Low scores were being posted left and right during the first round of the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic, with 73 players breaking par on the day and 14 players signing for rounds of 66 or better. The new host venue, TPC Scottsdale – Champions Course, is the third straight week the field has seen a true desert golf course, and the scores are starting to reflect the comfort the players are feeling.
Samantha Vodry came in with the lowest round of her Epson Tour career, a 9-under 63 that puts her on the top of the leaderboard by one shot. Vodry started off her day the best way possible, making an eagle on her opening hole and following it up immediately with two more birdies. She rolled in three more birdies on her front nine to post a 7-under 29 and saw two more birdies drop before her first and only bogey of the day on the par 3 15th. The setback was just a minor one however, with the 26-year-old finishing her round with a birdie to complete the best 18 holes of golf she has ever played.
Vodry has struggled early in her 2024 Epson Tour campaign, only making one cut in the first five events where she finished T43. With the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic being one of two 72-hole events of the season, she knows this week is more of a marathon than a sprint and is just taking it all in.
“Obviously got off to a hot start with the eagle on the first, and then kind of just carried that momentum. Had a couple birdies following that. So that was a good start. Didn't really start to get nervous until number nine but salvaged a good par there and then kind of kept it going in the back,” explained Vodry. “Obviously it's a long haul. So, you got to stay patient. And I mean, it's day by day and, just trying to enjoy the scenes and stay calm and patient.”
Sitting one shot behind Vodry are Dana Fall and Riley Renell at 8-under. Fall had a tremendous round, teeing it up on her final hole, No. 9 at 10-under. The University of Nevada, Las Vegas alum carded an unfortunate double bogey to close out her round but remains in contention heading into the second round. Renell also had a great opening round with a clean scorecard. The 25-year-old went bogey-free, carding six birdies and a lone eagle on No. 8.
“I couldn't get the putts to fall early, which is kind of crazy,” said Renell. “I lipped out two like 360 putts and I was like, ‘oh my gosh.’ I had good like 12-inch speed but couldn't get those to quite fall. And I had 30 or 31 putts today. So, it's not like I putted great. I hit all the par fives in two and made an eagle on one of them it and was a bogey free round. So, it was a good day.”
Fans around the world will be able to follow the tournament closer than usual via live streaming thanks to GKLive.TV. The broadcast will feature Nos. 16-18 on Saturday from 5-8 p.m. ET and Sunday from 5 p.m. ET until the conclusion of the tournament. The tournament can be viewed on https://www.gklive.tv/event/2024-epson-tour-carlisle-arizona-womens-golf-classic, with a replay airing on https://www.youtube.com/@ROAD2LPGA the following week.
ABOUT THE LEADERS
Samantha Vodry signed for a 9-under 62 to lead after 18 holes at the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic
- Vodry made eight birdies, an eagle and a bogey in her opening round
- She carded a 7-under 29 on the front nine of TPC Scottsdale – Champions Course
- The 26-year-old is in her sophomore season on the Epson Tour
- She has made five starts this season, making one cut
- She finished T43 at the 2024 Atlantic Beach Classic
- She has made five starts this season, making one cut
- Her 9-under round is her best score on the Epson Tour by four shots
- This is her first time holding the first-round lead in an Epson Tour event
THINGS TO KNOW
Riley Rennell and Dana Fall both turned in a 8-under 63 in their first round and sit in a tie for second place
Riley Rennell
- Rennell has played 14 events on the LPGA Tour and 39 events on the Epson Tour in her career
- Her best career finish on either tour was a runner-up finish at the 2022 Epson Tour Championship
- The Tennessee native went bogey-free in her opening round
- The round included 6 birdies and an eagle
- She made her professional debut when she was just 18-years-old
Dana Fall
- Fall made 10 birdies and one double bogey in her first round
- She shot a 6-under 29 on the back nine
- The 31-year-old has made 110 LPGA Tour starts and 35 Epson Tour starts in her eight-year career
- Her T11 finish at the 2019 ShopRite LPGA Classic is her best career finish on the LPGA Tour
- She won the 2016 Dream First Bank Charity Classic on the Epson Tour
- Fall also has an additional 12 top-10 finishes on the Epson Tour
- The Arizona native is making her first appearance at the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic this year
Alana Uriell starts her tournament a 2-under 69 and is T38
- Uriell made a hole-in-one on the par 3 15th during her first round
- It was her sixth career hole-in-one
- The 27-year-old has made three cuts in five starts during her 2024 campaign
- Her best finish is T22 at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic
- She has played in 62 LPGA Tour events since her rookie season in 2019
- Her best finish on the LPGA Tour was a T9 finish at the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic
- Uriell has five top-10 finishes on the Epson Tour, including a win at the 2019 SKYiGOLF Championship
ROUND ONE MORNING WAVE NOTES
Low was the word of the morning during round one of the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic. There were low overall scores and lots of gettable holes with plenty of opportunity to make eagle and jump up the leaderboard.
Texas native Samantha Vodry is the current clubhouse leader after posting a 9-under, 62, just one stroke shy of tying the tournament record (61). Vodry carded one bogey, eight birdies and an eagle on Thursday.
“Obviously got off to a hot start with the eagle on the first, and then kind of just carried that momentum,” said Vodry. “I had a couple of birdies following that, so that was a good start. I didn't really start to get nervous until number nine but salvaged a good par there and then kind of kept it going in the back.”
The morning wave also saw one ace from California native Alana Uriell on No. 15. With 174 yards downwind to the pin, Uriell took a full 6-iron, hit it 170 yards and watched the ball roll, hit the pin and drop in. Despite the ace being Uriell’s sixth, there was still a first to celebrate on the tee.
“Actually, it was my caddie’s first time seeing a hole-in-one in person, so it was pretty special for me,” said Uriell. “It was my sixth hole-in-one. So not to say that it wasn't special, but it was definitely exciting, and I'm happy to have it in a tournament.”
Here are other highlights from the morning wave on Thursday:
No. 1 - One eagle
- Samantha Vodry
No. 5 – One eagle
- Siri Patchana
No. 8 - Seven eagles
- Kendra Dalton
- Emma Talley
- Pornanong Phatlum
- Jennifer Chang
- Su Oh
- Mikayla Fitzpatrick
- Riley Rennell
No. 18 - Four eagles
- Gabriella Then
- Bi Shin
- Alexis Miestowski
- Ou Olankitkunchai
)
)
)
)
