After 18 holes of play, an LPGA Tour veteran and an Epson Tour champion share the top spot in a stacked field at Atlantic Beach Country Club. There were plenty of red numbers during round one of the Atlantic Beach Classic, with 53 players breaking par. Low scores were in demand during the first round because of the predicted forecast for round two, which is showing high winds and rain throughout the day.
Lauren Stephenson and Sarah White set the pace in the morning wave and waited for the afternoon groups to catch them, which they never did.
Sarah White got off to a slow start, making a bogey on her third hole of the day. However, that would be the only blemish on the card for the 26-year-old. The next six holes were played in 4-under par, with an eagle on No. 18 gaining momentum heading into her back nine. Momentum was all White needed, making five birdies in her last nine holes to close out her day. The 8-under 63 was the best round of the year from the Michigan native, who topped her best round by seven shots.
"It was an unspoken rule, because of what weather we're predicted the next two days, to go out and play well today. So, it's a perfect start because like I said, we don't know what we're going to have," said White. "Having an eight under start is just huge because that'll help me in the next few days with weather, where I can keep it safe on a few and stuff like that, where you can kind of judge off of not protecting the lead, but you're just you're able to do a couple different things when you start with an eight-under."
White was playing with a heavy heart, entering the Atlantic Beach Classic after the passing of her grandmother a week ago today.
"She was 91, so she couldn't walk with me the last few years. I know she's walking with me throughout this week and, throughout my golfing career. It's really nice, though, to know that she's watching over me," said White. "It was really fun because I was laughing after my eagle today on nine; I was like, 'thanks, grandma,' in my head because it was a 12-foot slider. And I was like, I'm going to need some help. So, it was really fun. And I laughed a lot today just thinking of what she's seeing from above."
Stephenson had the most consistent and arguably the best round of the day. Like White, Stephenson's day started out tame, but the big difference was that the LPGA Tour veteran was missing the bogey on her scorecard. The first five holes were all pars, but the next 13 holes were anything but tame. She made all six birdies and an eagle in that stretch, nearly making a birdie on her closing hole to take the outright lead. Stephenson is making only the second start on the Epson Tour in her career, and she is starting to show why she spent the last five years on the LPGA Tour.
"I just played really solid, like tee to green. I made a lot of putts. I think I missed one green, so I got up and down on that one," said Stephenson. "But yeah, just did everything pretty solid and stayed to my gameplan."
The Atlantic Beach Classic will be streamed live over the next two days, starting tomorrow at 12-3 PM ET. Saturday will begin at 12 PM ET but continue until play has concluded. Watch the Atlantic Beach Classic here.
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