LET's Nations Cup tournament at Alicante, Spain

Scotland's Clare Queen, Lynn Kenny

in joint sixth place with a 69

FROM THE LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
By BETHAN CUTLER
Nikki Garrett and Joanne Mills combined for a seven-under 65, giving Australia a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Comunitat Valenciana European Nations Cup in Spain. Australia is one of two teams from outside Europe playing at the event on an invitation.
Team USA and the Netherlands were a shot behind in the 20-nation team event at La Sella Resort in Denia, Alicante.
Today's opening round of four-balls (better-ball) will be repeated on Saturday, but scores are expected to be higher in Friday and Sunday’s difficult “Valencian Cup” format, which is a variation on greensomes.
In “Valencian Cup”, teams play both balls off the tee and then switch. After one shot on a par-3, two shots on a par-4 and three shots on a par-5, they then play one ball in alternate shot.
Nikki Garrett contributed six of the Australian team’s seven birdies, with three on the front nine and three on the back nine. After she rolled in a 15ft birdie putt at the second hole, she added two more back-to-back from the fourth.
Joanne Mills knocked in a 12-footer at the ninth for birdie, giving the pair an outward total of 32.
Garrett then made birdies from 17, 13 and four feet at the 11th, 15th and 18th holes respectively.
“It was a great start. You couldn’t ask for anything better than what we did today. I left it all up to Nikki. I was just the support staff really. I contributed one birdie but Nikki played absolutely fantastic,” said Mills.
Garrett added: “Jo played well and when I needed her, she was there, pretty much. I sank a lot of putts and I think we did combine pretty well as a team.”
For Garrett, this tournament could prove the start of a comeback season after she struggled last year. She won the 2007 Tenerife and Spanish Opens in her second year on tour but finished 38th on the 2008 New Star Money List. She described her swing as “disgusting” at the end of last season.
“When I got home at the end of the year my coach said 'I think you swung it betteryear old',” she said, adding that she was now feeling more comfortable and relax as a nine ed.
The American team of Beth Daniel and Meg Mallon got off to a steady start with five regulation pars but picked up the pace when Daniel birdied No 6, followed by further birdies on 10 and 11. Mallon then chipped in for birdie on 14 and 15, but missed chances on 16 and 17.
“We didn’t know what to expect,” Mallon explained. “Beth hasn’t competed at this level in a couple of years and I haven’t competed since last July so I think when we look back at it we’re both going to be really pleased.”
Daniel, the 2009 US Solheim Cup captain, added: “Tomorrow is a different format but both of us have played in the J C Penny tournament in the past with US PGA Tour partners so we are probably a little bit more used to that format than others.
"We also played straight foursomes quite a bit. It seemed like a lot of Solheim Cup captains had a tendency to pair us together in foursomes.”
Christel Boeljon contributed six of the Dutch team’s seven birdies, but both players bogeyed the par-3 17th. Boeljon is a rookie, playing in only her third event as a professional after a strong start to the year, when she tied for 13th at the Australian Open.
“I’ve played this format before in amateur things. I played the last season as an amateur but it’s a bit different because it’s a big tournament. I’m having a lot of fun,” she said.
Her playing partner, Marjet Van der Graaff, is beginning her second year on tour.
Defending champion team England, comprising Lisa Hall and recent Australian Open champion Laura Davies, shot five-under 67 and were two shots off the lead along with the French pair of Gwladys Nocera and Anne-Lise Caudal.
Scotland's Clare Queen and Lynn Kenny were joint sixth on 69.
The home nation of Spain opened with a 73 to finish the day eight shots off the pace.
The €325,000 Comunitat Valenciana European Nations Cup is sponsored by Valencian
Community Investments (VCI) for the second consecutive year.
FIRST ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 72. 6253yd.
65 Australia (Nikki Garrett and Joanne Mills).
66 Netherlands (Christel Boeljon and Marjet van der Graaff), United States (Beth Daniel and Meg Mallon).
67 France (Gwladys Nocera and Anne-Lise Caudal), England (Laura Davies and Lisa Hall).
68 Denmark (Iben Tinning and Lisa Holm Sorensen).
69 Scotland (Lynn Kenny and Clare Queen), Italy (Veronica Zorzi and Giulia Sergas).
70 Austria (Eva Steinberger and Nicole Gergely), Norway (Marianne Skarpnord and Lill Kristin Saether), Wales (Becky Brewerton and Lydia Hall), Germany (Martina Eberl and Denise Charlotte Becker).
71 Switzerland (Florence Luscher and Frederique Seeholzer), Sweden (Lotta Wahlin and Carin Koch).
72 Slovakia (Zuzana Kamasova and Veronika Falathova), Ireland (Rebecca Coakley and Martina Gillen), Russia (Maria Verchenova and Anastasia Kostina).
73 Belgium (Ellen Smets and Lara Tadiotto), Spain (Paula Marti and Tania Elosegui).
75 Finland (Ursula Wikstrom and Kaisa Ruuttila)