FSU sports information:
Junior All-American Lottie Woad shot a school-record-tying 65 and is in first place in the individual standings, and the No. 11 Florida State Women’s Golf Team is in a tie for first place in the team standings after the first round of the Landfall Tradition at the Country Club of Landfall. Woad’s 7-under par score of 65 included eight birdies, nine holes scored at par and just one bogey.
Woad leads the individual standings by two strokes over Duke’s Katie Li and North Carolina’s Helen Yeung who both carded scores of 67. Florida State and Duke are tied for the team lead as both squads carded team scores of 11 under par 279. The Seminoles (Woad, first, and Christina Surcey, tied for ninth) and Duke (Katie Li, tied for second, and Andie Smith, tied for sixth) both have multiple players in the top 10 of the individual standings.
Woad’s stellar round of 65 – which began with a birdie and included birdies on four of her first six holes – marked the fourth time during her Florida State career that she has tied the Florida State school record for a single round score. Seminole All-American Matilda Castren (2014-17) is the only other Seminole who has carded multiple scores of 65 with two.
“We made a lot of birdies today and that was the key to our round,” FSU coach Amy Bond said. “We talked a lot last night about playing for the second time in a week which is really hard to do. But their energy was way up and their enthusiasm was evident throughout the round. They were excited and did what they had to do to put the ball in the cup.
“I’m proud of each of the girls because they battled all day long and put us in a good position for the weekend.”
With a birdie on her first hole, Woad was on fire from the start of the round. She totaled four birdies on her first six holes and was three strokes under par at the turn. Woad then birdied four of her first six holes on her second nine and finished par-par-par to close out her 7-under par score for the day. It marked the second time this fall that she carded a 65; she totaled a 65 in the second round of the Schooner Fall Classic on September 23, 2024.
Woad, who is currently ranked as the No. 1 player in the World Amateur Golf Rankings for the 13th consecutive week, lowered her career stroke average to 70.50 with her score of 65 in Friday’s first round – the lowest career stroke average in school history.
“I played solid golf today and gave myself a lot of birdie chances,” said Woad. “I limited my mistakes.”
Freshman Christina Surcey is in a tie for ninth place in the individual standings as she carded a 2 under par score of 72. Her score included her first career collegiate eagle on hole No. 14 – a score which set her on quite a run over her next 13 holes. Beginning with her eagle on 14, Surcey was three strokes under par over her final 13 holes to finish under par in a given round for the second time in her first nine rounds as a Seminole.
Florida State counted scores of even par 72 by both Sophia Fullbrook and Kaylah Williams in the first round.
Fullbrook totaled three birdies with 15 holes scored at par or better in finishing as a counting, even par score of 72. She birdied two of her final eight holes of the round and is in a tie for 22nd place in the individual standings. Fullbrook was never more than one stroke over par during her first 18 holes of the tournament.
Williams played her best golf to close the round as she birdied two of her last four holes to finish at even par 72. She scored par or better on her final eight holes and has now carded four scores of 72 in four of her last six rounds during three events.
Freshman Alexandra Gazzoli finished with a score of 75 – her best score in four rounds as a Seminole. She totaled four birdies including birdies on her final two holes to finish her best career collegiate round with a flourish.
With four counting scores at 72 or better, and all five scores at 75 or better, the Seminoles played their best team round of the fall with an 11 under par scores of 279.
The Seminoles begin play at 10:09 a.m. on Saturday and will play form the first tee with Duke and North Carolina.
22nd Annual Landfall Tradition/Oct. 25-27, 2024
Country Club of Landfall/Wilmington, N.C./Par 72
T1/17.-Florida State
1.-Lottie Woad, 65
T9.-Christina Surcey, 70
T22.- Kaylah Williams, 72
T22.- Sophia Fullbrook, 72
T52.-Alexandra Gazzoli, 75
22nd Annual Landfall Tradition/Oct. 25-27, 2024
Country Club of Landfall/Wilmington, N.C./Par 72
T1.-Florida State, 279
T1.-Duke, 279
3.-North Carolina, 280
4.-Ole Miss, 282
5.-Clemson, 287
T6.-NC State, 291
T6.-Michigan State, 291
8.-Maryland, 292
T9.-UCF, 294
T9.-UNC Wilmington, 294
T9.-Virginia Tech, 294
T9.-Alabama, 294
13.-Illinois, 296
14.-Notre Dame, 301
15.-Furman, 302
16.-Penn State, 310
17.-South Florida, 314