Three Players Were Tied For Lead Entering Fourth Round

By Ken Klavon, USGA

Newport, R.I. – Mike Davis trailed the final group of the third round, measuring off new hole locations for the final 18 holes Sunday at the Women’s Open.

Davis, who sets up championship courses for the USGA, appeared content, satisfied that a Newport Country Club venue that was on the cusp of being washed out to the Atlantic Ocean earlier in the week had finally firmed up. The third-round scores highlighted that as three players entered this afternoon’s fourth round tied at even-par 213. Brittany Lincicome carded a 2-under 69, one of four players in the red in the round, to pull herself even with Annika Sorenstam and Michelle Wie.

Two players, two-time Women’s Open champion Juli Inkster and Stacy Prammanasudh, were at 1 over while Sophie Gustafson and second round co-leader Pat Hurst stood two shots off the pace.

Merciless wind, registering up to 20 miles per hour, made conditions that much tougher and affected any receptivity the course may have had to score on. Davis said the course is playing about 6,565 yards. Jee Young Lee, Ai Miyazato, Karen Stupples joined Lincicome as the only under-par rounds.

Michelle Wie can't believe her miss on the 11th green during the third round Sunday. (Steve Gibbons/USGA)

Players were herded to scoring to sign their cards, eat lunch, change and get back to the course within 40 minutes of finishing. All this was a byproduct of Thursday’s first round being postponed due to excessive fog.

"There were a few rough spots, but overall I'm way excited about the way I played," said Brittany Lincicome, participating in her third Women’s Open. "I struck the ball very solidly. The key was I stayed out of the rough, and when I missed I wasn't in too many bad areas. To be sitting at even par right now is great."

Said Lori Kane, who shot 4-under 75 Sunday morning to enter the afternoon at 7 over: "Anything but a solid shot is not good. Brittany struck the ball really well, and she hits it long, which is a big advantage out here because the wind is getting tougher and the golf course is still pretty soft in most places."

While scores dropped, Lincicome silently made a move upward. Out of the chute she birdied two of her first three holes. She three-putted the 10th for her only bogey. She was the only player in the field with just one bogey in the third round. No player this week has had a bogey-free round.

She hit a 5-iron to 3 feet at the par-3 17th to set up her final birdie. Overall, she took just 28 putts.

In the meantime, Wie hung around jumping into a brief lead with Sorenstam at 1 under when she birdied No. 8. Wie registered five successive pars before breaking for lunch. Two three-putts on the fourth and 12^th holes knocked Sorenstam, a two-time Women’s Open winner, back to even before she parred her six holes to cling to the lead.

Hurst suffered bogeys on three of her final five holes to drop out of the mix. Inkster, though, wouldn’t relent, showing the form that helped her win the 2002 Women’s Open at Prairie Dunes. A 12-foot chip-in on the 15^th hole revved her emotions. But after her ball hooked into the left greenside bunker on the par-3 17^th, she couldn’t get up and down, missing a 6-footer for par. At that point, there was a five-way stalemate.

She absorbed another bogey on the final hole when she missed the fairway and again couldn’t get up and down.

Ken Klavon is the USGA Web Editor. E-mail him with questions or comments at kklavon@usga.org.