The relentless wind that raged across St Andrews Bay provided a nightmare for the world’s best players on the first day of the AIG Women’s Open.

Only a handful of players are on even par or better after 18 holes, including Rose Zhang, who shot an even-par 72 on Thursday. But Zhang gave a rather blunt assessment of how things went after her first professional round on the Old Course at St. Andrews.

“That was tough,” Zhang said.

“My head is pounding.”

Forty-mile-per-hour winds forced players to think long and hard about how to play their next shot. That naturally led to a slow pace of play on Thursday, an icy round that took nearly six hours to complete. But tournament organizers knew the wind would blow that hard, so they sent the field off split tees and slowed the speed on the greens. The R&A wanted no delay on Thursday.

“Usually the greens are faster, so the ball actually rolls over them,” Zhang adds.

“But I’ve never had to take back so many putts. I’m standing and I lose my balance. It was definitely memorable.”

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

On the 7th hole, her third to last hole of the day, Zhang said her ball moved slightly due to the wind. She then put it back in its original spot and continued from there.

“You get anxious when you think, ‘Did I just do something?’ But the reality is, Mother Nature decided to move your ball a little bit,” Zhang said.

“That was really the craziest thing.”

Zhang bogeyed the 7th, her second consecutive dropped shot.

She birdied the famed 17th and 18th holes earlier in the day and made the turn with a 2-under 34 on the back nine. But there were no more birdies on her second nine.

“I didn’t think so much about my score, especially because you have to be so present on every shot and you have to work hard and stay dedicated to everything you do,” Zhang said.

“I feel like you lose focus so easily, especially if you hit a few bad shots or have really long putts for birdie or par. I really try to stay patient. Patience requires you to stay still and be committed to every shot you hit, and that’s the commitment I had, and I’m pretty proud of how I did, especially in the final stretch.”

Given all this, it should come as no surprise that Zhang’s head was pounding. But if anyone were to admit that he didn’t feel anxious or frustrated on Thursday, it would surprise everyone. St. Andrew’s took no prisoners and will continue to do so as the week progresses.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_SpelenDoor for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko also.