Webb rapt at stellar Aust Open golf start

If someone had offered Karrie Webb a score of five-under-par, she would have quickly accepted and not left her hotel.

But the reality was Webb had to work for her opening-round score on Thursday at the Women's Australian Open at The Grange in Adelaide.

The 41-year-old carded a five-under 67, four shots behind Korean pacesetter SooBin Kim, in a stellar start to her quest for a sixth Australian Open crown.

Webb felt fortunate to escape swirling afternoon sea breezes for much of her round.

"The wind kicked up later today than it has, so we really only had to play in that gusty wind probably for the last four or five holes," she said.

"So for an afternoon tee time, we probably got pretty lucky and I played really nicely today and made the most of it."

Webb started her round with consecutive birdies.

"It felt great. And then I made a really soft bogey at the next which stopped the momentum for a while," she said.

And if someone had, pre-round, offered her a five-under?

"Yeah, I would have stayed in my hotel," she said.