Joanna Klatten and Hannah Burke shot matching rounds of six-under-par 64 to share the lead after round one of the LACOSTE Ladies Open de France.
Both players carded seven birdies and one bogey to finish a stroke clear of Stacy Lee Bregman and Charley Hull, with Jade Schaeffer, Carlota Ciganda, Anne-Lise Caudal and Diana Luna a stroke further behind in a share of fifth.
Temperatures topped 30C in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, south-western France on a still and scorching opening day at Chantaco Golf Club.
Burke continued her fine form from a month ago when she finished second to Catriona Matthew at the Scottish Open in completely contrasting, cold and windy conditions.
The 25-year-old from Welwyn Garden City birdied all three of the par 5s after hitting eight fairways and 14 greens but felt that her putting was the key, with 26 putts.
“I made a few good ones. Coming in, there were a lot of chances. There were some sneaky pin positions that you’ve got to be careful of,” said Burke, yet to win in two years on Tour.
“The greens are sneakily fast so you’ve got to be on the right side and I managed to plot my way around. They release or they spin back a lot because it’s really wet out there, so you have to be careful on those uphill greens.”
After 50ml of rainfall over two days last week, the course is still relatively wet, creating humid conditions for the first round.
Home hope Klatten was given some insider knowledge as she is staying with the former club president Camille Lacoste and her husband Gerard, who gave some helpful advice in the practice round on Monday.
Six-under-par after 15 holes, she dropped a shot on 17 but then sank an eight foot putt for birdie from the back of the 18th green to regain her advantage.
“Every part of my game was solid today,” said the 28-year-old from Paris, also yet to win on tour. “I am very lucky to stay with Camille and her husband Gerard, because they know the course very well and Gerard came out with me on Monday and helped me out a lot with strategy and course management so I can only be thankful because he gave me a lot of good tips.”
South African Bregman had an eagle and three birdies in her flawless round. Her card included a two, on the par-4 eighth hole and she explained: “I didn’t hit the best tee shot but I blocked it right and was short of the bunker. I punched a seven-iron under the tree and it ran onto the green.
“The girls said, ‘good shot’, and we couldn’t see the ball. We saw two balls on the green and we eventually saw the ball in the hole, so that was great.
“It was all round solid. That just topped it off. I played really good and had no drops on the card. I’d like to finish as high as I can on the order of merit but every tournament is a chance.”
Solheim Cup heroine Hull rolled in six birdies and one bogey but missed a short birdie chance on the 18th green for a share of the lead.
“I just wanted to shoot 64 because I shot 64 in Morocco and I wanted to match it,” said the 17-year-old rookie. “I think it was a really good round. I had six birdies and one bogey, because I missed a really small putt.”
Photo: Tristan Jones