Opening Golf to the World
Girls U16 Amateur
McDonald and Del Sol Gonzalez share Girls’ U16 lead
24 Apr 26
4 mins
The 78 competitors from 23 countries contending the R&A Girls' U16 Amateur couldn’t have asked for better conditions at Gog Magog for the Championship's eighth edition. Glorious sunshine and hardly a breath of wind-bathed the Cambridgeshire course, perfect for taking on the 5,851-yard, par-72 layout.
Fourteen players took full advantage of Mother Nature’s largesse, shooting under par for the opening round. Scotland’s Carly McDonald and Rebecca Del Sol-Gonzalez of Wales emerged at the top of a packed leaderboard when they returned four-under-par 68s. That’s good enough for a one-shot lead over a chasing pack that includes defending champion Sabrina Wong. Scottish-based Hong Kong native Wong is on three-under alongside Estonia’s Kristella Sikk and Lana Guyot of Switzerland. Eight players are tied on two-under.Del Sol-Gonzalez shines in first round
Del Sol-Gonzalez arrived on the par-5, 18th tee with the outright lead on five-under-par. However, she ran her third shot through the back of the green and failed to get up and down for par. Still, the Welsh player was happy with her opening day’s efforts.
Rebecca Del Sol-Gonzalez shares the lead after the first round at the R&A Girls' U16 Amateur Championship.
“I’m obviously disappointed with the dropped shot at the last, but I ended up with a terrible lie off the tee,” the Pennard Golf Club member said. “But if you’d told me before the start of the round that I’d shoot 68 and be tied for the lead I’d have been really happy.
“I wasn’t able to get into this tournament last year so I was keen to make up for it. My approach play was really good today – I only missed two greens – and then when I had an opportunity I took it,” added the 15-year-old, who was born in Wales but whose family background is Cuban.
Seven birdies
McDonald made seven birdies in her round, including three straight to complete her 68. A good effort considering she dropped shots at the 13th and 14th holes. “I was quite straight off the tee today, and I putted well, and that always helps,” said McDonald, who is ranked 736th on the World Amateur Golf Ranking®. “I also hit a lot of greens in regulation today – maybe 16 of 18 – so I played well.
Joint-leader Carly McDonald finished the first round four-under-par.
“I was pretty calm after dropping the shots at 13 and 14. I just said to myself to stay positive because there were two par-5s left.”
McDonald arrived in Cambridgeshire fresh from winning the Scottish Girls’ Open Championship at Luffness New earlier this month. She is bidding to become the third Scottish champion following Hannah Darling in the inaugural year of 2018, and Grace Crawford in 2022.
“Winning the Scottish Girls proves my golf is consistent right now,” the St Regulus member explained. “I’ve come into this confident, so it’s just a matter of sticking to my processes and see how low I can go. I finished 32nd last year so hopefully I can improve on that.”
She’s certainly given herself the best possible start.
So has Wong. The 14-year-old, who made history here last year by becoming the first player to win both the Girls’ U16 Amateur and the prize for the championship’s leading player under the age of 14, might be tied for the lead if not for a late bogey at the par-3, 17th hole.
Reigning champion Sabrina Wong carded a first round score of three-under-par.