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TSN Senior Reporter

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Sometimes, it’s worth it to get up early.

Alena Sharp’s alarm went off at 3:25 a.m. on Thursday morning ahead of her 6:30 a.m. tee-off time at Royal Troon for the first round of the AIG Women’s Open.

When she tapped in for a round of even-par several hours later, she was the leader in the clubhouse.

In between, she survived a brutal day of weather that included wind gusts up to 50 km/h.

“At times it was a three to four club wind,” said Sharp via text. “It was fairly cold to start, too. I had three layers and a tuque on.”

The Hamilton, Ont., native played in the first group out along with Dame Laura Davies and amateur Olivia Mehaffey. She thought with the early start she might avoid the worst of the winds, but on the practice range the gusts were strong and fences on the property were blowing down.

Sharp got a taste of just how difficult Royal Troon was going to play early on when she hit her opening tee shot out of bounds leading to a double bogey.

“It's obviously not the way I wanted to start the day,” she said of her first swing, “but it actually woke me up a little bit.”

She played the next 17 holes in two under, including four birdies over the last seven.

With the winds rocking the famed course, organizers moved the tees up and cut the greens at a length that prevented balls from blowing off the putting surfaces. The speed was measured at eight on the Stimpmeter.

“I just did my best to control my ball flight,” explained Sharp. “I tried not to swing hard at anything.”

The 39-year-old admitted to being a poor wind player early in her career but said she’s grown to like it in recent years. Her improved ball-striking has helped her take on the breezes and she has learned to enjoy the challenge of battling the tough conditions.

After the early wake up and the difficult round, the next item on Sharp’s itinerary was understandable: a nap. She’ll get to sleep in a bit on Friday with her second-round tee time set for 11:10 a.m. local time.