OLIVIA Rogowska mastered the windy conditions and her own nerves to advance to the round of 16 at the second William Loud Bendigo International on Tuesday.
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After being dumped from the opening round last week, Rogowska bounced back with a 6-4 6-3 first round win over Azra Hadzic.
"It was very tough conditions today, it was extremely blustery, cold and sunny in your eyes whilst you were serving, so it was hard to keep focused," Rogowska said.
"It wasn't pretty tennis, but I played well in the important points so I'm really happy to win my first round - extremely happy."
In an intense contest, Rogowska made the most of the only service break in the first set.
She broke the world number 332 in the fifth game and later served out the set to love.
Both players struggled on serve in the second set.
Rogowska was the first to hold to take a 3-1 lead, before breaking Hadzic for the third-straight game.
Hadzic rallied to 3-4, but Rogowska kept her cool and again broke her Melbourne counterpart to clinch the match.
It was a huge relief for the world no. 170, who advances to a second round clash against either Jessica Moore or Nives Baric.
"It was a bit disappointing my last tournament but I practised really hard in the week off and did really well in the doubles, so I think that's helped my performance today," Rogowska said.
"I was winning and let go of my lead a bit, and I thought it was deja vu from last week, but I'm really happy that I closed it out."
