VERO BEACH, Fla. – Jessica Welch and Laurie Rinker sit at the top of the leaderboard following the first round of the Florida Women’s Open and Senior Open. In total, 143 players teed it up on Friday at Orchid Island Golf and Beach Club and John’s Island.
Welch leads the Open Division, after firing a 3-under 68 at John’s Island. She began the day with a bogey-free front nine, with two birdies. Welch added three-straight birdies on the back to move to 5-under, but back-to-back bogeys on the 16th and 17th pushed her to 3-under.
The Symetra Tour player pared the final hole of the day to hold a one-stroke lead heading into the second round.
Jessica Porvasnik finished the day one shot back of Welch with a 2-under 69 at John’s Island. The Ohio native started the round with three birdies on the front nine. She birdied her final hole of the day to card a 2-under for the first round.
Four players are in a tie for third after the first round at 1-under. Celeste Valinho and Jacqueline Putrino both shot a 1-under 70 at John’s Island, while Jennifer Borocz and Chinatsu Kobayashi posted a 1-under 71 at Orchid Island.
Rinker holds the lead in the Senior Division, carding the only under-par round of the day in her division. She posted a 1-under 70 at John’s Island to hold a three-shot lead over the field. After making the turn at 1-over, Rinker secured a bogey-free second nine with two birdies.
Four players sit in a tie for second place at 2-over 73: Cheryl Fox, Jackie Gallagher-Smith, Tammie Green and Kim Keyer-Scott.
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The second round will begin on Saturday morning with tee time beginning at 8 a.m. Live scoring is available on here. A complete recap with full results will be posted on FSGA.org following the day's play.
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