LPGA Tour tees off in Thailand

Paula Creamer has a 69, but is flying home

for treatment to hand injury

FROM GOLFWEEK.COM WEBSITE
By BETH ANN BALDRY
CHONBURI, Thailand – Paula Creamer has withdrawn from the Honda PTT LPGA Thailand with a nagging left hand injury. Creamer is heading back to the U.S. to seek further medical attention, according to her management company. She also was scheduled to play next week in the HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore.
Creamer, pictured, ended her first round of the season with a creditable score of 69 - but in tears - yesterday. One can’t help but wonder if those tears were as much about fear as they were about pain. At 23 years old, Creamer is awfully young to be dealing with so many health problems.
Last year at this time she battled a mysterious stomach illness that doctors said could take up to two years to fully recover from.
Then last June she injured her left thumb hitting out of the rough. She changed her swing in the off-season, hoping to alleviate the pain. Now it’s back to the drawing board.
Suzann Pettersen of Norway and M J Hur of South Korea each shot a six-under 66 to share the lead after the first round in Thailand as the LPGA Tour kicked off its 210 campaign.
Pettersen had a four-birdie, bogey-free round capped with an eagle on the last hole. Hur had seven birdies and a bogey on the Old Course at Siam Country Club.
Ai Miyazato, Kim Song-hee and Park Hee Young are one stroke back at 67.
Defending champion and world No. 1 Lorena Ochoa put together a blemish-free round of 69 that yielded three birdies.
Michelle Wie shot par 72. She had a double bogey on the 10th followed by a bogey on the 11th, but finished with three birdies in the last four holes.
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FIRST ROUND SCORES
Par 72
66 M J Hur (Kor), Suzann Pettersen (Nor)
67 Ai Miyazato (Jpn), Song-Hee Kim (Kor), Hee Young Park (Kor)
68 Yani Tseng (Tai), Cristie Kerr, Angela Stanford, Brittany Lincicome, Stacy Lewis
69 Paula Creamer, Nontaya Srisawang (Tha), Karrie Webb (Aus), Lorena Ochoa (Mex), Maria Hjorth (Swe), Kyeong Bae (Kor)
70 Sun Young Yoo (Kor), In Kyung Kim (Kor), Catriona Matthew (Sco), Amy Yang, Pat Hurst, Momoko Ueda (Jpn), Se Ri Pak (Kor), Hwa seon Lee (Kor), Laura Davies (Eng), Katherine Hull (Aus)
71 Anna Nordqvist (Swe), Jiyai Shin (Kor), Na Yeon Choi (Kor), Meena Lee (Kor), Inbee Park (Kor), Amanda Blumenherst
72 Lindsey Wright (Aus), Stacy Prammanasudh, Aryia Jutanugarn (Tha), Juli Inkster, Hee-Won Han (Kor), Candie Kung (Tai), Shinobu Moromizato (Jpn), Michelle Wie
73 Maria Verchenova (Rus), Morgan Pressel, Eun Hee Ji (Kor), Brittany Lang
74 Mika Miyazato (Jpn), Natalie Gulbis, Eunjung Yi (Kor), Meaghan Francella, Russamee Gulyanamitta (Tha), Sophie Gustafson (Swe), Helen Alfredsson (Swe), Sandra Gal (Ger)
75 Virada Nirapathpongporn (Tha), Ji-Young Oh (Kor), Kristy McPherson
76 Wendy Ward, Christina Kim
77 Thipada Suwannapura (Tha)
78 Vicky Hurst, Jee Young Lee (Kor)
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Pettersen won the event in 2007 when she eagled the 18th to beat Laura Davies after blowing a seven-stroke lead.
"Gave myself a lot of chances. Made some and tried to stay patient," she said. "When it finally turns around, you're able to make some moves."
Hur was pleased with her round.
"I played really solid. Everything was perfect," said Hur, who won her first title at the Safeway Classic last year.

Low scoring fireworks display at Hacienda del Alamo Festival

Hayley Davis (Ferndown), left, and Hannah Barwood (Knowle), first-round leaders in the Hacienda del Alamo Ladies Open. Images by Cal Carson Golf Agency. Click on them to enlarge.

Brilliant round of six-under 66 gives 17-year-old

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Hayley Davis four-shot lead from Hannah Barwood

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Dorset teenager Hayley Davis from the Ferndown club took advantage of a mild spring-like day, with not a drop of rain (until after the last players were back in the clubhouse, to shoot a splendid score of six-under-par 66 in the first round of the 54-hole Hacienda del Alamo Ladies Open at the five-star Hacienda del Alamo Golf Resort in the Murcia region of south-east Spain today.

Hayley, who had her 17th birthday at the beginning of this month, burst clear of the small but quality field of Curtis Cup team place contenders, with birdies at the long fourth, the short eighth, the par-4 10th, 11th and 13th, and also the treacherous par-5 18th.

She did not have a single bogey in halves of 34 and 32 for the Dave Thomas-designed course.

Tournament controller Lee Harrington commented: "This is certainly the lowest competitive medal round by by a lady at Hacienda del Alamo although an official course record cannot be awarded due to the fact that we are playing preferred lies this week. Nevertheless, it was some round of golf by young Hayley."

"I'm just pleased that I scored better than I did in the Murcia Ladies Open at the start of the week (she had rounds of 82 and 72 to finish sixth)," said Hayley who looks set for another great season in 2010.

Last year, she was the first English player for eight years to win the Scottish Under-16 girls' open stroke-play championship at Craigielaw. After that she helped England to retain the girls' home international championship, and then lost in the quarter-finals of the British girls championship, going down on the 18th green to the French girl, Perrine Delacour, who went on to win the title. And Hayley also won the South Region championship and the Liphook Scratch Cup.

Hayley's playing partner Danielle Anderson said that it was a great round to watch.

"Hayley was completely in control from start to finish, and she was holing everything, which helps!" said Danielle who went round in 77.

Davis's nearest challenger is former English amateur champion Hannah Barwood (Knowle) with a two-under-par 70, followed by Charlotte Ellis (Minchinhampton) with a 71. Charlotte did not play in the Murcia Ladies Open earlier in the week.

The winner of that title over 36 holes, Welsh international Amy Boulden (Maesdu), had a 74 today and Scottish Under-21 champion Kelsey MacDonald (Nairn Dunbar), beaten on a card countback by Amy on Tuesday, had to settle for a 76.

In the Seniors Open over 36 holes, Linda Marr (Fleetwod) leads with 26 Stableford points off a handicap of 26pt. But she is only one ahead of Kam Cheema (Red Libbets) and local player Marilynn Pearce.

Amber Ratcliffe, 14-year-old Royal Cromer prospect, has a four-shot lead in the Under-16 Girls' Open after a fine scratch round of 74. Dulcie Sverdloff (Thorpe Hall), with a 78, was the only other player in this category to break 80.

In the Under-18s section, Emily Taylor (Royal Lytham) shot a 74 to lead by two from Holly Robinson (Co Sligo).

3rd Hacienda del Alamo Women's & Girls' Festival

THURSDAY SCOREBOARD

HACIENDA DEL ALAMO LADIES OPEN - FIRST ROUND
SCRATCH
Par 72
66 Hayley Davis (Ferndown).
70 Hannah Barwood (Knowle).
71 Charlotte Ellis (Minchinhampton).
74 Amy Boulden (Maesdu), Charlie Douglass (Brocket Hall).
75 Daisy Dyer (Chigwell).
76 Kelsey MacDonald (Nairn Dunbar).
77 Danielle Anderson (Rochford Hundred), Mary MacLaren (Wellingborough).
79 Becky Gee (Wellinigborough).
83 Jenna Birch (Royal Lytham).
84 Dana Greenslade (Wentworth).
94 Ana Wright (Hacienda del Alamo).
100 Mirade Cronin (Bantry).
HANDICAP
67 Hayley Davis (+1).
72 Hannah Barwood (+2).
73 Danielle Anderson (4), Charlotte Ellis (+2), Mary MacLaren (4).
74 Amy Boulden (scr), Daisy Dyer (1).
75 Charlie Douglass (+1), Ana Wright (19).
78 Dana Greenslade (6), Kelsey MacDonald (+2), Becky Gee (1).
81 Jenna Birch (2), Mirade Cronin (19).

SENIORS
STABLEFORD
26pt Linda Marr (Fleetwood) (26).
25pt Marilynn Pearce (Hacienda del Alamo (19), Kam Cheema (Red Libbets) (22).
22pt Penny Burrows (Hacienda del Alamo (22).
18pt Audrey Lee (Fleetwood) (21).
17pt Gillian Gardiner (Fleetwood) (27).
15pt Linda Wilson (Ashton & Lea) (32).

UNDER-18 GIRLS
SCRATCH
74 Emily Taylor (Royal Lytham).
76 Holly Robinson (Co Sligo).
81 Lydia Johnston (Harleyford).
84 Lucie Walker (Ormskirk).
85 Georgia Gilling (Rochford Hundred).
91 Shauna Brady (Co Sligo).
HANDICAP
70 Holly Robinson (6).
73 Emily Taylor (1).
75 Lydia Johnston (6).
79 Lucie Walker (5).
80 Georgia Gilling (5).
81 Shauna Brady (10).

UNDER-16 GIRLS
SCRATCH
74 Amber Ratcliffe (Royal Cromer).
78 Dulcie Sverdloff (Thorpe Hall).
80 Megan MacLaren (Wellingborough), Holly Vizard (Pleasington).
81 Alice Hewson (Berkhamsted).
83 Emma Harris (Peel).
85 Gabriella Cowley (West Essex).
88 Amelia Taylor (St Annes Old Links).
91 Eaodin Cronin (Bantry), Gemma McCarthy (Clonmel).
93 Katherine Carragher (John O'Gaunt), Charlotte Humphries (Burnham & Berrow).
HANDICAP
71 Amber Ratcliffe (3), Holly Vizard (9).
72 Dulcie Sverdloff (6).
73 Alice Hewson (8).
76 Gemma McCarthy (Clonmel).
77 Gabriella Cowley (8), Megan MacLaren (3), Amelia Taylor (11).
80 Katherine Carragher (13), Emma Harris (3)..
84 Eaodin Cronin (7).
85 Charlotte Humphries (8).

Laura Murray joins Murcar Links to get even better

Murcar Links Golf Club's women's team, arguably the strongest in the North-east of Scotland, has just got stronger!
Scotland international Laura Murray (21), who covered the Murcar Links' winter course off the men's tees in 66 strokes to finish second in the all-male field for the North-east Alliance yesterday, has joined the club.
Alford, where she lives, will remain her home golf club. She is also a member at Aboyne where her boyfriend Keir Beveridge is an assistant professional.
"Murcar Links have got superb practice facilities and, of course, an excellent links course. Most of the events on the ladies' domestic circuit are played on links, so I feel I could do better in them if I played a lot more on links courses at club level than I have in the past," said Laura whose next big tournament is the Spanish women's amateur championship at Playa de Pals, Girona.
Laura is still of a mind to go to the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School near the end of the year but she would like to go into that with her confidence high after a successful amateur season.