Bermuda?s lady golfers endured a tough start to their World Amateur Team Championship campaign in South Africa yesterday after finishing the opening round in 34th place ? only seven off the bottom.

Teeing off in the early morning at the De Zalze Golf Club near Stellenbosch ? about half an hour outside of Cape Town ? the Island team of Laura Robinson, Ebonie Burgess and Katyna Rabain struggled to adapt on the lightning fast greens and all shot over par.

Robinson fared the best of the three after carding a four-over 76 to tie for 55th in the individual standings, while Burgess recorded a total of eight bogeys, three double bogeys and an out-of-the-blue eagle on her way to a disappointing 84.

Rabain, meanwhile, had a day to forget, finishing 20-over par with a score of 92, a round which included eight bogeys and six double bogeys.

Burgess and Rabain finished 109th and 119th respectively in the individual rankings, while Bermuda?s best two scores were combined to provide an overall team score of plus-16.

Japan were leading the biennial competition for the Espirito de Santo trophy after round one on seven under, two shots up on defending champions Sweden, hosts South Africa and Chinese Taipei.

The second round today will be played at the nearby Stellenbosch Golf Club, with the final two rounds alternating again between the two venues.

While both Robinson and Rabain?s journey to South Africa from Bermuda was entirely painless, Burgess? chances of success were not helped by a nightmare trip from the US.

The reigning Bermuda Amateur Strokeplay champion missed her connection in New York after flying into the Big Apple from Florida, before being told on arrival in Johannesburg that her flight to Cape Town was already full and she would have to overnight in the South African capital.

She arrived at the team hotel on Monday afternoon, having left the US last Friday morning.

?Ebonie had a very rough time getting here and overall the first round did not go as well as we would have hoped,? said team captain Rick Bartlett yesterday.

?Laura and Katyna were able to get a practice round in on the De Zalze course but Ebonie didn?t have a chance to do so and the speed of the greens really unnerved her.

?Laura began the day with two double bogeys on the opening two holes, but then played the rest of the round in even par which was encouraging.

?But Ebonie and Katyna just couldn?t get a handle on the greens all day which was the reason for the high scores. Now though we play at Stellenbosch, where the conditions and the greens are completely different so there is no doubt that this event is a real challenge.?

But despite a mediocre start, Bartlett said he expected the girls to improve as the week went along ? with a finish inside the top 30 a realistic possibility.

?I?m sure things will improve from here,? he said.

?We knew coming out here that we were going to up against some incredibly good players and we were realistic about where we would finish. But things can change very quickly with just one good day and I?m hoping the girls will respond.?