It has been sunny, it has rained, the wind has blown (a lot) and it has been cold. Pure Ireland. The four seasons, although not Vivaldi’s. Today they have been Blanca Fernández’s (-6). The Madrid native has delivered a masterpiece at the Carton House course during the first round of the KPMG Women’s Irish Open. She shot 67 on a par 73 and took the lead in one of the best tournaments of the season on the Ladies European Tour. It’s what you call a statement.
Blanca made seven birdies and a solitary bogey, interestingly right at the start of her round. An omen of what? Nothing. Rather, it was a wake-up bogey, because from there the beast came out to play. Signing nine threes on an 18-hole golf scorecard is no easy feat. It means you did things very well, and none of those threes were on par 5s. She played the par 4s masterfully.
This round of 67 equals Blanca’s best result this season, another six under par, in that case a 65 on a par 71 achieved on the other side of the world, in Australia, at the dawn of the season. Besides equalling her record, it’s worth noting that Blanca has somehow removed a thorn that had been stuck for a while. It’s not that her recent weeks have been a disaster, because that’s not true at all, she has been getting results and adding up, but she lacked the purple patch. She hadn’t shot below 70 since April. Today she did it majestically. There you go, the can of great results is open again.
Blanca is tied at the top with Chiara Tamburlini (-6). The Swiss is not just anyone. We’re talking about last year’s Ladies European Tour Order of Merit winner. Behind them, in third place, one shot back, are up to five players, including Mimi Rhodes, the current Number One in the LET rankings, Lottie Woad, the Number One amateur in the world, and Madelene Sagstrom, a Solheim Cup player. It’s true there’s a long way to go in this 72-hole tournament, but it’s equally true that for now, all of them are behind Blanca. Confidence. By the way, the last time she shot six under in a tournament, she finished in fifth place.
Also trailing Blanca are other players like Charley Hull (-3), Georgia Hall (-2), or Leona Maguire (-1), to name just a few of the most important names gathered this week in Ireland who couldn’t keep up with the pace set by Blanca this Thursday.
As for the rest of the Spaniards, Amaia Latorre (-4) also had a magnificent start, sitting in the top 10, with five birdies and a solitary bogey. Fátima Fernández Cano (-2) also played under par, within the top 25. The change of scenery from the LPGA Tour to the LET has suited the Galician well. Additionally, Luna Sobrón handed in a scorecard of PAR. The rest of the Spaniards are in debt to the course and will have to rally to make the cut: Teresa Toscano (+1), Harang Lee (+3), María Hernández (+3), Marta Martín (+3), and Marta Sanz (+5).
