[ GOLF ]
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Michelle Wie chipped out of the rough on 16 yesterday at the LPGA Safeway Classic. Wie is tied for 14th at 3-under 69.
Old-timer steals
spotlight from WieDaniel ties the course record
to take the first-round lead
in the LPGA Safeway Classic
PORTLAND, Ore. -- The focus of women's golf last week was on a 13-year-old.
Yesterday, Beth Daniel made sure the older set got some attention.
Daniel shot a 10-under 62 to take a four-stroke lead after the first round of the LPGA Safeway Classic and tie the course record set by defending champion Annika Sorenstam.
Daniel, who earlier this year became the oldest player to win on the LPGA Tour, birdied seven of the last nine holes at the 6,327-yard Columbia Edgewater Country Club course.
Daniel's play overshadowed the youngest player at the tournament, 13-year-old Michelle Wie. The 6-footer from Hawaii, who failed to make the cut last week playing with the men at the Boise Open on the Nationwide Tour, capped her 69 with a birdie.
When asked whether she got nervous, Wie responded with a laugh and a smile.
"I only get nervous when I'm taking tests," the high school freshman said.
Grace Park and Cristie Kerr were tied for second at 66, while Sorenstam, who played in the same threesome as Daniel, was another stroke back.
"Everything just went right for me," said Daniel, who won the Canadian Women's Open in July at age 46 for her 33rd career title and first since 1995.
The LPGA Hall of Famer admitted her latest impressive feat came about 15 years after she first planned to retire.
"I came out on tour when I was 22 and I thought I'd play eight to 10 years and I'd retire, that's how naive I was," Daniel said.
Even though it takes her longer to prepare and recover from daily play, including a couple of hours before every round spent on fitness training, she says she plans to keep going as long as she's playing well.
"I think I've been pretty competitive," she said. "But it's harder now because I'm older. The thing is, I'm playing well enough, it would almost be silly to retire."
Wie says she likes the course.
"I think there's some holes where you can hit the driver and just rip it, like No. 7," Wie said during a press conference, according to LPGA.com. "And I think this is a wonderful course. It's really beautiful and the trees are just really big."
Daniel didn't have to putt from farther than 14 feet on her last four birdies of the round. Her first one of the day was a 36-footer on No. 6.
It was her last putt on the 383-yard closing hole that gave her the most satisfaction, with Sorenstam watching Daniel tie the record she set last year.
"That last one was really sweet," Daniel said.
The 10-under round tied a personal best that Daniel had achieved only twice before, once at a tournament in Austin, Texas, and once playing with her father, who she says put more pressure on her on that round than Sorenstam did yesterday.
"I had to back off that last putt that day because my dad was going like this to everyone in the clubhouse," said Daniel, waving.
Sorenstam got off to a poor start. She hit the back of the green on the first hole to put herself within easy birdie range at about 15 feet, but she bogeyed after running her first putt well past the cup and missing the return.
Sorenstam began the second nine with a nearly perfect second shot on the 501-yard, par-5 10th that again was less than 15 feet from the pin. But she missed her eagle putt and her return for birdie rimmed the cup.
"Sometimes that happens but you can't dwell on those things," Sorenstam said.
She complained of feeling a little tired for the three-day tournament, but said the greens were some of the best she has played this year.
"When you have greens this pure, you're going to see some low scores," Sorenstam said.
She praised Daniel for her record-tying round, and said the pairing helped them both.
"It's always good to play with someone that good to get the momentum going," Sorenstam said.
