Gator Golfers Lendl and Piccio Fall at U.S. Women's Amateur
Thursday, August 12, 2010 | Women's Golf
University of Florida golfers Isabelle Lendl (Goshen, Conn.) and Mia Piccio (Bacolod City, Philippines) each fell in their respective first round matches in the U.S. Women's Amateur Championship on Wednesday. Both golfers earned places in the match-play bracket by qualifying after 36 holes of stroke-play on Monday. The lowest 64 scores advanced and determined the match-play seedings. Piccio finished in a six-way tie for 23rd, after shooting a 146 (72-74, +2) while Lendl was in a nine-way deadlock for 55th after carding a 150 (74-76, +6) at the par-72, 6,559-yard Charlotte Country Club in Charlotte, N.C.
Piccio teed off in the morning against the 37th seed, Juliana Murcia Ortiz of Colombia. Back-to-back bogeys on holes two and three from Piccio put Ortiz 2-up early. Although the Gator rising sophomore recovered to birdie the fourth and made par the remainder of the front nine, Ortiz went 4-up at the turn, matching Piccio's birdie on four and adding two more of her own on holes five and nine. Ortiz was 5-up after 12 when Piccio begun to rally, taking holes 14 and 15 in succession, but the Colombian eventually prevailed 3 and 2.
Lendl took on stroke play co-medalist and third-seeded Erynne Lee from Silverdale, Wash. in the afternoon. In a back-and-forth affair, Lendl struck first with a birdie on the third hole to go 1-up. Lee capitalized on consecutive bogeys by Lendl on holes six and seven to take a 1-up lead before Lendl birdied the ninth to even the match at the turn. Lendl started the back nine strongly, taking the 10th and 11th holes to go 2-up. However, Lee again proved opportunistic, making par on the 13th and 15th while Lendl bogeyed those holes, and the two were all-square after 15 holes. A Lendl bogey on 16 put Lee 1-up and she carried that lead into the 18th hole. With the match hanging in the balance, Lee bogeyed the hole while Lendl made par, leveling the match and forcing extra holes. On the 19th hole, Lendl bogeyed and Lee took advantage, making par to secure victory.
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