Staying at home has its perks. Texas native Brittany Lang wouldn’t have had near the number of layers to fight wind and cold at the Old American Golf Club if she would’ve had to rely on her suitcase.
Temperatures were in the low 40s most of the morning in the The Colony, Texas, and with wind gusts up to 20 mph, the biggest challenge of the day at the Volunteers of America Classic was staying warm. The morning low was 36 degrees and the lowest wind-chill number was 30 degrees.
“I have like my fleece sweatpants,” said Lang, who opened with a 1-under 70. “I have the warmest vest under here which I never would have traveled with. I have heat packs, I have my heat socks, everything. I’m like, man, I feel good. I feel warm out here. My caddie is like what? I’ve got a lot of gear on.”
England’s Charley Hull holds the clubhouse lead at 3-under 68. She appreciated the fact that course plays much longer in December than it does in October.
Volunteers of America Classic: Leaderboard
“I struggled swinging the last two holes, I just got so cold,” said Hull, who played the eighth and ninth in 1 over. “Along that lake you just get like freezing.”
Lindsey Weaver, who is actually playing her home course this week, was humming along with three consecutive birdies on Nos. 15-17 until a triple-bogey at the last derailed her. Weaver finished at even par for the day. While she’s used a push cart for most of the season, Weaver has her fiancé, Zach Wright, on the bag this week. Wright competes on the Korn Ferry Tour.
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“It’s like this is our home course, so it’s like I come here every day pretty much,” said Weaver, “so it’s like just a typical day really. It’s kind of weird. I’ve never played at home like with a tournament before.”
Jessica Korda, who wore a hefty parka on Thursday, sits one shot back with Thailand’s Pornanong Phatlum at 2 under.
“I’m just going to go warm up my toes,” said Korda after the round, “because we lost feeling in them by like the second hole.”
Morning temperatures on Friday are again expected to be near freezing with a high of 57. Winds will be between 8 and 16 mph.
Mercifully, temperatures down in Houston next week for the U.S. Women’s Open are forecasted to be a bit warmer.
