NAPA, Calif. — The University of Colorado women’s golf team is in ninth place after the first round of the 2023 Chevron Silverado Showdown at the Silverado Resort and Spa on Monday.
The Buffaloes shot 17-over-par, 305, in the first round on a day where low scores were at a premium. No. 16 ranked Northwestern was the only team with a round in the red at 4-under, 284. The Wildcats – who won the Juli Inkster Invitational by a wide margin a little over a week ago – have an eight-stroke lead over No. 9 Arizona State and No. 13 Texas A&M.
Recent rains in the Napa area have left the roughs on the par 72, 6,146-yard Silverado course long and challenging. The field also battled gusty winds and cool temperatures that crept into the low-to-mid 50s.
“The day was very tough,” Colorado head coach Anne Kelly said. “Our team had their struggles, but they hung in there and had a good finish. “I’m proud of them. It was not an easy day to play golf. We have a very competitive field at this event and I think the Buffs competed well today.”
All eight of the teams above Colorado in the standings are ranked in the Top 30 in the nation and the Buffaloes had better rounds than three others in that elite group.
Only 10 out of 93 golfers shot even or better during the first round with just four scores in the 60s. Colorado freshman Morgan Miller was one of those on the short list, tied for ninth at even-par 72. She is just two strokes out of the top five and only five off the lead.
UCLA’s Zoe Campos and Arizona State’s Amanda Linner are tied for first after one round at 5-under, 67. The average score for the first round was 76.82, nearly 5-over for the field.
Miller, carding her team-best seventh even-par round of the season, had an early bogey on her second hole, the 138-yard, par 4, No. 11 but jumped back to even two holes later with a birdie at the 340-yard, par 4, No. 13. Miller made par on the next 11 holes and climbed up to 1-under with a birdie at the 182-yard, par 3, No. 7. A first-round top five finish appeared to be in her sights, but she fell back to even with a bogey on the 491-yard, par 5, No. 9 to close her round.
“Morgan played well today,” Kelly said….
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