Florida’s Natural Charity Classic
Lake Wales Country Club
Lake Wales, Florida
First Round News & Notes

LAKE WALES, Fla., March 27, 2015 - Silvia Cavalleri is unlike the majority of Epson Tour golfers. She has played in 272 career LPGA Tour events since her rookie year in 1999 and has a win and 10 top 10 finishes. This week, she is playing in her first Epson Tour event in hopes of returning to the LPGA Tour on a full-time basis. Cavalleri carded a 3-under 69 to hold a share of the clubhouse lead with Daniela Iacobelli (Melbourne, Florida) as play was suspended at 7:31 p.m. due to darkness with eight groups still on the course.

First-round play will resume at 7:45 a.m. on Saturday, March 28. The second round will begin at 8:00 a.m.

Milano, Italy native Cavalleri started strong with a birdie on number one. After two pars, she made eagle on the par-5 fourth hole to get to 3-under. She made the turn at 3-under and quickly got to 4-under with a birdie on number 12. Her only setback of the day was a bogey on the 14th.

“My putting was really working,” said Cavalleri, who needed only 11 putts on the back nine. “On the back nine when my game wasn’t really solid and the wind was picking up I managed to hang in there because of my putting. The 11 putts helped a lot.”

Cavalleri has enjoyed a successful career on the LPGA Tour. She won the 2007 Corona Championship and has totaled over $1.5 million in career earnings. However, last year she missed the cut in 12 of 16 events played on the LPGA Tour and therefore her priority list status fell to category 18, number 245.

“I’ve been there (LPGA) for 15 years and I like being there obviously,” said 42-year-old Cavalleri. “Last year, I didn’t play my best so I am back here to try to get back on Tour because that is where I belong. The LPGA is where the best players play.”

When Cavalleri won in 2007, she became the first Italian born LPGA Tour winner. She is still the lone Italian born player to win on the LPGA. In 2013, Italy native Giulia Molinaro won the Friends of Mission Charity Classic on the Epson Tour.

She is not exactly sure how her schedule with pan out based on her current LPGA status.

“We’ll see if I get into any LPGA tournaments and how I do,” explained Cavalleri. “Obviously, if this is the only place I can play then this is my Tour.”

The oldest player to win a Epson Tour event is Vicki Fergon, who won the 2003 IOS FUTURES Golf Classic at 47. The oldest player to win an LPGA event was Beth Daniel, who won the 2003 BMO Financial Group Canadian Women’s Open at 46-years-old.

Iacobelli closed with birdies on three of her final six holes to tie Cavalleri at 3-under.

“I was thinking of anything except hitting targets and staying in the moment,” said Iacobelli, who played college golf at Florida Institute of Technology. “I trying to stay as close to par as possible considering the weather conditions for the afternoon wave.”

‘SPIDERWOMAN’ CLIMBS UP LEADERBOARD: Dani Holmqvist (Stockholm, Sweden) wants to be known for more than the golfer that used a tee to remove venom from a spider bite in 2013. She has a chance this weekend after posting a 2-under 70 to sit in a tie for third.

“It was tough especially going back there again after being in the clubhouse for a while but it’s golf, it happens,” Holmqvist admitted. “You’ve just to stick to your gameplan and refocus and go out there.”

Holmqvist started with a flurry of birdies on the fourth, fifth and sixth holes to quickly jump into a share of the lead. She opened the back nine, which was played in a steady rain, with a birdie.

“We started out with really nice weather so it was just sticking to what we did in the practice rounds but after that it was fairways and greens and just keeping it simple and take your chances when you get them.”

Holmqvist spent last season splitting time between the LPGA, LET and ALPGA Tours but has decided to spend her 2015 season focusing on the Epson Tour in hopes of gaining her 2016 LPGA Tour Card. The UC-Berkeley grad has set up a home-base in Jupiter, Fla., where she spends her time golfing with a strong contingency of players including fellow Swede Jasper Parnavick.

“I just traveled so much last year,” Holmqvist explained. “I was based in Stockholm last year and went back-and-forth for every LPGA event and traveled too much. I think I was on the road three months in a row and it wore me out a bit. Now I’ve got a base in the U.S. and am just focused on one Tour instead.”

The Swede received national headlines in 2013 after she was bit on the ankle by what officials believed was a redback spider during a qualifier for the Australian Women’s Open. She used a golf tee to pierce her skin and squeeze out the venom and then finished her round and shot a 74.

“Some of my friends call me spidey sometimes,” Holmqvist said with a laugh. “A lot of people had fun with it. My friends thought it was funny but I’d rather be known for playing well on the course. For me, it sometimes reminds me of how tough you have to be out there and I think that it just signifies a bit what we have to go through out here. You’ve got to keep your head in the game.”

THE OLDER HENDERSON IN HUNT: Brittany Henderson (Smith Falls, Ontario) put together a solid round of 2-under, 70, to sit in a tie for third at the conclusion of play on Friday at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic.

“It was pretty tough even starting out I had an early time and the wind picked up right away,” Henderson said. “It was tough but I managed it pretty well and took advantage of some downwind holes and managed to get some pars on the ones that were into the wind so it was good.”

Henderson’s younger sister Brooke, the former top ranked amateur in the world, is in the field this week as a sponsor invite and finished the day at even par.

“It’s really cool. I’m really glad she’s playing this week,” Henderson said. “It’s awesome to have your best friend here to compete against and travel with. It’s just really fun because we’re staying together too so it’s great to have her here.”

The Henderson’s have been staying with family friends in the area and one was actually on the bag for Brittany’s round.

“She’s from my hometown in Canada and she actually winters down here in Florida,” Henderson said. “We’re staying with her and she’s on the bag and she actually did such a good job. I was so impressed.”

Henderson will now wait to see where her score winds up at the end of round one.

“It’s going to depend on the conditions and how low the scores get,” Henderson said. “I think this course can be scoreable if the wind dies down and stuff like that but just stick to the gameplan and try to get as many birdies, keep it in the fairway and make some putts.”

CHANGES IN BAG SPARK JANDEL: Emma Jandel (Dayton, Ohio) wasn’t happy with how her first two events of the Epson Tour season turned out so she decided to make a few changes during the three weeks off between the Volvik Championship and this week’s Florida’s Natural Charity Classic.

“It’s just kind of nice to have a few tournaments under our belt,” Jandel explained. “I had a lot of good things to work on in the last few weeks and kind of put it to use here.”

One of the biggest keys was a switch in the flatstick where Jandel put a new Odyssey putter in play and rode it to a 2-under round.

“I switched putters so this is the first round with my new putter and I definitely liked it,” Jandel said. “I played really solid. I’m really happy with it.”

Another noticeable change was a familiar face on Jandel’s bag, her dad who caddied for her during her time on the LPGA.

“It’s always a treat to have him on the bag,” Jandel said with a smile.

With dad on her bag, Jandel carded five birdies against three bogeys for her 70 putting her in good position entering the weekend.

“You just have to tell yourself everyone is playing the same course so it doesn’t really matter with the conditions and all that,” Jandel said. “I’m just really focused on sticking to my gameplan.”

BIG BREAKER PINEGGER STRONG IN SEASON DEBUT: Big Break Myrtle Beach contestant Carolin Pinegger admits to having a tough rookie season on the Epson Tour in 2014. She made the cut in just five of 14 cuts and finished 139 on the money list.

Her 2015 status didn’t get her into the west coast swing and she was the first alternate for this event before getting in on Monday.

Pinegger made the most of the opportunity on Friday by carding a 1-under 71. She made three birdies against two bogeys.

“I played really well and had a good ball striking day which helps,” said Pinegger. “On the back nine, the wind picked up and it made the course a lot harder, but overall I’m really happy because I didn’t have high expectations since it was my first event.”

Pinegger attributes the early success to the hard work she put in during the offseason.

“I was ready to play and I was really hoping I would slip into the field and I prepared as if I would be in,” said the former UCF Knights golfer. “I changed coaches and I work with a really, really good guy out at Orange County National and I’ve put a lot of technique work into the offseason.”

Before she got to offseason prep, she went back home to Austria for five weeks to ski and spend time with family. She didn’t touch a club.

“Since coming back, I’ve been working hard and two weeks ago we found that when I flatten out my shoulder turn I’m able to hit the ball well.”

Cavalleri and Iacobelli Share Clubhouse Lead

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