The Dream First Bank Charity Classic is in its 10th year on the Epson Tour, but in a new time of the year for the 2024 edition, causing new challenges for the 143-player field. A tournament where players usually have to deal with the cold and wind has switched to players having to deal with the heat and wind. The heat was cranked up in round one and is expected to stay around for the rest of the weekend, but the wind laid down, making for a scorable course throughout the day. Kathleen Scavo navigated the course better than anyone in the first round, posting a bogey-free 6-under 66 to start her week.
The word of the day for Scavo was consistency. The 26-year-old had matching nines in her opening round of the Dream First Bank Charity Classic, rolling in three birdies on each side without recording a bogey on the day. The 6-under round puts her ahead by one shot heading into the weekend over two Epson Tour champions trying to hunt her down. Scavo's 2024 campaign has not been to the standard she set in her 2023 season, where she finished No. 29 in the Race for the Card. This year, Scavo has only made three cuts in her ten starts and has been patiently waiting for her game to come together like it did today.
"I mean, this is such a relief. I have struggled this year," explained Scavo. "It's been a very rough year. I mean, this is a relief to finally, you know, to break through and play like I know I can play. I hit a lot of greens, for the most part. I set myself up for good birdie opportunities and just kept doing that throughout the day."
Savannah Vilaubi and Kum-Kang Park will start the second round one shot back of the leader after posting very different 5-under rounds. Vilaubi made it through the day unscathed, going bogey-free on day one with five birdies. She started off quick with two birdies in her first three holes, but the next birdie would not come until 10 holes later when she rattled off three straight birdies on 4, 5 and 6 to get to a 5-under total.
Park's day started off about as hot as the weather in round one, making five straight birdies to open the round, but ended her first nine holes with back-to-back bogeys to turn at 3-under. The back nine for Park was back to normal, as the two-time Epson Tour champion rolled in three more birdies before closing out her back nine the same way she closed out her front nine, with a bogey. Despite the closing bogey, Park feels good about her game and is back to trusting her lines on the course.
"The last couple tournaments, I thought too much about my swing and my technique," said Park. "So, this tournament, my plan was to just think about focusing on my target and my ball, and I think that's why I played well today."
The second round of the Dream First Bank Charity Classic will start at 7:30 AM CT. The cut will be made after play to the top 60 players and ties.
ABOUT THE LEADER
Kathleen Scavo signs for a bogey-free 6-under 66 to lead the the Dream First Bank Charity Classic
- Scavo had six birdies and zero bogeys in her first round
- She shot a 3-under 33 on both nines
- She has made three cuts in 10 starts on the Epson Tour this season
- Her best finish came at the Casino Del Sol Golf Classic where she finished T28 for the week
- The 26-year-old has three top-10 finishes on the Epson Tour
- Her best career finish was at the 2023 Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic where she was the runner-up
- A win at the Dream First Bank Charity Classic is projected to move her into the top-20 in the Race for the Card standings
THINGS TO KNOW
Kum-Kang Park and Savannah Vilaubi both carded a 5-under 67 to sit in a tie for second after the first round
- Park’s opening round included eight birdies and three bogeys
- The 5-under round is her lowest opening round of the season
- Park has two wins on the Epson Tour and six additional top-10 finishes
- Her last win came at the 2022 Florida’s Natural Charity Classic
- She also won the 2021 Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout
- The Republic of Korea native has played in 15 LPGA Tour events, including one major
- Park’s best round on the Epson Tour is an 8-under 63 at the 2024 Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic
- She finished the event in a tie for 11th
- Vilaubi’s opening round was bogey-free and included five birdies
- The 30-year-old has won twice on the Epson Tour
- She captured the 2023 Copper Rock Championship and the 2024 Otter Creek Championship titles
- She has made six cuts in 10 starts on the Epson Tour this season
- Vilaubi currently sits at No. 16 in the Race for the Card, one position away from a coveted top-15 spot
Kaleigh Telfer fires a 4-under 68 to sit in a tie for fourth heading into round two
- Telfer rolled in five birdies and made one bogey on her way to her 68
- The South African has two runner-up finishes in her 2024 season
- Her last runner-up finish was at last week’s Island Resort Championship where she finished one-shot behind the winner
- She finished No. 26 in the 2023 Race for the Card
- Her best placing during the 2023 season was a runner-up finish at the Epson Tour Championship
- She currently is No. 13 in the 2024 Race for the Card
QUICK QUOTES
Daniella Iacobelli (-4, T4) on taking advantage of the calmer winds in round one:
“I came out of the gate hot and was 3-under through three. I was like, ‘oh boy, today could be a fun day’. It dwindled down a little bit, the heat got to me kind of the last three or four holes. But yeah, when the breeze lies down, I mean, the course is just there for the pickings I feel like. So, it was enjoyable.”
Lauren Stephenson (-4, T4) on how she prepared for round one with the different practice round conditions:
“The last couple of days have been like super interesting. Yesterday it was so windy, so I didn't even really play or practice much. I just played the first three holes and kind of chipped and putted and then called it a day. Just because I knew it wasn't going to be crazy windy today. So, but yeah, the course is awesome. It's really like placement off the tee and got to get it in the fairway. So thankfully it wasn't too windy for us today, so took advantage of the calmer weather.”
Gabby Then (-3, T11) on her first round back in Garden City since her win in 2022:
“There's a lot of memories from this golf tournament and it is the last tournament that I won and kind of like helped got me to the LPGA Tour. So, a lot of good memories and I felt really comfortable on the golf course today. I had a lot of good looks for birdie, a couple of missed opportunities, but I think I capitalized where I needed to and just felt really comfortable out there.”
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