GILBERT, Ariz. — Phoenix native Sarah Schmelzel shined bright on day two of the inaugural Ford Championship presented by KCC, firing a bogey-free, 9-under 63 on Friday at Seville Golf and Country Club to sit within one shot of the lead heading into the weekend in Gilbert, Ariz.
She kicked off her week at home with a 4-under 68 on Thursday, making two bogeys and six birdies in the first round, and then put the pedal to the metal in round two. The 29-year-old immediately grabbed a birdie on the par-4 1st hole to kick off her second round, picking up another on the par-4 3rd hole to get to 6-under overall. Schmelzel birdied again on No. 5 and then snagged one final birdie on the par-4 9th hole to turn in 32 at 8-under for the tournament.
Schmelzel made another birdie on the par-4 10th hole to get 5-under on the day, quickly making another birdie on 12 to move to 10-under total. She then recorded back-to-back birdies on 15 and 16 to move to 12-under overall, squeezing in one last birdie on the par-5 18th hole to post a 9-under 63, her second-lowest career round on the LPGA Tour.
“I had quite a few family and friends out there today so it was just awesome,” said Schmelzel. “One of my friends was fist-bumping me for every birdie, so we got pretty excited towards the back nine when we were tallying them up pretty good. But it feels great to get some putts going in. It's always nice to see the momentum keep going, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
Schmelzel has been on quite the hot streak as of late, earning three straight top-10 finishes in her last three starts on the LPGA Tour, tying for eighth at the HSBC Women’s World Championship, finishing solo second at the Blue Bay LPGA and tying for eighth again last week at the FIR HILLS SERI PAK Championship.
It can sometimes be challenging to maintain that level of consistency week to week when competing against the world’s top talent, but Schmelzel is enjoying having the tiger by the tail early in the season and is hoping to ride her hot hand all the way to the winner’s circle over the weekend in Arizona.
“It's fun to see hard work come together. I've been focusing on my process so much more this year than in years past and being a little more particular about how I go about things,” said Schmelzel. “More than anything, just really cool to see the type of work I've been doing have a positive effect. Every week is not going to be your week, every day is not going to be your day. I feel super confident in the process, and that's all I can ask for.”
Currently sitting just one shot back of 36-hole leader Hannah Green, Schmelzel has more than a good chance at joining Bailey Tardy as the season’s second Rolex First-Time Winner come Sunday at Seville Golf and Country Club. For now, though, her 9-under 63 is giving Schmelzel plenty of confidence as she readies herself for two more days in contention at the Ford Championship, as she tries to just be where her feet are and rely on all the mental work she’s done with her various coaches in recent weeks to carry her through.
“I’ve been working hard with my swing coach, my mental coach. Just a change of perspective,” Schmelzel. “Trying to take advantage of what we have every day instead of worrying about what we don't have and try and put one foot in front of the other and stay present.
“It's nice when you have some momentum going. You kind of just feel super free and you've seen putts going in so you're not forcing it too much. It's always nice to know that nine birdies in one day is in the tank for the coming days, coming weeks in the year. So, I'll take it and put it in my back pocket.”
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