Riihijarvi Tied For Second After Weather-Shortened Day One
AUGUSTA, Ga. – The first round of the second annual Augusta National Women's Amateur was suspended for the day at 4:32 p.m. EDT, on Wednesday, due to inclement weather with 29 players remaining to finish their rounds at Champions Retreat Golf Club.
Play is scheduled to resume Thursday at 7:45 a.m. EDT. The second round will begin simultaneously at 7:45 a.m. EDT off the No. 1 tee, as scheduled. Second-round groupings will remain the same as round one.
Katherine Smith, the leader at four under par, has completed only 11 holes. She holds a three-stroke lead over five golfers, including University of Tampa senior Kiira Riihijarvi. The others tied for second are Ana Peláez Triviño, Rose Zhang, Karen Fredgaard and Linn Grant.
Peláez Triviño and Zhang, the No. 1 ranked player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), both shot one-under 71 and have finished their rounds. Riihijarvi, Fredgaard and Grant will complete their rounds Thursday morning.
On a day when low scores were not in abundance, Smith, teeing off at 12:50 p.m., collected three birdies over her first nine holes and added one more at No. 10. She completed her last hole with her seventh par of the day on No. 11 before play was suspended.
Riihijarvi, who hails from Oulu, Finland, opened the first day with a birdie on the first hole, which was a par four. She would proceed to par the following 12 holes. Her score on the first nine was a 35. She will finish the final five holes on Thursday morning, followed by the second round.
Joining Riihijarvi at the event are UT head coach Missey Jones and teammate Sofia Cadavid, who is also a classmate and the number-two golfer for the sixth-ranked Spartans, according to the most recent Golfstat NCAA Division II team rankings. Riihijarvi currently ranks as the No. 2-ranked individual in the nation, while Cadavid sits at No. 33.
The championship began at 7:45 a.m. EDT on Wednesday with Alexa Melton hitting the opening tee shot. The sophomore at the University of Southern California had to withdraw from the 2019 Augusta National Women's Amateur a week before the event because of a wrist injury.
Following the completion of the second round, a cut will be made with the top 30 players advancing to Saturday's final round at Augusta National. All participants will play a practice round at Augusta National, the home of the Masters Tournament, on Friday. NBC will broadcast three hours of live final-round coverage from noon – 3:00 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 3.
For more information, please visit www.ANWAgolf.com and follow the event's official social media channels (@ANWAgolf) across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Media inquiries may be directed to Augusta National Golf Club's Manager of Communications, Alex Zerkel, who may be reached at (706) 729-3628 or alzerkel@augustanational.com.
Click here for complete day one leaderboard
About the Augusta National Women's Amateur
The Augusta National Women's Amateur was announced on Wednesday, April 4, 2018, by Chairman Fred Ridley during his annual press conference at the Masters Tournament. The goal of the championship is to make a significant and lasting impact on the future of the women's game by celebrating and showcasing the world's best amateurs.
The field is comprised of 82 of the leading women amateurs in the world, who will compete over 54 holes of stroke play. The first 36 holes will be contested over two days at Champions Retreat Golf Club. Following the 36-hole cut, the final competitive round will feature the top 30 players and will take place at Augusta National Golf Club the Saturday prior to the Masters Tournament.
Provided she remains an amateur, the Augusta National Women's Amateur champion will receive an invitation to the next five Augusta National Women's Amateurs, the 2021 U.S. Women's Open, the 2021 Women's British Open, and any USGA, R&A and PGA of America amateur championships for which she is eligible for one year.
NBC Sports will produce and broadcast three hours of live final-round coverage of the event, which is being supported by five presenting partners: AT&T, Bank of America, IBM, Mercedes-Benz and Rolex.