in bunker trouble before another bogey followed on the 16th. 

The round did end on a positive note though with a birdie at the last to finish on four-under.

Key quotes

In-Kyung Kim (-7): “I’m just so amazed by the golf course. It’s so pretty out there. I think playing the Scottish Open really helped me to prepare for this week because we had so much wind over there and I never got used to the ground and how to play in one week. I’m just taking one day at a time.”

Mel Reid (-5): “What would it mean to me [to win]? It would mean having a massive party, I’m pretty good at that. This is why we practice hours upon hours to put ourselves in position to win big tournaments like this, and to win it here would be extra special just because it’s one of my favourite places to play. I love links golf. British Open is always the highlight of my year.”

Anna Nordqvist (-4): “I’m a little exhausted right now, but today has been a pretty good day. I had a rough day yesterday – I didn’t play – but it was amazing how well I was hitting the ball today. I gave myself a lot of opportunities, and it seemed like a pretty easy four-under.”

Scots leaderboard

T72: Pamela Pretswell (E)
T72: Heather Macrae (E)
T72: Sally Watson (E)
T125: Kylie Henry (+3)
T125: Vikki Laing (+3)
T131: Catriona Matthew (+4)
T131: Carly Booth (+4)

Moment of the day

How could it be anything other than the birdie putt at the last which saw Michelle Wie set a new course record at Kingsbarns?

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