Nicole Broch Larsen was delighted with her one-under-par 71 in the opening round of the Lacoste Ladies Open de France at Golf du Medoc on Thursday.
The Danish Olympian was six off the lead – despite wearing a fellow competitor’s contact lenses!
She was forced to borrow a pair from fellow golfer Camilla Lennarth and use rental golf clubs after her luggage didn’t arrive in time for her 10.10am tee time on Thursday.
Her KLM flight from Amsterdam was cancelled as she sat on the tarmac on Wednesday and she managed to book another flight with Easyjet, but her luggage didn’t make it, so her caddie, Chris, assembled a set from the pro shop, before adding two of Nanna Koerstz Madsen’s wedges after the fellow Dane arrived.
It’s quite common that golf clubs go missing in transit – but unheard of that a player has to wear someone else’s contact lenses – and the circumstances were quite unique.
“I wear contact lenses and I woke up this morning and opened my extra set that I usually travel with, one of them was dried out,” said Broch Larsen, the 2015 Helsingborg Open champion.
“I’m wearing Camilla Lennarth’s contacts which are not my strength. They are .25 less than mine. It’s been a challenge but we got through it.
“It’s fine, but I couldn’t see the ball on the green from 150 metres.
“The clubs are quite interesting as they are flying one and a half clubs longer than my own. On the last, I just flew a 9-iron 130 metres, so 145 yards, which is pretty far.
They are from the pro shop here. I will definitely change them back when I get my own clubs.
“These rental clubs, I saw them for the first time today and the same with the course. I arrived late last night with no suit case and no golf clubs. It’s been a little bit hectic, but one-under, I’d definitely take it.”
Despite a stressful start to the week, first flying home to Copenhagen from Portland, Oregon and then on to Bordeaux through travel chaos, Broch Larsen still has her eyes on the prize.
