HARRIS, MICHIGAN, June 27, 2014 – Epson Tour rookie Lee Lopez is starting to supplant herself as a favorite to get an LPGA Tour card at the end of the season. On Friday at the Island Resort Championship, Lopez fired a 4-under 68 to snag sole possession of the first-round lead. Lopez leads Shannon Fish, Katie Kempter, Sadena Parks and Molly Aronsson by one shot.
Lopez finished second last week at the Four Winds Invitational to jump from 25th to seventh on the Volvik Race for the Card money list.
“I felt like I had a good game plan and sometimes you execute it and sometimes you don’t and today was one of those days that I did,” said Lopez. “I hit good drives and put myself in good positions which is important out here.”
The UCLA graduate made a bogey on the third hole and was 1-over through her first five holes. She made back-to-back birdies on the sixth and seventh and carded three more birdies on the back nine.
“I hit good approach shots to these greens and these greens are tough. You really have to be on the right tiers and have your speed really good because they firmed up this afternoon.”
Lopez took just 26 putts on the day and hit 12 of 14 fairways.
The Whittier, California native has been in a great rhythm. In addition to her solo second place finish last week, she tied for fifth two weeks ago at the Decatur-Forsyth Classic.
Lopez has finished inside the top-30 in each of the last five events.
The 24-year-old is a fan of Sweetgrass Golf Club.
“I think it’s a great golf course. It really forces you to be very precise off the tee and since it is links style you don’t have very many targets when you look towards the horizon like last week when we had tree lines everywhere. You have to know where the pins are because the greens are very large out here so you have to make adjustments.”
Lopez has earned $27,684 this year, second amongst rookies on Tour (Cindy Feng). Over the last two weeks, she has pocketed $16,912.
“I think my play is improving because I’ve had the opportunity to play really good courses lately. Honestly, throughout the whole season we’ve had great courses. It teaches you to work on every single aspect of your game. I’m just trying to focus on getting better every day. I have a goal of becoming a better player and getting better all around and it has been fun.”
Lopez took a one shot lead into the final round of the Four Winds Invitational last week and was outdone by Nicole Vandermade in a classic duel.
“I learned that having the lead is a lot of fun and that it is worth working towards. Everything that you do when you have the lead will make a difference when you need it really bad. I remember that every single shot mattered. It taught me to hone in on certain parts of my game and learn what my strengths and weaknesses are.”
Cindy Feng, Taylor Collins and Christine Meier are two shots back in a three-way tie for sixth.
Kendall Dye, Lacey Agnew, Jennie Lee and Mary Narzisi are in a four-way tie for ninth at 1-under-par.
MSU PLAYER CHRISTINE HAS STRONG ROUND ONE: Christine Meier just got the final grade she needed to complete her degree from Michigan State on Thursday.
On Friday, she shot a 2-under 70 and stands in a tie for sixth at the Island Resort Championship.
“I’m really happy, I hit 15 greens which was great and had a lot of good looks at birdie,”
said the 22-year-old Meier. “It was a steady card with three birdies and one bogey.”
Meier hails from Rochester Hills, Michigan, which is about seven hours from the Upper Peninsula. However, she is still excited to play in the state she grew up in.
“There are Spartans fans everywhere and Michigan fans everywhere so it’s great to play here.”
Christine’s older sister, Amy, also plays on the Epson Tour.
“Everybody talks about it and it is really cool to travel with her. We’ve been doing it our whole lives so it doesn’t feel like anything crazy to us, but to have someone to travel with makes a huge difference.”
Is there a sibling rivalry?
“I wouldn’t necessarily call it a rivalry, but we both are very competitive and we both want to do well and that means to do well you have to beat the other one sometimes. It’s fun, the Michigan State versus Ohio State thing is always fun and I just have to say that Michigan State won the Rose Bowl this year.”
YELLOW PANTS GOOD LUCK FOR PARKS: Sadena Parks played well in her bright yellow pants on Thursday so she decided to wear them again on Friday.
Parks fired a 3-under 69 in the first-round. She made five birdies including two consecutive on the 15th and 16th holes
“I feel relieved that the round is over, but it was a good day and I had fun,” said Parks. “The 18-holes went by super fast so that just kind of shows that I am out there enjoying myself.”
Parks said she will consider wearing the bright yellow pants for a third consecutive day on Saturday.
Parks, who ranks 47th on the Volvik Race for the Card money list, has played well of late. She finished in a tie for 11th at the Decatur-Forsyth Classic and finished in a tie for 17th at the FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship.
ARONSSON WITH FAMILY TIES TO HARRIS: Molly Aronsson had her best round of the year with a 3-under 69 on Friday. It comes in an area where her ancestors landed many years ago.
“I’m stocked, I love this course and I love this town,” said the Shelburne, Vermont native. “I have a lot of connections here from my ancestors so it is just great to be back.”
Aronsson made five birdies against just two bogeys on the day. She made back-to-back birdies on the 14th and 15th holes. She attributed much of her success to her attitude and her comfort in the area.
“I think the key was attitude, I stayed positive the whole day and anytime I felt like I was going to get down on myself I just looked around and enjoyed how beautiful it is out here. It’s really peaceful. The fans are great and there is a lot of support at this event. I made some good putts and just hung in there."
Aronsson’s great-great grandparents came over from Sweden by boat and arrived in Escanaba. They actually changed her last name to Aronson to fit in. When Molly was born, her dad changed the last name back to the current spelling to honor her ancestors.
“I still have relatives here. My dad used to visit this area when he was a boy. It’s really cool to be back and visit some of the relatives and be in this town.
Aronsson expressed her appreciation of the hospitality at the Island Resort Casino.
“We are taken care of so well here. The casino has been wonderful, the rooms are incredible, the fans are great and all the restaurants in town love having us here. I just think it is a great environment and I like spreading the word about Harris. More people need to see it. You don’t really know it is up here, but it is a hidden gem.
ANOTHER ACE: Noriko Inoue became the 9th Epson Tour player to record a hole-in-one on Friday at the Island Resort Championship.
Inoue used an 8-iron from 153-yards on the 15th hole to card her first career hole-in-one.
“Everyone was cheering when it went in so I was really happy,” said the Epson Tour rookie Inoue. “Right before I hit I changed my club (from 7-iron to 8-iron) and I think it is a good thing that I switched.”
Sue Harris, the tournament director of the Island Resort Championship, presented Inoe with $500 in cash for her ace.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY STEPHANIE NA: Stephanie Na from Adelaide, Australia celebrated her 25th birthday on Friday by shooting a 1-over 73 and is in a tie for 20th.
FIVE EAGLES MEANS $500: For every eagle that a Epson Tour player makes this week, the Island Resort Casino will donate $100 to charity.
On Friday, there were five eagle made including two at the par-4 14th hole.
Media Contact
Bret Lasky, Coordinator, Epson Tour Media, bret.lasky@lpga.com. 386-679-1292
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