[ GOLF ]
Punahou student Michelle Wie missed a birdie attempt on the sixth hole yesterday during the Michelob Ultra Open. The 14-year-old shot a 2-over 73 in yesterday's third round, and is tied for 16th at 1-under 212 for the tournament.
Wie has fun
scrambling
in windThe Punahou student shoots a
2-over 73 in the third round
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. » A swirling wind made par a good score yesterday on the River Course at Kingsmill, bunching up the field and leaving the tournament wide open for the final round.
"I was picking up the grass and throwing it. It will come down this way," said 14-year-old Punahou student Michelle Wie, indicating a zigzagging flight pattern. "I was like, 'That doesn't tell me anything.' "
On a day when only five players shot under par, Lorena Ochoa and Cristie Kerr grabbed the lead at 7-under 206. Ochoa shot the day's best round, a 3-under 68, and Kerr had a 70 after a finishing bogey.
Wie, playing on a sponsor's exemption, struggled with her accuracy, but repeatedly showed a deft touch around the greens and battled for a 2-over 73. She was six back in a tie for 16th at 1-under 212.
"Today it was kind of an adventurous fun, (like) you are living life on the edge," Wie said of her constant scrambling. "It's like saving yourself from the mouth of an alligator every time and it's pretty fun."
The tournament has had the atmosphere of a major, several players said, because the course is in perfect condition and the $2.2 million purse has attracted virtually every top player on the tour.
Kerr, who launched a Birdies for Breast Cancer campaign just last week, said her mother had breast cancer last year and winning today "would be a perfect way to tell her I loved her on Mother's Day."
Ochoa closed with a winding 40-foot par putt on the par-4 18th.
"As soon as I hit it and it started turning right, you knew it was in," she said. "I am going to sleep much better now with that stroke."
Second-round leader Kim Williams, a non-winner in 16 years on tour, lost a four-stroke lead in the first 11 holes and followed an event-record 63 with a 78 that included seven bogeys.
Christina Kim, four shots behind Williams at the start of the round and playing with her in the last group, shot a 73 and was two off the lead at 5-under 208. Williams and Jennifer Rosales (73) were three shots back.
Rosales won her first career tournament last week, while the 20-year-old Kim is in just her second year on tour. Her best finish is a tie for fourth.
"I just tried to stay patient and just tried to keep a smile on my face because I have come to realize if I enjoy myself I tend to play better," Kim said, adding she wore red, white and blue to show patriotism.
Looking as much like a rock star as she does a golfer in her beret, sunglasses and at least four necklaces, Kim was greeted enthusiastically at the 10th tee by four fans she'd met the day before.
"The Fab Four," she called out to them.
Contenders also included Hall of Famer Juli Inkster and Se Ri Pak, who were four back at 3 under, and Annika Sorenstam, another shot back.
"The holes just played very differently today -- a lot of side winds, it was gusting," Sorenstam said after a second straight even-par 71.
"I was pretty happy with the way I played."
The hottest player, for the second straight day, was Kerr. She was 7 under through 13 holes Friday before giving one shot back coming in. She was 3 under through nine holes yesterday, taking the lead at 9 under.
Two bogeys on the back, including on No. 18, brought her back to the pack, but left her feeling as if fate might be working in her favor.
"I am getting more comfortable with playing with a lead and playing in the lead," said Kerr, whose three top-five finishes this year include a victory in the Takefuji Classic in mid-April in Las Vegas. "So I am not going to worry about too much stuff when I go out there tomorrow. I am just going to go and try and get the job done for me and see what happens."
Ochoa and Kerr finished in a three-way tie for second in the LPGA Tour's first visit here a year ago when Grace Park won on the 72nd hole.
