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Both Minjee Lee and Hannah Green failed to get off to the sort of start they would have hoped at the Scottish Open as home hope Michele Thomson set the pace.
Minjee Lee and Hannah Green both endured disappointing starts to the Scottish Open as the Australian challenge at the Dumbarnie links failed to fire.
The country's leading pair, both of whom are in the world's top 15, faltered after they bogeyed the opening par-four, which seemed to set the tone for error-riddled opening rounds on Thursday.
Green, hoping for another fine run after her fifth-place finish at the Olympics where she threatened to make the podium, made four birdies and five bogeys in a one-over par 73, which left her tied for 79th.
Lee got the best of the early conditions as she set out to complete a family double after her brother Min Woo Lee's win in the men's Scottish Open in July.
Yet she failed to take advantage as she ended up a further stroke behind after a 74 that featured three birdies and five bogeys, including four dropped shots in seven holes soon after the turn.
The pair were well off the pace set by home hope Michele Thomson, who was watched by her manager Paul Lawrie, the former British Open champion, as she shot a seven-under 65 to open up a two-shot lead on the field.
The best of the seven-strong Australian contingent in the field were Whitney Hillier and Katherine Kirk, who both shot level-par 72s, while rising star Steph Kyriacou was a shot further back alongside Green and Su Oh.
Sarah Kemp had an off-day, firing a six-over 78.
Thomson, a 33-year-old from Aberdeen, made an eagle at the second and recorded seven birdies in the last 11 holes, while being followed on the course by her dad Graham, who was back after suffering a heart attack while caddying for her in a Ladies European Tour event in Finland last month.
She was encouraged by the presence of the 1999 Open champ Lawrie. "It's just really nice to have him there and every time I hit a good shot he was so supportive," she said. "And he needs to come back!"
