SUNNINGDALE, England — Sara Byrne of Ireland holed a 35-foot birdie putt and followed by chipping in from just off the 17th green for a 2-and-1 victory in fourballs, capping an opening day of constant changes in the Curtis Cup that fittingly ended in a tie at 3.
Great Britain and Ireland trailed 3-1 at one point before Byrne and top-ranked amateur Lottie Woad won on the 17th, while Hannah Darling and Aine Donegan held off Auburn teammates Anna Davis and Megan Schofill on the 18th hole.
The Americans had a 2-1 lead after foursomes in the morning at Sunningdale behind Melanie Green and Rachel Kuehn beating sisters Patience and Mimi Rhodes, 6 and 4, and the other two matches ending in halves.
Asterisk Talley, the 15-year-old American, teamed with Jasmine Koo for a 5-and-4 victory in fourballs in the afternoon to expand the lead to 3-1 before GB&I rallied.
The Americans are going for their fourth straight victory in the amateur matches that date to 1932. Saturday will feature three matches each of foursomes and fourballs ahead of eight singles matches on Sunday.