Even though Charles Dickens wasn’t a golfer, his words rang true on Thursday. It was, indeed, the best of times and the worst of times in “A Tale of Emma Talley.” During the first round of the CP Women’s Open, the 28-year-old Kentuckian got off to the kind of lackluster start on which mediocre weeks are built – 11 straight pars, including three on Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club’s four par fives. Then, as Dickens would say, the winter of despair released its grip on the spring of hope as Emma shed the epoch of incredulity to go on the run of the day.
“It was a crazy day,” Tally said after posting a 6-under par 65 to take an early lead in the first round. “My front nine was really boring. I didn't actually hit the ball that great, but I turned it around. On No. 12 I looked at my caddie and I was like, ‘I know exactly what I'm doing wrong. I'm just going to start hitting it better.’
“That's all I said, and then made a birdie. The next hole I made a hole-in-one and almost made a birdie on the next. It was like a completely different golf for the last seven holes than the first half of the day.”
Talley’s last seven holes read more like a phone number than a scorecard: 314-2424. The ace was “perfect shot” with “an easy 6-iron” from 172 yards on the 13th, Talley said. a shot that led Talley to break out in a little dance afterward.
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