An impressive back nine from Sarah Kemp has ensured the Australian remains in the mix after the opening round of the Scottish Open in Ayshire.
Kemp made four birdies on the way home to finish with a 3-under 69 that left her five behind leader Hinako Shibuno at Dundonald Links.
After making consecutive bogeys on the 2nd and 3rd, Kemp finished the front nine all square with birdies on the 5th and 7th.
Kemp then made a mockery of her No.140 world ranking with birdies on the 10th, 13th, 14th and the last - a bogey on 12 her only blemish on the back nine - to share sixth position with last week's major champion Celine Boutier.
It was a remarkable effort from the world No.140 on a tough day for scoring with only 23 players beating par.
Young Steph Kyriacou was the next best Australian, making a 4-over 76.
The 22-year-old was hampered by double bogeys on the first and the last, with three birdies and three bogeys sandwiched in between.
But the big shock was Minjee Lee, who had a round to forget after posting an 8-over 80 that left her close to the rear of the field.
The world No.9's troubles began with a double bogey on the first and finished with a triple bogey on the 18th.
She also had four other bogeys to go with a lone birdie on the fifth.
Japanese leader Shibuno (64) birdied three of her final four holes to open up a two-shot lead on Madelene Sagstrom of Sweden.
A group of three were tied for third at 4-under - Nicole Broch Estrup of Denmark, Swede Caroline Hedwall and Caroline Inglis, the only American among the top nine in the field.
After starting her opening round on the back nine, Shibuno birdied her first hole of the day then reeled off four consecutive birdies from Nos.13-16. She made the turn at 5 under and pulled off a stretch of seven consecutive pars before her birdie run to complete her round.
"I surprised myself with the four birdies in a row," Shibuno said.
Her solid round came despite a lingering finger issue.
"The ground is firm, firmer, than a normal course but if you hit low and solid, my finger is not getting hurt," Shibuno said. "So I'm just being relaxed and more thinking about sequence, the swing."
Shibuno, who won the 2019 Women's Open, has seven professional wins, with six of those in Japan. She has not won an event since 2021.
Sagstrom, the runner-up at the 2021 Women's Open, also started her day on the back nine, where she reeled off three consecutive birdies to begin her round.
She made the turn at 4-under, then bogeyed the par-4 first hole before closing with three birdies over her final seven holes.
with Reuters
