Forshner seeks comfort at Open
EDMONTON — In the first round of her first CN Canadian Women’s Open as a first-year pro, Jennifer Kirby was a study in controlled calm Thursday and it showed on the leaderboard, where her three-under par 67 slotted her in a five-way tie for sixth, two shots behind defending champion Lydia Ko and Angela Stanford.
Kirby was the low Canadian among the 20 who teed off in the CN Canadian Women’s Open at Royal Mayfair Golf Club.
Qualifier Nicole Forshner of Banff, on the other hand, was a quivering nervous wreck from start to finish, as she fashioned an opening-round 89, 19 over par, dead last on the leaderboard.
The circumstances were completely different for the two Canadians, of course. Kirby, a 22-year-old standout at the University of Alabama, and a winner just last week in her pro debut, at the CN Tour event in Cowansville, Que., entered the event riding all that U.S. university momentum, not to mention a stellar, victory-laden Canadian amateur career.
Forshner, 29, whose various forays into pro golf have not panned out, was a surprise qualifier at the 72- hole playdown on Monday at the Edmonton Petroleum Club. It was a breakthrough that put her instantly out of her league.
“First tour event ever, you know, I haven’t played in an event in a year and-a-half,” Forshner said. “And I had never played at this level.
“So, I was totally out of my element. I tried to stay calm, but I was just shaking on my first drive.”
Forshner played with Moira Dunn of the United States and Sylvia Cavalleri of Italy who were “really nice.” Forshner reckoned she would find something of a comfort level in Round 2 Friday, playing with the same golfers.
Calgary’s Jennifer Ha, one of six amateurs in the field, sits 146th after an opening round of 77 — a score which included seven bogeys and 11 pars.