British jinx ended

Laura Davies and Catriona Matthew ended a British jinx in the HSBC Women’s World Matchplay Championship with first round victories today at Hamilton Golf Club in Gladstone, New Jersey.

Favourite Annika Sorenstam and 16-year-old Michelle Wie, the number two seed, also eased through to the last 32, but Kent’s Karen Stupples went out at the first hurdle by 3 and 1 to Sweden’s Liselotte Neumann.

In the inaugural championship last year, all the Britons departed on the first day, but Davies secured a place in the second round with a 2 and 1 win over South Korea’s Jee Young Lee, and Matthew edged out veteran American Beth Daniel with a birdie at the third extra hole.

Davies’ tie was close all the way. Two up with seven to play, she lost the 15th but a par at the short 17th secured a second-round meeting with another Korean, Mi Hyun Kim.

“I always love matchplay,” said the only player to have competed in all nine Solheim Cups. “You can attack a little more than usual and really go for birdies.”

Matthew went out at the 21st hole in the opening round last year, but a 15-foot putt at the short third secured a tie with another American, Juli Inkster.

“I thought Beth had holed her putt which was just a little longer and so I’m delighted to win,” said Matthew, who had been two down with five to play but won the 15th and 17th to send the tie into extra holes.

Wie recorded one of the biggest wins, coming back from two down after two holes to beat Brazil’s Candy Hannemann by 5 and 3.

“I got off to a rocky start,” said the youngster who tied for third in last week’s US Women’s Open. “But then I played some really solid golf.

“Matchplay is very different because you don’t have many holes to recover if you do have a bad patch. But I enjoy it; it’s good fun.”

Wie won six holes in a row from the fourth – the sixth, seventh and eighth with birdies – and now meets one of last year’s US Solheim Cup heroines, the flamboyant Christina Kim.

Sorenstam, the US Open Champion, was never behind in edging out Thailand’s Virada Nirapathpongporn by 3 and 2.