PETALING JAYA: Ashley Lau ended the first round of the women’s golf competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics tied for 12th after shooting an even-par 72 today.
The 24-year-old is tied for 12th with 11 others after she bagged four birdies at the Le Golf National golf course in Paris – where France’s Celine Boutier is at the top of the leaderboard after firing a seven-under-par 65.
South African golfer Ashleigh Buhai is second after scoring a four-under-par 68, with Mexico’s Gaby Lopez, Switzerland’s Morgane Metraux and Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe tied for third after hitting a two-under-par 70.
Lau, the national women’s number one who hails from Bintulu, said lacing up in the Olympics was a welcome break for her after competing in this season’s Epson Tour, the official qualifying circuit for the LPGA.
Lau, who bagged her maiden professional win at the Vic Open in Victoria, Australia, in February, told the LPGA website she had been so focussed on the Epson Tour’s Race for the Card that it has been tough to truly feel like an Olympian in recent weeks.
The Race is a season-long points competition that awards the top 15 athletes in the standings with LPGA Tour membership at the end of the season, something that has been a lifelong goal for Lau ever since she started playing the game.
Lau has made eight cuts in 12 starts on the Epson Tour, earning a season-best result of tied for 11th at the IOA Championship presented by the Morongo Casino Resort & Spa in the US in April.
“It didn’t feel real until I was on the flight to Paris. My mind was kind of distracted because I was still playing in the Epson Tour,” Lau told the LPGA on Monday.
“I couldn’t get distracted from that because obviously, my goal is also to get my LPGA card. But this week, it’s nice because it feels like I have a little distraction from getting the card.
“Golf has been kind of tough the last couple of months, so I’m taking a little breather, and I think the Olympics has been helping because it feels like I’m in a dream and can escape reality for a little bit.”
