Carlin Tied for Fifth after First Round of Hurricane Invitational
CORAL, GABLES, Fla. – The Kentucky women’s golf team featured a standout individual performance from junior Claire Carlin, firing her best round of the season, while the Wildcats sit in 12th place as a team in the opening round of the Hurricane Invitational.
The Wildcats recorded a 20-over-par 308 in the first of three rounds at the Biltmore in Coral Gables, Florida. Tournament action will resume with the second round Tuesday. Kentucky will start on hole No. 10 at 7:30 a.m. Carlin will start on hole No. 10 at 8:10 a.m. Live scoring will continue to be available at GolfStat.com.
“I’m disappointed in our round,” UK head coach Golda Borst said. “We are a much better team than the score we posted today and it’s time for this team to step up and show their ability. We have two more days to post a couple good scores and we need to do just that.”
Carlin stepped up Monday by posting her best first-round score in three years as a Wildcat. Tied for fifth on the individual leaderboard, she fired a 2-under-par 70. Carlin began her round on No. 10 with two back-to-back bogeys. Shaking off morning butterflies, she carded a bogey-free front nine. Carlin recorded five birdies for the day.
Carlin’s rounds makes for her lowest 18-hole round and first par-or-better round of the 2017-18 season. This is the first time in her college career Carlin has competed as an individual. She will look to use her momentum to stay on the individual leaderboard after moving day.
No. 16 Oklahoma leads the Hurricane Invitational field by three strokes with a 3-under-par 285. The Sooners have three players in top 10. Tournament host No. 24 Miami (Fla.) University is in second place with an even-par 288.
Senior Isabelle Johansson came out strong in the Hurricane Invitational, carding two pars and a birdie in her first three holes. Recording only a few blemishes on her scorecard, the senior from Sweden leads the Kentucky lineup with a 2-over-par 74 (tied for 20th).
Senior Grace Rose is in the mix too, posting a 4-over-par 76 (tied for 37th). She captured three birdies on the round with room to improve as she approaches day two. UK’s most consistent golfer this year, she likely has more in the tank for the final two days.
In her tournament debut, freshman Sarah Fite carded two birdies on the round. Fite conquered newcomer nerves after a rusty start by carding six consecutive pars on the back nine for a 1-over-par 37. All in all, she rallied a 6-over-par finish following day one.
Sophomore Josephine Chang and junior Leonie Bettel are both 8-over par (tied for 62nd) through the first round. The pair recorded a 4-over-par 40s on both the front and the back nine, respectively. Bettel finished the round with two birdies.
Kentucky joins a solid field for the three-day tournament, including Barry, Coastal Carolina, Florida International, Maryland, Mercer University, Miami, Middle Tennessee, Oklahoma, Penn State, South Dakota State, South Florida and Virginia Tech. Miami and Oklahoma are both featured in Golfstat’s top 25.
The Hurricane Invitational is taking place at the Biltmore Golf Course as a par 72 at 6,150 yards. Designed by Donald Ross in 1925, it is pegged as one of the finest golf courses in Southern Florida.
For the latest on the Kentucky women’s golf team, follow the team on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.
