By Dave Shedloski

Newport, R.I. - The major characters in last year’s passion play have had to settle for bit parts or merely brief cameo roles in this year’s staging of the U.S. Women’s Open.

The trio of Birdie Kim, Morgan Pressel and Brittany Lang ended up as the headliners last year at Cherry Hills Country Club in suburban Denver with Kim grabbing the spotlight thanks to a chip-in birdie on the 72^nd hole that turned back the two ambitious amateurs.

This year, only Pressel is going to be around for the final 36 holes at Newport Country Club, and just barely at that as she found her 8-over-par 150 total tied for 59^th place thanks to a late slew of bogeys. With just four groups left on the course late Saturday, Pressel was among a group tied for 61^st place. Only the 10-shot rule was keeping them alive for two more rounds.

Birdie Kim consults with caddie Dean Herdon during the second round Saturday. (John Mummert/USGA)

The cut is low 60 scores, ties and any player with 10 shots of the lead. Sixty-eight players survived for Sunday’s finale, which features the first 36-hole showdown since 1990.

The defending champion didn’t conjure up her self-given namesake often and will be among those heading home, as will the two previous Open champions before her, Meg Mallon and Hilary Lunke. Troubled by her driving, which produced just seven fairways over 36 holes, Kim seldom had a decent birdie chance, converted only three, and missed the cut of 8-over-par 150 with rounds of 79-75, a 154 aggregate score.

Lang, who like Pressel has since turned professional, bogeyed two of the last five holes on Saturday to come in at 9-over 151. Lang missed a 6-foot par putt at the ninth, her final hole of the day, to follow her opening 76 with a 75. She knew what the putt meant.

"I figured I needed to make it just to be safe, but I just putted terribly all week," said Lang, who needed 68 putts over two days, offsetting the 25 greens in regulation she hit (ranked fourth in the field). "Last year I made some putts. You win some and you lose some."

Also struggling with her putting, Pressel needed to make two nervy par saves on the last two holes, which enabled her to come in at 74-150. "I certainly putted a little bit better in the second round. I missed one little putt, but I felt my stroke was better today," said Pressel, who used her putter 31 times Saturday, 64 total over two rounds. "I just didn’t get anything close, made too many mistakes and couldn’t get anything going."

Four amateurs qualified for the final two rounds led by Jane Park, the first-round co-leader and former U.S. Women’s Amateur champion. Park battled to a 2-over 73 and finished at level par 142, five strokes ahead of the next nearest amateur, Amanda Blumenherst, who followed an opening 70 with 77 for a 147 total. Fourteen-year-old Kimberly Kim carded 71-148, while Ashley Knoll was a stroke higher after 72.

A few big crashes send former Open champs reeling, though Karrie Webb survived her late hiccup. With two bogeys and a triple bogey in her last five holes, the reigning Kraft Nabisco champion stumbled to 76, but still made the cut at 7-over 149.

Lunke, the 2003 champion, wasn’t so lucky. Among the leaders at 1 under par after opening her second round with a pair of birdies, Lunke sunk quickly after suffering a quadruple bogey eight at the third hole. Two double bogeys contributed to a 13-over-par backpedal in a 13-hole stretch on the way to an 83 and 155 total. Mallon, a two-time winner, never put anything together in rounds of 75-79-154.

Two other former Open champions missed the 36-hole fiesta on Sunday: Liselotte Neumann and Laura Davies. Neuman’s 153 came after scores of 76-77. Davies added 77 to her opening 78 for a 155 total.

Kelly Robbins, runner-up to Lunke in ’03 and a former McDonald’s LPGA champion, struggled to a 81-76-157.

Dave Shedloski is a freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio, whose work has appeared previously on www.uswomensopen.com.