Notebook: Sorenstam Disappointed Again
By Alex Miceli
North Plains, Ore. – Since her back-to-back wins in 1995 and '96,
Annika Sorenstam has had two heartbreak finishes in the Women's
Open since then. Sunday’s was one of them. The other was last year
when she lost a two-stroke leade in the final round to lose to Juli
Inkster.
The world's best woman golfer has missed the cut two times and
finished tied for 41st in 1998, tied for ninth in 2000 and tied
for 16th in 2001.
 |
| On the 18th hole, Annika Sorenstam chips
out after receiving relief when her approach shot landed behind
the scoreboard, nestled between three trees and a port-a-potty.
(John Mummert/USGA) |
The string of near misses continued on Sunday as Sorenstam's 12-footer
for par on the 18th hole failed to drop, leading to a bogey 6.
Sorenstam made a birdie on the par-3 15th to move into a tie for
the lead at 1-under par and missed opportunities for birdie on both
the 16th and 17th before she got to the par-5 18th.
Playing to make birdie, Sorenstam decided to hit a fairway wood
for her second shot on the 18th, a hole that she had bogeyed the
first round and parred the second and third rounds.
Sorenstam's second shot went dead right into the trees over a bunker
and behind the scoreboard that abutted the 18th green. After much
deliberation with the rules officials, Sorenstam was given a drop
with clear line of sight to the flag and hit her third shot higher
than she expected, striking a branch and dropping in the greenside
bunker.
"I felt like I had to play aggressive," said Sorenstam. "I hit
my 4-wood to the right, and got a bad break with the trees. And
a tough shot from there. So obviously I'm very disappointed. I wish
I could replay a few shots, but that's the way it goes."
Sorenstam then failed to get up and down for par and finished fourth
by herself.
"Birdie is what I needed," said Sorenstam after her 2-over par
73. "However, the 18th hole hasn't really been my friend this week.
I think I'm 2-over par on a par 5, and that's not like me. I'm disappointed,
definitely."
Calling It Quits
Former U.S. Women's Open champion Alison Nicholas has called it
quits in the United States.
Nicholas, the 1997 winner at Pumpkin Ridge, played her way into
contention through two rounds of the Women's Open this week, shooting
75-67. But in the final two rounds, Nicholas' scores ballooned to
83-80. She finished tied for 53rd with fellow countrywomen Suzanne
Studwick and Michele Vinieratos, 22 shots behind the leaders.
Nicholas' victory here in 1997 was her only major victory. She
has won just once in the U.S. since then, at the 1999 Hawaiian Ladies
Open.
"I had made the decision earlier this year I was only going to
play in a few so it's not a huge shocker. I just didn't announce
it to anyone particularly," said Nicholas. "People move on, they
won't even remember me in six months time."
Nicholas had played in only three events in the U.S. this year,
missing the cut twice and finishing tied for 13th at the City of
Hope LPGA Classic.
While it was always on her mind to stop playing in North America,
the ruling on the seventh hole in Saturday's third round sealed
the deal for Nicholas. With a spider in her line on the green, Nicholas
attempted to use a tee and a coin before finally using her putter
head to remove the spider.
According to the Rules of golf, the use of anything other than
her hand or putter was a violation of the rules. Thusly, she incurred
a two-shot penalty.
"That ruling I had, that just crushed my spirit, that did," said
Nicholas. "I can handle playing badly; I've done it a number of
times. You lose more than you win in this game, but that was just
like unbelievable -- that really did finish me off yesterday."
Nicholas will continue to play in Europe, work to grow her teaching
academy near her home in Birmingham, England, and try to help the
Europeans regain the Solheim Cup as an assistant captain in Sweden
later this year.
New Caddie For Wie
Michelle Wie made a change of caddies on Sunday as her swing coach
Gary Gilchrist took the bag. Wie's father, B.J., had previously
been carrying for the 13-year-old phenom and said Saturday he would
do so for the rest of the week and in the near future. After her
round on Sunday, Michelle said she was not sure if Gilchrist would
continue to caddie for her. But her father confirmed it was Gilchrist's
job for as long as he wanted it.
Gilchrist was not as sure.
"We will probably make a decision after the Junior," said Gilchrist.
"But I think B.J. will probably go back on the bag."
Michelle Wie is scheduled to play in the Girl's Junior in two weeks
at the Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield, Conn.
Wie was 5-over 76 Sunday and finished 14 over, tied for 39th.
Aree Goes Low
Playing in just her second Women's Open, Aree Song finished as
the low amateur with a 1-over-par 285 finish that included a birdie
on the final hole, which moved her into fifth place all along.
Song, a 17-year-old phenomenon, captured a USGA title in 1999 when
she won the U.S. Girl's Junior championship, but has never done
better in a professional tournament than her finish on Sunday.
"I mean if you told me when I got here that I was going to be under
par through three rounds, and playing with Annika going into Sunday,
I would have laughed," Song said. "But I've been playing well, and
I played well at Pinehurst last week, and I've been hitting the
ball quite well. I'm not too surprised."
Song had played in 13 previous professional events and her best
finish was a tie for 10th in the 2000 Nabisco Championship, the
first major of the LPGA season.
Now, Song is one of the oldest in the teenage brigade that is slowly
making their mark on the women's golf scene.
"I think they did well," Song said of the other teenage amateurs
that played on the weekend. "It's very difficult to make the U.S.
Open your first tournament on Tour, really, not only because of
the atmosphere, but you don't get to play this type of golf course
in amateur golf."
In what is a total physical and mental test, Song came out on top
of the 14 teen-agers and 21 amateurs in the field this year and
will claim her second USGA medal for her low amateur appearance.
Alex Miceli is a free-lance writer from the Golf Press Association.
|
