Rachel Rohanna opens with 74
The winds picked up Thursday afternoon as Rachel Rohanna finished the opening round of the Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic and her score, unfortunately, slid down with three closing bogeys for a 2-over 74.
The late afternoon scores on the RTJ Golf Trail, Capitol Hill, Senator Course in Plattville, Alabama, reflected the windy conditions. Rohanna was situated around 85th place when she finished, but moved into the high 60s at the end of the first day.
The low 70 scores and ties advance to Saturday’s third round.
Rohanna opened on No. 10, so her closing holes were on the front nine. The Waynesburg Central graduate was playing well, sitting at 1-under with three holes to play.
“The wind picked up on our back nine on the last three holes. The wind was just relentless. My threesome was 9-over, collectively, in the last three holes. We all had bogeys,” explained Rohanna. “The last three holes are the hardest on the course.
“The first hole (No. 7) was a par-3. I was 40 yards short of the pin in a bunker. I had a 2-putt bogey. I had a 2-putt bogey on the next hole.
“On the last hole (No. 9), there was a crosswind. I had a 120-foot putt and 3-putted for bogey.”
Rohanna was pleased with the way she played through the first 15 holes. She opened both sides with a birdie and totaled two birdies on both her front and back nines. Rohanna carded two bogeys her front nine to go out in even-par 36 and had just one bogey on the back nine before the closing three holes.
“I played really well all day,” said Rohanna. “My 10th hole (No. 1), I was feeling real good. I made a good putt for birdie. I had a great opportunity (for birdie) on No. 6 (her 15th hole).
“I love this course. The greens are real tricky and real fast. I putted well today, but the greens are so big.”
Rohanna hit 12-of-14 fairways and 13-of-18 greens in regulation. She needed 32 putts to complete her round and had an average driving distance of 271 yards.
“It’s supposed to be calmer (Friday), so I’m expecting scores to be lower,” said Rohanna, who is scheduled to tee off No. 1 at 12:20 p.m. local time. “I feel really good with everything (club selection) in my hand right now.”