EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France — The strawberries and cream at Wimbledon are totally worth it. Just ask Gabriela Ruffels.

The Australian attended one of the most famous tennis competitions in the world last week with her boyfriend Jack Jaede, what was the second time Ruffels had been to Wimbledon, first going several years ago when she was just six years old. The pair then moseyed around London for a couple of days before the Epson Tour graduate headed to Evian-les-Bains, France for The Amundi Evian Championship, a short vacation that proved to be perfect prep for the year’s fourth major tournament for the second-year LPGA Tour member.

“I wanted to go when I remembered and appreciated it,” said Ruffels after her first round on Thursday in France. “I went with my boyfriend, and we went as guests of Todd Woodbridge, who was a doubles champion and really good friends with my dad. My dad coached him throughout his whole career, so it was nice meeting up with them. He got us into the members-only area which was so cool.

“It was such a cool experience. It's kind of a perspective switch as well from golf to get in the tennis world. It was definitely a bucket list thing to do, and I'm glad we were able to tick that off.”

Ruffels grew up playing high-level competitive tennis, as her parents Maria Fernandez and Ray Ruffels were professional tennis players, and only switched to golf when she was around 14 years old. Even though her life is now mostly eaten up with professional golf tournaments on the LPGA Tour, she is still very much a fan of the game, often picking up her racket for some friendly matches with family and friends when she’s not traveling for tournaments or getting some work in on the golf course.

So, after such a mentally refreshing holiday and a bit of time spent away from the grind of Tour life, it wasn’t a surprise to see Ruffels card a relaxed 6-under 65 in the first round at Evian Resort Golf Club, one of just six players with a blemish-free scorecard on day one in France.

She began her day on the back nine and picked up her first birdie of the championship on the par-4 12th hole. Ruffels struck again with a birdie on the par-3 14th hole and made a third birdie on 16, the second par 3 on the closing nine at this venue. The 2023 Epson Tour Player of the Year then recorded one last birdie on her opening nine on the par-5 18th hole to turn in 32 at 4-under overall.

Ruffels landed another punch on the par-4 1st hole, but she cooled off a bit after that, parring her next five before posting one final birdie on the par-5 7th hole to finish with a 65 and sit in a five-way tie for the lead at the end of the first round, the first 18-hole lead or co-lead of her LPGA Tour career.

“Bogey-free. Super solid. Only missed two greens out there,” said Ruffels on Thursday. “Ball striking was really good. Been working hard on that with my coach. And then the putting was good, too. I made some good long putts and then was pretty solid inside 10 feet as well. So, yeah, that added up to a pretty good score.”

This is only Ruffels’ second start ever in The Amundi Evian Championship, and she is already well on her way to improving upon the T55 performance she recorded last year in her tournament debut. But Evian Resort Golf Club has a reputation for being tricky, a challenge that’s compounded by the topography of the mountain it’s built into. Luckily for the young Aussie, she has an incredibly experienced caddie looping for her this week, as Travis Wilson brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the bag from his years of carrying for various LPGA Tour athletes at this venue, most famously for former Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 1 Stacy Lewis.

So, while an opening 65 has certainly put her into the conversation early at this major championship, Ruffels knows that she needs to keep the pedal down over the next couple of days if she wants to maintain her position near the top of the leaderboard and have the chance to hunt down her first career victory on Sunday at The Amundi Evian Championship.

“That experience of playing this golf course last year has been super helpful,” Ruffels said. “I also have Travis Wilson on my bag who was Stacy Lewis' caddie for I think like 20-plus years. He told me he’s been here over 20 years, so I was like, that has to help having that experience, which it definitely has. He's one of the best caddies, one of the best guys out here. I've relied on him and his experience and preparation.”

Ruffels Races to Top of Leaderboard at Amundi Evian Champ Following Visit to Wimbledon

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