THOMPSONVILLE -- Katie Burnett came to Crystal Mountain Resort & Spa to make her professional golf debut at the Michigan PGA Women’s Open, but also to aid in preparation for her first U.S. Women’s Open next week in Kohler, Wis.
“I wanted to play on the same kind of grass,” explained the Georgia native who last month finished her South Carolina collegiate career with a fifth-place finish in the NCAA Championships.
The manicured green grass at Crystal Mountain doesn’t look like it will be a problem.
Burnett, 22, shot a 6-under-par 66 on the Mountain Ridge course Monday to take a five-shot lead into the second round of the 54-hole state open. The 66 tied the course record for women set previously in this event by Elaine Crosby in 2004 and Lisa Fernandes when she won in 2007.
“I was feeling really good about my game coming into the tournament,” Burnett said. “I’ve had about a month off since college, so I was ready and definitely wanted to play.”
Justina Yu, a 26-year-old Las Vegas golfer who played college golf at Northwestern, was the only other player under par with a 71, five shots off the pace in the strong gusting winds.
Not one golfer shot even par, and the remaining 60 golfers in the field of 63 golfers finished over par.
Inhong Lim, a former Ohio State golfer and third-year professional, and Jennifer Hong, another former Northwestern golfer on the Symetra Tour, checked in with 73s to tie for third.
“The wind was really hard to figure out,” said Sue Ertl, a LPGA Tour veteran from Ionia who shot 74 and was tied for fifth with Grosse Ile touring pro Laura Bavaird, Kristin Walla of Aspen, Colo., Rachael Schmidt of Elk River, Minn., and amateurs Kelly Hartigan of Lake Orion, Melissa Beurmann of Jackson and Minami Levonowich of Houston, Texas.
Defending champion Laura Kueny of Whitehall opened with 79.
Ertl said a 66 on the board didn’t surprise her.
“You can hit it close on this course,” she said. “If you are not hitting it close, like some of us, then you don’t get many birdie chances. This is a fun course. The greens are in such beautiful shape.”
Burnett reached the green of the par 5 No. 9 hole with a drive and a 5-wood shot, and made eagle-3 with a 12-foot putt to highlight her round. She also had five birdies and just one bogey.
“I’m feeling good,” she said. “I told my mom on the phone yesterday I thought I could shoot a couple under on this course because it just sets up well for me. I can reach a couple of the par 5s in two, and if I hit good drives I’m a pretty good wedge player.”
