ST. CLAIR — Defending champion Britney Hamilton (Lake Orion / Western Michigan University) shot a 68 and ended up atop the leader board after the first round of stroke play at the 94th Michigan Women’s Amateur Monday at St. Clair Country Club.
The round seemed almost effortless for Hamilton, but she said she was just concentrating on playing consistent.
“I didn’t do anything spectacular, just solid,” said Hamilton. “The course sets up well for me and I just hit a lot of fairways and a lot of greens.”
Hamilton did not have a bogey until her very last hole of the day on 18. Hamilton had four birdies on the day.
“It wasn’t the best way to end the round but overall I played well,” said Hamilton.
Just on Hamilton’s heels was Liz Nagle (DeWitt/Michigan State University) who shot a 70. She had five birdies on the day and says the secret to her success was being able to land the ball close to the hole.
“I just hit a lot of fairways and a lot of greens and I stuck a lot of my shots close to the pin,” said Nagle. “I was also hitting my wedge really well and that gave me a lot of confidence. I like the way this course sets up for me and I’m really excited for the rest of the tournament.”
Amy Meier (Rochester Hills/Ohio State University) finished with a 74 and said her short game was her best asset.
“I was up and down and I had four birdies,” said Meier. “My putting was really good overall and I was hitting my irons really well today.”
Katrina Templar (Greenville/Western Michigan University) started the day with a 36 on the back nine and thought it was a good omen, but had a rougher go on the front nine where she shot a 43. She hopes to be more consistent in the second round of stroke play on Tuesday.
“It was my first time playing the course so I think that should help me to play better tomorrow,” said Templar. “Everything went so well on the back nine, but when I got to the front I had trouble. Number 7 was a par 5 with water on the right and I hit right into the water. So I took a stroke there and that was one of the things that cost me.”
Play continues at 8 a.m. Tuesday. Once the 36 holes of stroke play are completed, the field will be cut to 32 to determine the players for match play. Match play begins on Wednesday and runs through Friday.
For complete results and Tuesday tee times, go to www.gam.org.
