Lauren Stephenson, Sarah White share first-round lead in Epson Tour Atlantic Beach Classic
Former University of Alabama golfer Lauren Stephenson and Sarah White, who played on boys junior hockey teams for 15 years, both shot 8-under-par 63 on Thursday at the Atlantic Beach Country Club to share the first-round lead in the Atlantic Beach Classic.
Stephenson and White both started on the back nine. Stephenson was 6-under on eight holes during one stretch and White made five 3s in a row and seven of eight.
They lead two players by one shot, former Ohio State player Jessica Porvasnick and former BYU player Kendra Dalton.
Porvasnick, who now lives in Jacksonville, was 6-under on her first seven holes, capped by an eagle at No. 7. Dalton birdied four of her first six holes.
Stephanie Connelley-Eiswerth, a teaching professional at the San Jose Country Club, is tied for ninth at 4-under after a bogey-free 67. Amelia Lewis, a Jacksonville native and 13-year member of the LPGA, birdied Nos. 11, 13, 15 and 18 on the way to a 68.
The second round is scheduled for Friday and the third round on Saturday. With the weather threatening to turn windy and wet on Friday, the field attacked the course on Thursday, with 53 players posting under-par rounds and 40 in the 60s.
The total purse for the LPGA development tour event is $300,000.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Epson Tour's Atlantic Beach Classic opens with low scores on balmy day
