The Oregon women’s golf team stumbled a bit in the opening round of the 2004 Pacific-10 Championships on Monday.
But the Ducks were not the only ones to see the teeth of the lengthy par-72, 6,405-yard Saticoy Country Club course in Somis, Calif. Team and individual scores skyrocketed during the first round, leaving eventual first-round leader UCLA at 20-over par. The Ducks sit only 12 strokes back in eighth place with a first-round total of 320.
“We’re not particularly pleased with our score, but by no means have we lost contact with the rest of the field,” Oregon head coach Shannon Rouillard said. “The course played extremely difficult today and some of the best golfers in the country shot 80 or higher. Par was a very good score and that’s what you’ve got to learn to expect at a championship event.”
Only one golfer, Arizona’s Erin Blasberg, broke par, and only 24 golfers kept their scores below 80. Blasberg had two birdies, one bogey and 15 pars for her 1-under 71.
For Oregon, the surprise came when freshman Kimberly McCready, making her Pac-10 debut, finished in a tie for 12th place with a 6-over round of 78. McCready started well, playing her first nine holes at 2-over par, but stumbled a bit with a pair of double bogeys on No. 1 and the troublesome No. 3. She recovered her round by finishing her last six holes at even par.
Junior Johnna Nealy also finished tied for 12th. Nealy, who played well in last year’s tournament, was seven over par with five holes to go before rallying with four pars and a birdie on her second-to-last hole to finish with a 78.
The other four Ducks were not able to break 80. Sophomore Michelle Timpani finished tied for 33rd after an opening round 81, while fellow sophomore Erin Andrews shot a 83 to finish tied for 39th. Junior Jess Carlyon — competing as an individual — and sophomore Therese Wenslow had a tournament’s worth of struggles in a single round, shooting a pair of 17-over 89s to finish tied for 54th.
“I would have liked to count on at least one more score in the 70s and preferably two more,” Rouillard said. “But we can’t hang our heads. We need to go out there tomorrow and see if we can’t make a few minor adjustments to save a stroke here and there as we get more familiar with the golf course.”
The second of the three-round event will tee off at 8:30 a.m. today and conclude Wednesday.