Sharp solid, Henderson inconsistent in first round of Olympics

It took a while for Alena Sharp to get past the opening-day Olympic jitters but once she did, the veteran carved out a solid round, ending up under par and in a tie for seventh.

“I had a lot of adrenaline just from it being the first day and getting started,” stated Sharp who shot a one-under 71 on Wednesday. “I could feel it in my arms, you know? I needed to calm down, and started hitting some really good shots.”

The veteran played the opening nine in two-over par, with bogeys on the fifth and the ninth. On the fifth, Sharp hit her tee shot into the left rough with what she called her worst swing of the day. The slip on the ninth hole came after Sharp said she picked the wrong club for her approach and short-sided herself. It took her four shots to get down from 25 yards out.

But the 43-year-old from Hamilton, Ont., stayed patient and when she made the turn, she found success with her putter, rolling in birdie putts on 14 and 17. On the final hole, she reached the green in two shots and then two-putted for birdie from about 40 feet.

“Walking off nine, I was kind of really annoyed at myself that I was over par,” she admitted, “because I hit it so well. But you know, it's a long four days. It's marathon, not a sprint. And I just told myself to calm down. We're going to have chances. They’re going to start to drop. You just have to be patient. And I feel really good going into tomorrow.”

The solid result comes as no surprise. Sharp has been working exceptionally hard at her game over the past six months, tying to be in shape for this week. Her coach, Pete Lockett, has refreshed her swing and restored her confidence. She had several solid finishes in the weeks leading up to the Olympics, including a tie for 14th at the CPKC Women’s Open in Calgary two weeks ago.

Brooke Henderson also finished the day off in style, rolling in a 48-foot putt for an eagle. She ended up two-over par, with much of the damage happening on the front nine where she opened with four bogeys consecutively, from the second hole to the fifth.

Much of that was due to finding the rough off the tee at Le Golf National. It’s deep and gnarly, and on Wednesday morning it was also wet, making it a challenge just to advance the ball.

“I don't think I've ever played a course where there's so many thick, rough lies,” stated Henderson. “Occasionally you might get one like I had today, but I had maybe five that I was like, ‘I might hit this 30 yards,’ and I was swinging very firm at it trying to get it back in play.”

One such swing happened on the 17th hole where her drive ended up in the left rough and all she could do was hack it back into the fairway. She ended up with a bogey.

Henderson was also caught misjudging the wind on the par-4 15th hole when her tee shot ended up in the water. That led to a double-bogey, which the Smiths Falls, Ont., product called a big mistake.

Overall, it was a wild ride for the 26-year-old who made four birdies to go along with her final-hole eagle.

“It is really different than a regular week,” said Henderson, who is in her third Olympics. “Regular week, top 10, you're feeling great about yourself. This week, you finish fourth, and you feel terrible. It is definitely a mindset shift, which I think is kind of difficult for a lot of us out here, just doing that for one week every four years.”

Home-country favourite Celine Boutier leads the tournament by three shots after an opening-round 65.