U.S. Women's Open Blog
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Pouring
It is absolutely pouring out. Lightning galore as well. So looks like they called it in the nick of time. Our poor media relations folks came in completely drenched from head to toe. Must give Lorena Ochoa credit for coming inside the media center to do an interview. Cristie Kerr turned down the invitation, saying it's been a long day.
Guess the precipitation will make the course receptive tomorrow.
Ken
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Play Suspended
The third round was suspended at 8:05 p.m. EDT due to darkness. Play will resume at 7:30 a.m. Sunday.
By the way, the rest of the third round will be televised on ESPN2 beginning at 8 a.m. Sunday.
The fourth round will begin approximately at 10:45 a.m. The players will go off in threes, in 11-minute intervals off the first and 10th tees. There will be new pairings for the fourth round.
I know no more than that.
Ken
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Streaming
We've also received several comments regarding the lack of streaming on the site. Please know there were many factors that went into this for the reasons why we are not; believe me when I say that we would love to be able to stream from every championship, especially this one.
Ken
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USGA Grouping
Interesting third-round grouping with In-Bee Park, Morgan Pressel and Julieta Granada. All three were junior golf rivals just a couple of years ago, and all three have won a USGA amateur championship. Park took the 2002 U.S. Girls' Junior at 14, and reached two other Girls' Junior finals in 2003 and '05. Granada won the 2004 U.S. Girls' Junior a year after being eliminated in the quarterfinals. And Morgan Pressel, a month after losing out on the 2005 U.S. Women's Open, blitzed the field at the U.S. Women's Amateur at Ansley Golf Club's Settindown Creek Course in Roswell, Ga.
The three of them together have competed in more than 20 USGA championships and their combined ages is 57. This is the future of women's golf. |
Amateur Hour
Four amateurs made the cut from the field of 23 who started. The group included 17-year-olds Mina Harigae (Monterey, Calif.) and Jennifer Song (Korea), and Duke University juniors-to-be Amanda Blumenherst (Scottsdale, Ariz.) and Jennie Lee (Henderson, Nev.). Interesting to note that the last time the Women's Open visited Pine Needles, a Duke University player was the low amateur (Candy Hannemann of Brazil). Duke has a chance with three of the four amateurs, as Harigae has verbally committed to play for the Blue Devils in the fall of 2008.
Three amateurs made the cut in 2001: Hannemann, Natalie Gulbis and 17-year-old Christina Kim. Later that summer, Kim shot a 62 in the U.S. Girls' Junior at Indian Hills C.C. in Mission Hills, Kan., which stood as a USGA championship stroke-play record until last summer when Billy Horschel shot 60 in the first round of stroke-play qualifying at the U.S. Amateur (Chaska Town Course).
Alexis Thompson, 12, of Coral Springs, Fla., shot a second-round 82 and missed the cut by 10 strokes. Thompson was the youngest-ever qualifier for the U.S. Women's Open, beating Morgan Pressel's mark by seven months.
Also missing the cut was 15-year-old reigning U.S. Women's Amateur champion Kimberly Kim of Hilo, Hawaii, and 2006 Women's Amateur runner-up Katharina Schallenberg of Germany. |
Park
If anyone benefited from the delays it was Angela Park. She admitted that much after her round today. When they told her yesterday she didn't need to play, she said it helped her psyche more than anything. Gave her a chance to recharge her batteries, so to speak.
Today she looked fresh. She certainly didn't wilt down the stretch, as she converted two clutch par saves on her last two holes. The first was about 9 feet long; the second - from about 20 feet above the hole - was even more impressive.
What strikes me most about her is that she is as calm as can be. Doesn't seem like much bothers her.
Ken
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Updates
In response to several comments about this site not being updated in a timely fashion, I need to respectfully disagree. We have been quite quick throughout the championship. A few examples: for starters, there is this blog. Throughout the weather delays, I have kept readers updated with information as it has been announced. This, before it has even been released to the media. Or with player withdrawals or special circumstances related to the championship.
When Michelle Wie withdrew, I updated that information as she was walking off the course. We've also updated through various other methods, such as our 'Running Updates' on the homepage, via homepage image captions and stories that post many times less than an hour after a player has finished her round, which really is quite extraordinary considering all of the fact-gathering that goes into building a story.
We certainly understand the immediacy issues involved and do appreciate the comments.
Ken
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Wie Withdraws
Michelle Wie just withdrew due to a wrist injury. She grabbed it on No. 18 after sending her approach shot into a greenside bunker. She's walking off the course now.
Ken
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Friday, June 29, 2007
Finished
We are not playing anymore today. Play has been suspended due to the weather. The range will open at 5:45 a.m. tomorrow. The second round will pick up at 7:30 a.m. and the hope is that the cut will be established by 3 p.m. The third round is tentatively scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. in groups of three off the first and 10th tees.
That's the official word.
Ken
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They Are, After All, Kids
If you want to see how teenagers really act away from the golf course, all you needed to do was visit a tiny room downstairs in the Pine Needles clubhouse. During Friday's lengthy weather delay, the pool and ping pong tables were occupied by giggly girls just having a good time. You'd never know this was the 2007 U.S. Women's Open. It looked more like a day at summer camp.
You had 12-year-old Alexis Thompson, the youngest-ever qualifier for this championship, shooting pool against 15-year-old Kimberly Kim, the reigning U.S. Women's Amateur champion. It was not exactly Minnesota Fats versus Willie Mosconi, but who cares. Thompson was banking shots in as if she had played this game before. In fact, Kim got beat in a game of eight ball. On the ping pong table was 2007 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links medalist Tiffany Lua, Joanne Lee and Jennifer Song.
Also joining in were Amy Yang and Ha-Na Jang, who was a quarterfinalist at last year's Women's Amateur.
Even Floridians Morgan Pressel and Nicole Hage popped their heads into the room, but they clearly were a bit old for this crowd. Even Pressel at 19 was "over the hill" for this teeny-bopper group. Pressel exchanged e-mail addresses with Thompson, who happens to be friendly with Morgan's younger sister, Madison.
None of the players in the room are in contention and it's likely that all of them will miss the 36-hole cut. But it doesn't matter. They were having a great time sans any parents and that's what it's all about.
Yes they are here to compete in a prestigious championship. But we also have to remember who they are and why they are still kids. That room is full proof of that.
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Not Promising
OK, new update. Doesn't look promising.
There seems to be a string of thunderstorms that have moved into the
area. The consensus is that these storms are pretty severe. Officials
will revisit the situation at 5:30 p.m. EDT.
Ken |
Getting Worse
Update on the weather: right now
officials are listing the situation as serious. They don't expect to
resume playing at least for another hour (at the earliest).
Ken |
Nasty
It really is getting bad out. Umbrellas have been flying; darkness has set in. People are seeking shelter. Booms of thunder can be heard intermittently.
Thinking back, the worst delay I ever endured occurred at Bellerive Country Club in 2004. Prior to the second round a horrific storm moved in and washed out all of Friday's play. There was water everywhere. Makeshift canals that carried trash bins were high; so high that I swear you could have used a canoe to navigate the course. All sorts of debris was just being carried away down several fairways. Even a port-a-potty went floating by. I waved. But it didn't wave back.
Somehow the grounds crew did an admirable job in getting the course ready to play the next day.
Ken
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Final Memories
1998-2007
This is the last
installment of my highlights of the 30 Women’s Opens I’ve covered as a
journalist/television broadcaster/USGA communications person. It’s been
a pleasure to watch this championship grow. In recent years, the
Women’s Open is getting its due – from the media and the fans. Here are
some recaps of the more memorable championships, with my own memories
of the highlights in parenthesis:
1998: This was the year of Se
Ri Pak and Jenny Chuasiriporn, the young amateur from Maryland. No one
who saw it will ever forget. Jenny was a member of the USA Curtis Cup
team and throughout the week she slowly crept up the leaderboard. Her
brother was her caddie.
On Sunday, she came to the 72nd hole
one stroke off Se Ri’s lead. On the par-4 hole, Jenny hit her second
shot to the green but the hole was cut on the left side and her ball
was on the right side of the green. She had a twisting 45-foot putt,
one of those seemingly unmakeable putts. Jenny and her brother studied
the line. She stood over the putt, stroked it and watched it slowly
trundle and break toward the hole. When it toppled into the hole, the
gallery went absolutely wild. Jenny clasped her hand over her mouth in
disbelief. It was the single most dramatic putt I’ve seen. Se Ri came
in to tie. They played off the following day and were still tied after
18 holes. In sudden death, Se Ri won on the second extra hole, the
20th, with a birdie 3 to Jenny’s par 4. Se Ri got the trophy, the money
and a gold medal. Jenny won a silver medal as runner-up.
(We
were in the media room, some 400 yards from the 18th green when the
putt fell. The roar shook the tent. Earlier, after the second round, I
had invited Jenny to come in for an interview. None of the reporters
were interested. Just Patricia Davies, a fine English reporter, and I
were in the interview room so I hurriedly assembled members of the
Women’s Committee to sit in so that Jenny wouldn’t be embarrassed by
the small crowd. Dutifully, the WC members listened intently to what
Jenny had to say. Of course, by Sunday afternoon, reporters couldn’t
get enough of Jenny. While she lost, she represented the best of
amateur golf. She was the wholesome, happy-go-lucky side of golf.
One
of the most stirring parts of the week, however, was on Sunday morning
when I drove to the course. There was a big traffic tie-up on the
interstate highway leading to Blackwolf Run G.C. As I inched along in
my car, I realized that these people, all of these people, were lined
up to get into the Women’s Open. It was so startling. There had never
been traffic tie-ups associated with this championship. As I sat in the
idling car, watching the lines of cars, I got choked up and my eyes
teared up. I thought of all the effort that had gone into making this
championship what it had become – all of the past WC members, the
Communications Department staff, David Fay, the Rules and Competitions
Department, and Judy Bell. All that effort. Whew.
I worked the
Women’s Amateur Championship a month later. Jenny by now was a
national, perhaps international, celebrity. Children clambered for her
autograph. Grace Park and Jenny met in the final. I remember two little
boys, of about 10, walking along in the rough as they followed the
match. “They’re so nice to each other,” I heard one say to the other.
Grace played much better than Jenny and won. Jenny was given a silver
medal at the presentation. “I’ve already got one of these,” she said to
the crowd, giving us a laugh. That 45-footer for a long time was known
as, “the putt,” around Golf House.
Se Ri’s impact was huge.
Nearly every Korean player I’ve interviewed in the years since has said
that Se Ri Pak inspired them to play the game. They were in the third
grade, or the seventh grade, they say, when she won. How proud they
were of their country-woman.
2002: Kansas in July. Prairie
Dunes C.C. Almost a mystical place. A links-style course, bringing the
flavor of Scotland to the Kansas prairie. Brigadoon. Juli Inkster
outlasted Annika Sorenstam, finding her swing for the final 18, hitting
some miraculous pitch shots and winning by two for her second victory
in this championship. She also won in 1999. (Judy Bell, a good friend
of mine and a great friend of the game and its players, has thousands
of friends. Judy had gone through a bout with cancer. She was coming
off of chemotherapy and we were all awfully glad to see her. Kansas is
her home state and she’s an honorary member of Prairie Dunes. I had
helped her write her autobiography, which was so easy because she tells
such great stories, all I had to do was turn on the tape recorder, then
type the transcripts. The books were being sold in the merchandise
tent. We could have sold a lot of books, but Judy was like Patty Berg
– she insisted on talking with every single person who bought a book.
As
usual, JB hustled down to the 72nd green, this time using a cane, to
watch the winner – Inkster – finish. As Juli left the green to
thunderous applause, she passed Bell standing by the gallery ropes.
Juli gave her a high-five. “This one’s for you,” the champion said to
Judy.)
2003: Back to Pumpkin Ridge for the second time the
course has hosted the championship. Another thriller. Angela Stanford
made a hair-raising birdie putt on the 72nd green to tie Kelly Robbins
and Hilary Lunke. Annika Sorenstam could have won her third Women’s
Open but she hit an uncharacteristic, un-Annika-like shot on the 72nd
hole, hitting her fairway wood second shot to the right in the trees as
she tried to hit the green of the par-5 hole in two shots. We of course
remember the three Women’s Opens that Sorenstam has won, but she came
ever so close in three other successive years, 2002-2004. The 18-hole
playoff. Stanford, one stroke behind Lunke, again made that birdie putt
on the 18th green, from almost the same spot. Lunke was on the same
line, facing a putt of 6 to 8 feet for a birdie of her own. If she made
it, she’d win. She made it. Lunke shot 70, Stanford had a 71 and
Robbins fired a 73.
(Even Ernie Els was impressed. He watched
the playoff on television and got word to USGA president Reed Mackenzie
that the playoff had been great for the game. Pumpkin Ridge has
beautiful surroundings. No houses here, just nature and wildlife,
Oregon style.
I remember when we had been here in 1997,
Suzanne Colson of our Media Relations Department and I had stood
outside the media tent saying goodnight to the departing reporters as
if they were leaving our home after a dinner party. The media facility
is a home of sorts. Our staff has to make sure that everything is
perfect. For the 300-400 reporters and photographers, they arrange for
hotel lodgings, credentials, a catering service to serve breakfast and
lunch, dinner brought in for reporters working late, electronic hookups
for computers and phones, parking, transportation, scoring that’s
easily seen from everywhere, TV areas and booths for the radio people,
and they shuffle in all of the players that anyone could possibly
interested in talking to. At the same time, staff members are writing
notes on the best rounds, explaining leading players’ scoring such as
birdies and bogeys, hoofing it around the golf course in all kinds of
weather to write “game stories,” and composing some really great
stories for the USGA Web site. While the staff is small, it packs a
lot of punch. The effort is huge and the staff members are gratified
when everything goes smoothly, which is probably 99.9 percent of the
time. Staff members spend weeks at a time on the road and work
incredibly long hours but it’s a job they all seem to love.)
2006:
Annika Sorenstam returned to form, defeating Pat Hurst on lovely old
Newport C.C. in an 18-hole playoff, 70 to 74. (This is beautiful
country, the sail boats in the harbor, the old mansions proclaiming the
glory of an earlier time and the perfect little clubhouse standing in
solitary splendor at the end of the drive. This course near the shore
is actually wild and tousled looking, open to the winds with few trees
to block the currents. Small greens. Pitches and cants to the fairways.
Subtle bunkering.
Time to give a nod to Sorenstam. I have
interviewed her for 12 years now. At one time or another she has been
brought into the media facility either before play started, to talk
about her game and her chances, during the championship as the rounds
progressed, and, three times, after she has won. I have seen her go
from being a rookie to being the most celebrated player on earth.
An
editorial comment here: She was very shy that first year she won, 1995,
and she is still shy today. As she concluded her last interview after
her victory, I thought of how poised and self-assured she had become.
She listens carefully to questions and answers very, very thoughtfully,
intelligently. Now and then she has a little humor. You just have to
listen carefully to realize how very good she is at this. I felt
compelled to tell her. “I don’t think the other players will ever
really be able to appreciate what you have taught yourself and how you
have learned to do this over the years.” Now and then we see something
that reminds us that we ask more of these players than to just hit good
golf shots. Annika is one such player. Three times she has handled
herself brilliantly on Media Day. Dozens of times she has submitted to
interview situations and answered them beautifully. Excellence, in any
form, is always to be admired.)
2007: Pine Needles, for the
third time. Someone will win, of course. The victory will put their
name on the trophy and in the record book. The win may shove an
attractive young player into fame and fortune as she vaults to the
forefront of the game. It may, for an older player, revive a long and
struggle-filled career, or it may cap off the achievements of a player
close to retirement. Most Women’s Open Champions are famous, at least
in this little world of golf. Some are almost completely unknown. Pine
Needles, of course, has been a part of the game for decades. A lot of
its hospitality revolves around its owner, Peggy Kirk Bell.
When
the USGA was last here, in 2001, it was announced that this
championship would come back here in 2007. I saw Peggy standing on the
sidelines, listening to that announcement and subtly counting on her
fingers how old she would be six years later. Well, she’s 85 now.
Seems fit and of course she’s always astute. In 1996, when the Women’s
Open first came here, I have seldom seen such excitement. The entire
Bell family, that is, the Bells, McGowans and Millers, seemed just
thrilled to be the hosts. Peggy had been all over Moore County,
speaking to every Kiwanis Club or Rotary Club that would have her,
talking about the greatness of this championship. People turned out by
the thousands and there was a real buzz of excitement from the crowds.
Peggy has instilled her warm hospitality into staff members at Pine
Needles and, heck, she’s not even Southern. She’s from Findlay, Ohio.
The volunteers here all give you the same sense of welcome. When I
drove into the parking lot Thursday, the attendant gave me a wave and
called, “Good mornin’, come on into the house,” as I pulled into the
lot. Now that sounds Southern to a Southerner like me.
Rhonda Glenn
USGA Manager Of Communications
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Weather Update
OK, looks like we'll resume play about 2:10 p.m. According to Mike Davis, the USGA's Senior Director of Rules and Competitions, we could be looking at an off and on situation throughout the day.
Ken
|
Delayed Again
Here we go again. We are delayed due to inclement weather. Play was suspended at 1:47 p.m. EDT with an update due about 2:15 p.m.
It was pretty dark as I made my way in about 20 minutes ago. Thunder could be heard.
Ken
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Hail?
Well, not sure what to make of this but one report is calling for hail this afternoon. It is, again, rather warm today. Humid. Right now it looks very nice. Sun is out. Would never know Mr. Evil Hail looms. We'll see.
How about In-Bee Park? Completes her first round then heads right back out to start her second one. And catches Angela Park to boot at 3 under. In-Bee is a solid player. I remember her first U.S. Girls' Junior in 2002 when she was a timid 14 year old. Her English wasn't very good and she was shy as could be. She had an inner confidence that carried her on the course.
After watching her a little bit yesterday, the fire still burns. Well, it should. She is, after all, playing on the LPGA Tour now.
Tangential thought: anyone discounting Annika Sorenstam?
Ken
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Thursday, June 28, 2007
That's A Wrap
Play was suspended for the evening at 8:25 p.m. EDT due to darkness. The first round will commence at 7:30 a.m. Friday. In addition, all tee times will be pushed back two hours, 15 minutes.
That's what happens when Mother Nature waves her magic wand. Sorry folks.
Ken
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Applause
Catherine Lacoste de Pinero, who won the U.S. Women's Open 40 years ago (1967), strolled into the Media Center this afternoon with her husband and daughter. After greeting the esteemed Madame Lacoste de Pinero, we announced her presence on the Media Center public address system.
"We are honored to have with us Catherine Lacoste de Pinero of France, who won this championship 40 years ago and remains the only amateur to win this title."
To my amazement, the reporters gave her a hand. Amazement because only once in my 30-year attendance in Women's Open Media Centers had reporters applauded any player. That was in 1997. That year, Nancy Lopez, after shooting four rounds in the 60s, lost the one championship that has eluded her to Allison Nicholas by one slender stroke. When Lopez came in for her interview that Sunday afternoon, the reporters applauded her.
Reporters, if not cynical, are at least hard to impress. Over the years, the only two players they chose to applaud, Lopez and Lacoste, are of monumental stature in the game.
Rhonda Glenn
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1988-1997
Since this is my 30th U.S. Women’s Open as a
journalist/television broadcaster/USGA communications staff member, I’m recording
memories of the championship. On Wednesday, I wrote about the first 10. Today,
I have a few observations about the most memorable championships, from my
perspective, of the second 10 years. My personal observations are in
parenthesis.
1988:
Liselotte
Neumann
by three over
Patty
Sheehan
at the Five Farms Course of
Baltimore (
Md.
) C.C. The golf was
wonderful with
Neumann
, Sheehan and, for a while, Juli Inkster
and
Colleen
Walker
in the mix on this picturesque old course. The design of the green complexes
called for careful study on the approach shots and the leading players were
able to hit magnificent irons the bounced with the contours toward the
hole.
(The size of the galleries was surprising and I saw what the
championship could become.
Reg
Muphy
,
a member of the USGA Executive Committee who would become president in 1994,
was a member of the club and worked extremely hard to get people out to the
course. He later told me that he had never called in so many favors in his
life. A Dixie-land band merrily picked up the pace around the clubhouse on
championship Sunday.
Coincidentally,
Ex-Comm member
Judy
Bell
,
Women’s Committee member
Mary
Capouch
and I put together the first Women’s Open highlight video that fall. I spent
weeks on the project, then
memorabilia.
Judy
nixed the music
so we started over. The highlights were exciting and the music worked. The best
part was a retrospective of past champions at the end of the tape. Very moving. Approach any one of the three of us
today and, thanks to all of that time looking at tapes in the dark editing
booth, we can probably recall nearly every shot hit by the leaders in the last
round, along with some of the voice track!).
1989: For the first time, the championship was played at
Indianwood Golf and Country Club in
Lake Orion
,
Mich.
Betsy
King edged
Nancy
Lopez
by four strokes. (I was excited to be there because a friend from my childhood,
Wilfrid
Reid
,
designed Indianwood.
Mr.
Reid
’s
grandson
Tony
Zmistowski
was a good friend with whom I played golf. Occasionally, his grandfather joined
us. This was a real cross-generational pairing as
Wilfrid
Reid
had figured prominently in the 1913
U.S. Open, won by
Francis
Ouimet
. It’s hard to believe but today marks nearly
100 years after that championship.
Mr.
Reid
used to show me photos of the wonderful British champion, Joyce
Wethered. Am I lucky, or what?! The owner of the club collected Reid
memorabilia. I had a book about the golf swing, hand-written by Mr. Reid that I loaned to the owner so that he could make
photo copies to put with his collection. Oddly, he never returned
the book and it was as great loss to me. My father, who taught me to know and
love the game, had died the year before and this was one of his most treasured
possessions. Anyway, on Sunday of the championship, I walked past the first tee
on my way to the television tower at the 18th green. When I looked
down the fairway, I couldn’t believe what I saw – spectators lined the fairway,
five deep, all the way to the green. And this was a par-5 hole! That had never
before happened at the Women’s Open, in my memory. As I was to later discover,
it was only a beginning.)
1992:
Patty
Sheehan
won a thriller at Oakmont C.C. by
defeating Juli Inkster in a playoff, 72 to 74. The real thrill was that Oakmont
had invited the USGA to conduct the Women’s Open there. The final 18 holes of
the championship proper focused on a real battle between
Inkster
and Sheehan. (Neither had yet won this championship. Sheehan’s most supreme
chance had been in 1990 when she frittered away 12 strokes on the final day to
lose to
Betsy
King
at Atlanta Athletic Club. The following year, she was unable to seek revenge
because she wasn’t playing at full strength. She had some sort of injury,
although she played. Anyway, at Oakmont she made a fantastic, curling 15-foot
birdie putt on the 18th hole to pull into a tie with
Inkster
.
It was absolutely wonderful. That situation reminds me of the great quote from
Joyce
Wethered
: “There is no such thing as men’s
golf or women’s golf. There is only golf and it is either played badly or
well.” Patty
and Juli reminded us of that. The golf was played very well indeed. I was
fortunate in that I was presented the USGA’s International Book Award for my
history of women’s golf earlier in the week and my mother was on hand for that
evening.)
Annika Sorenstam,
a name that would become the most prominent in women’s golf during the next 12
years, won her first professional tournament at the Broadmoor Golf Club. (
Bell
,
USGA vice president, and
Barbara
McIntire
, a member of the Women’s Committee,
lived in
Colorado Springs
and gave
their all to rally the local citizenry and created the best championship ever. They
were wildly successful and the crowds were huge. Barbara took a photo of the
gallery flooding the 18th fairway, from about 200 yards out up to
the green, and Judy used it as her Christmas card the following December. It
was the 50th anniversary of this great championship and the USGA
flew in every living past champion, save
Mickey
Wright
, who does not travel, to celebrate.
The first champion,
Patty
Berg
,
hosted her famous golf clinic and nearly every past champion hit shots in that
exhibition. A dinner for the champions was held in a big tent and
Joanie
Birkland
, a Women’s Committee member who
lived in
Denver
, and I had the
honor of serving as mistresses of ceremonies. Each champion, starting with the
most recent and ending with Berg, spoke. It was a great night of nostalgia and
laughter, the sort of evening that the Women’s Committee does so well.)
1997: This was one of the most memorable of all
championships, whether men’s or women’s, when
Alison
Nicholas
edged
Nancy
Lopez
by one stroke on the 72nd hole at Pumpkin Ridge G.C. in
North Plains
,
Ore.
Once again, a record number of spectators showed up to see this bit of history.
Just 21 years before, I had watched
Lopez
finish as runner-up.
Now she either led or was close to the lead throughout the championship and the
attendance reflected that. (As Sunday’s final round began,
Lopez
exited the locker room to a tremendous wave of applause that followed her down
the path to the first tee. Fans lined
the first hole, some 10 deep, and fathers boosted children to their shoulders
for a better view.
Lopez and
Nicholas
were paired.
Allison
received generous applause
when she was introduced. For
Nancy
,
there was a roar, and after she teed off the crowd applauded with cheers that
followed her all the way down the hole. She was tenacious, but bogeyed the
par-3 15th hole, recovered with a birdie on the 16th,
then bogeyed the 17th. She was one stroke behind. When both players
parred the final hole,
Allison
had a
well-deserved victory.
Lopez
, now near the end of her career,
had lost in her last real bid to win the championship. A number of past
champions came out to watch the final putts, something we don’t see very often.
When
Nancy
entered the media room after the round, the reporters burst into applause for
the first time I can remember at the Women’s Open.
Nancy
was funny, cheerful, then sentimental and tearful, all in one interview. One of
my fellow staff members joked, “If the Executive Committee could just vote to
give her the trophy, they would.”
Allison
may be
overshadowed by the memories but she played a great, great round under the most
tremendous pressure and deserved her wonderful victory.)
Tomorrow, the 1998 championship moved me to tears. The 2003
championship produced a memorable playoff, as did the Women’s Open in 2006. Until
tomorrow …
Rhonda Glenn
Manager of USGA Communications |
Update
OK, yet another update. Looks like play will resume by 6:30 p.m. EDT. Players have been instructed that the range will be open at 5:35 p.m. so they can warm up.
Ken
|
Still Waiting
We are to receive another weather update shortly.
Ken
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Another Update
Officials have decided to take the players off the course. They'll examine the situation again at 3:47 p.m. EDT.
Ken
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Still suspended
OK, they have revisited the delay and have decided to .... stay delayed at least another 15 minutes or so.
Ken
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Play Suspended
Play was suspended at 2:48 p.m. EDT due to inclement weather in the area. Not sure when they'll resume, but one report had them revisiting the situation in about 15 minutes.
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Lacoste
For years she has been the answer to a trivia question. In past U.S. Women's Opens I'd often think about Catherine Lacoste and what she was up to now. In fact, we tried seeking her out a couple years ago for a story. As you probably know, Lacoste is the only amateur to ever win this event. Captivating stuff for sure.
So lo and behold, who walks into the media center today? None other than Lacoste and her family. I asked her if she realized how often her name pops up what seems like every year at the Women's Open. She laughed.
"I get the Google alert all the time," she said through her thick French accent.
We finally did a story about her earlier this week so I won't rehash anything new. It was somewhat funny when she walked through the doors. To be sure it was her, we quickly checked her shirt. You see, her family started the Lacoste clothing line years ago and she holds a handsome stake in it today. Of course, the little green crocodile graced her multi-colored golf shirt.
Lacoste was disarming and rather unassuming. She reminisced about her playing days, and of course, winning the Women's Open that year. She was forced to wait out a storm - "It was long," she said - that made the course soggy, she said, as her seven-stroke lead dwindled to one with two holes to go.
When she won, she remembered that "I woke up the next morning and that I had my own name. I'm not 'The daughter of' ....."
That, of course, would be the daughter of esteemed tennis player Rene Lacoste (her dad) and accomplished amateur golfer Simone Lacoste.
Lacoste, now known as Lacoste de Pinero, shared a funny story after winning the Women's Open that year. When she went headed back to France, she was stopped at customs and a man asked her if she was the daughter of Rene. Shortly thereafter, her father got stopped at U.S. Customs. "The U.S. Customs asked if he was the father of Catherine Lacoste who won the Women's Open."
Wonderful to finally have met Lacoste. I've met and dealt with many athletes over the years but Lacoste has always been on my 'must meet' list - if only to give a face to the mystery player who won this in 1967.
Ken
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On-Course Musings
Just returned from a quick walk up the first hole. Wanted to see Stacy Lewis tee off and she made a par at the first hole, but not without a near penalty on the green. Lewis had moved her coin to avoid the line for fellow competitor Sung Ah Yim. But when she went back to replace it to its original position, she moved the coin in the wrong direction. Yim's caddie first noticed the mistake and then USGA Rules official Cristie Dickinson alerted Lewis of it. She then re-marked the coin in the correct position and made her par putt.
The range was all but deserted except for two young girls hitting balls. They are alternates Lindy Duncan and Cydney Clanton. Duncan was a semifinalist at the 2006 U.S. Women's Amateur. Both are hoping an exempt player might withdraw. This morning, Brandie Burton did withdraw, but she was a sectional qualifier, so the spot went to the first alternate from the Rockville, Md., site. That happened to be Janice Gibson of Tulsa, Okla., who played in her first U.S. Open in 1984. Alternates are only allowed to use the practice facilities until they are officially in the field, so Gibson was not afforded any on-course time this week due to her late addition to the championship.
Also ran into Carol Semple Thompson, who is down here in a duel capacity. She is one of the key committee people for the 2010 U.S. Women's Open, which will be played at Oakmont (Pa.) Country Club, not far from her home in Sewickley. Thompson also is the 2008 USA Curtis Cup captain and she was getting ready to go watch some hopefuls for the '08 squad. |
Following up
Someone asked how long the course is playing today. For starters, the official yardages can be found here.
Today's par-3 yardages are as follows:
Hole 3 - 127 yards
Hole 5 - 191 yards
Hole 13 - 215 yards
Hole 16 - 175 yards
Those are the only changes.
Ken
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Rain
Saw Mike Davis a few minutes ago. Davis, as many of you know, has a great deal of responsibility. He has a major say in the course setup along with Roberta Bolduc, the Women's Committee chairman. Davis mentioned how he had a busy morning. That's understandable considering that the course, much like the Wednesday before the U.S. Open at Oakmont, absorbed 1/2 inch of rain.
Here's how he set up the course today:
Greens were double cut and are rolling almost 12 1/2 on the Stimpmeter. Due to the longer playing conditions, tee markers were moved up slightly (10 yards or so) on holes 2, 12 and 17.
Is the course more receptive? Angela Park started with three birdies right out of the gate. Not that that's an indicator of a course playing 'easier.'
Ken
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Officially Underway
About 10 minutes before 7 a.m. EDT on Thursday, the players and caddies began arriving at the first tee at Pine Needles to begin the 2007 U.S. Women's Open. The sun was up and there wasn't a hint of a breeze. A few hundred people were gathered behind the white picket fence and in the grandstand that's situated behind the tee and 18th green. The first competitor to introduce herself to USGA walking Rules official Donnie Bowers was 1996 U.S. Girls' Junior and '99 U.S. Women's Amateur champion Dorothy Delasin. Next was three-time USGA champion (1994 Girls'; '95 and '96 Women's Amateur) Kelli Kuehne and she was followed by North Carolina native and 1995 U.S. Girls'/2000 Women's Amateur champion Marcy Hart (formerly Marcy Newton). That was the theme behind the first grouping to go off the first tee.
Brigid Lamb of the USGA Women's Committee then followed with the announcement that 1,251 competitors filed entries for the 2007 championship and after local and sectional qualifying, plus performances throughout the world, 156 advanced to play at Pine Needles, with the player having the lowest 72-hole score being declared the champion.
Hart was the first player called to the tee and the Winston-Salem, N.C., resident's tee shot went left into the rough on the par-5 hole. Kuehne and Delasin both found the fairway.
At another part of the course, Janice Gibson of Tulsa, Okla., who was a last-minute replacement for 1989 U.S. Girls' Junior champion Brandie Burton (withdrew due to an ankle injury), fired the first shot off the 10th tee in a group that featured all former U.S. Girls' Junior champions. Besides Burton, who won her title at Pine Needles, 1999 winner Aree Song and 2005 champ In-Kyung Kim teed off.
Incidentally, all six players parred the first hole.
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Wednesday, June 27, 2007
A Chance
Opportunity
. It's tough to achieve anything great without
it.
For sisters
Maria
and
Anastasia
Kostina
, the opportunity to play golf was
not one they expected growing up. Today, both women are beneficiaries of
college golf scholarships and up and coming Duramed Futures Tour players. This
week,
Maria
makes history as the first Russian
to ever play in the U.S. Women's Open. Anastasia will serve as her caddie,
having missed the qualifying cut.
When Anastasia played in the 2005 U.S. Women's Amateur, the
sisters reported that there were only 27 holes of championship-level golf in
the whole country. That's a bit hard to get your arms around when you consider
that here in the Sandhills region alone, there are more golf holes than in a
country that covers 11 percent of the Earth's land mass.
Maria
and Anastasia learned
to play the game through a free instruction program provided by the Moscow Golf
Club.
Maria
explained that her family would not
have afforded to put the girls in golf lessons any other way.
Maria
Moscow
but it exclusive and too pricey for most Russians to afford. states that another championship course has been built near Moscow but it exclusive and too pricey for most Russians to afford.
Maria exudes pride at representing her country and hopes
that what she and her sister are doing will help generate interest in the game
in their home country. "More facilities are what we need to get the game
going" she told me. "Hopefully some will be for kids and those who
can't afford it." The two also hope
to support these efforts financially someday.
Just as
Maria
and Anastasia
are shining examples of what can happen when an opportunity is provided, the
USGA is supporting this idea for kids and individuals with disabilities in the
U.S.
Through its 13-year, $65 million "For the Good of the Game" Grants
Initiative, the USGA supports programs that make the game more accessible to
people who otherwise might not have the opportunity to learn – economically - disadvantaged
kids, minority youth, girls and individuals with disabilities.
USGA grants also support the construction of accessible golf
facilities - some very much like the ones described by
Maria
.
To date, the USGA has awarded $56 million in grants to more
than 1,000 organizations and has seen
the fruits of supported programs in many ways. In 2006, three USGA champions
were alumni of USGA supported programs:
Tiffany
Joh
(U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links),
Kimberly
Kim
(U.S. Women's Amateur) and
Casey
Watabu
(U.S. Amateur Public Links). More
than 20 percent of the field at the 2006 U.S. Girls Junior was comprised of
current or former members of LPGA-USGA Girls Golf, a joint initiative of the
USGA and The LPGA Foundation designed to introduce girls to the game.
But, I don't believe that building future champions is the
USGA's goal with its Grants Initiative. In my work as a USGA Fellow and now the
USGA’s Grants Coordinator, I have learned that the more important goal is to
provide opportunities for kids and individuals with disabilities to dream big. The
Kostina sisters’ story is a perfect example of what can happen when those
dreams are given an opportunity to become reality. And I wouldn’t be surprised
if we see more of them in the near future coming out of USGA Supported
Programs.
Laura Erdman
USGA Grants Coordinator
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A Look Back
This is the 30th Women’s Open I’ve covered, for
one journalism forum or another. I played in two, as a career amateur (1965 and
1967) but didn’t make the cut. I’ve worked the Women’s Open since 1977, first
as editor of Woman Golfer Magazine, then
as an announcer on the
ABC
Sports telecast,
and for the last 10 years as the USGA’s Manager of Communications -
because I missed
one – 1981. I was co-anchoring SportsCenter for ESPN, which was not then owned
by ABC. This is the 30th
ABC
. When
ABC
asked me to again help do the broadcast, my affiliation with the cable network
couldn’t be reconciled, so I couldn’t do the
ABC
assignment. Too bad, because 1981 was the year when
Kathy
Whitworth
came so close to winning this one
title that has eluded her. Leading going into the fourth round,
Whitworth
told me that when she heard the rain falling hard on Saturday night, she knew
she was done for. LaGrange C.C. would play too long for her game, she said. So,
the great
Whitworth
had to bow to
Pat
Bradley
, who shot a record closing round and
took the title.
If I missed that one, I’ve still managed to see some of the
finest contests this championship has produced.
Here are the highlights, with the more off-beat memories in
parenthesis, of the first 10 years. Not
every year stands out for me as much as it did for the players, of course, but there
are some special memories. Over the next two days, I’ll attack the remaining 20
years:
1977: The year of the
zipper.
Hollis
Stacy
won at Hazeltine for the first of her three titles.
Nancy
Lopez
, a rookie professional who wasn’t even
a member of the LPGA was runner-up. (
Nancy
’s
zipper broke in the last round. She spent most of the day trying to preserve
her modesty by not bending over. This could be the only time that a broken
zipper determined the outcome.)
1978: Hollis won again, nailing a 4-foot par-putt on the 72nd green in near darkness to eclipse
JoAnne
Gunderson
Carner
and
Sally
Little by one stroke. (Interminable
rain delays. That we finished at all on a Sunday was remarkable. Hollis must
have jumped 4 feet in the air when she made that putt.)
1980:
Amy
Alcott
“edged” Hollis by nine strokes at
Richland C.C. in
Nashville
. Worst
heat imaginable. One reporter put a thermometer in a bunker and, as I recall,
it registered more than 120 degrees. (
ABC
Sports had the highest TV tower at the 18th I’ve ever been forced to
climb. I got up OK, but one of the technical staff had to talk me down, step by
step. I remember that
Jim
McKay
was as bit leery of heights too, but we did a nice broadcast, third cumulus
nimbus from the left. A few years later, the golf course was torn up to make
way for another new project of some sort.)
1982:
Janet
Alex
was the surprise winner at
Del
Paso
in
Sacramento
. (This
was the first year to see a lot of golf bags belonging to amateurs emblazoned
with college names. Title IX was kicking
in.
Betsy
Rawls
worked the tower assignment that week and I was out hoofing it as a reporter with
one of the last few groups.
Alex
was in my group.
With about six holes to go, I caught on to the fact that
Alex
’s
golf swing was really in a groove. Her rhythm was perfect. You could really
just see it. I found that fact
extremely exciting and said everything short of, “She’s going to win,” on those
last few holes. She did.)
1983:
Jan
Stephenson
won at Cedar Ridge C.C. in
Tulsa
.
As I recall, there were quite a few injuries and heat caused the players some
problems.
Sarah
Pillegi
, the fine Sports Illustrated reporter, had a great line in her story. Words to the effect, “Cedar Ridge
sounds more like the name of a hospital than a golf course.” This was the first
year I saw players such as
Pat
Bradley
regularly hitting tee shots of more than 240 yards. I was again on-course and
saw one of the greatest shots I’ve ever seen.
Stephenson
had
finished, I believe, and
JoAnne
Gunderson
Carner
was one stroke behind playing the 72nd hole. She hit her tee shot into a fairway bunker on the right. She had an
uphill lie with a protruding lip of grass in front of her ball. Carner smacked a
5-wood cleanly off the sand, over the lip, and with a slight fade carried her
ball to a very tight hole location just beyond a greenside bunker. She almost
made the birdie putt from about 15 feet. I later read that she said it was the best shot she’d ever hit on
television).
1986:
Jane
Geddes
won in an 18-hole playoff with Sally Little at
NCR
C.C. in
Dayton
,
Ohio
.
(
Dayton
certainly made an
impression. There was a chemical spill that week and massive thunderstorms with
lots of lightning made it interesting during one round. One USGA official was a
little slow in suspending play and I remember
Frank
Hannigan
, USGA Executive Director, in the
tower at 18 as a Rules person for
ABC
, just
shaking when he grabbed the radio and yelled, “Get those players off the
course!” As rain poured in torrents and lightning cracked,
Ayako
Okamoto
fell in a ditch and suffered a big
cut on her leg.)
1987: This was the
year that the powerful
Laura
Davies
made herself known. What a week! (The green superintendent at Plainfield C.C.
had whipped the course into greenness with lots of water. When it rained, which
was nearly every day, the rain water had no place to go and the course was
sloppy. Finally, the fourth round was scheduled for Monday.
Jim
McKay
, then
Jack
Whitaker
, the wonderful
ABC
anchors, had to leave for other assignments and it was just my good friend
Dave
Marr
and I left to anchor the telecast. Our
broadcast booth was on the second floor of the clubhouse, overlooking the 18th green. Mid-day on Saturday, a bolt of lightning struck so close to us that I
could feel it in my heart. It was
close. Toward the end of the week, I telephoned
Mickey
Wright
, which I used to do during the
Women’s Open, and she asked me to wish luck to a young player she liked. The
next morning I approached the player. “
Mickey
Wright
said to tell you good luck,” I
said. The young player said, “Tell him thank you.” So much for history!
Monday afternoon on the 72nd hole, Carner’s
second shot was barely in the fringe next to the green. If she got down in two,
she would win her 9th USGA title, tying
Bob
Jones
. People have forgotten how close she came. As she climbed up the hill,
every one of the 900 or so spectators jumped to their feet in a wild ovation. Even
with so few people, I have never heard such an ovation at a women’s golf event.
Carner later said that it rattled her so that she three-putted. Bogey. She fell
into a tie with
Laura
Davies
and
Ayako
Okamoto
.
Davies
won the playoff. This is the only Women’s Open of which
I’ve been a part that ended on Tuesday.)
Tomorrow I’ll tell
you of the time when really huge crowds began to show up at the Women’s Open,
when
Patty
Sheehan
birdied Oakmont’s 18th (yes, that 18th hole) to tie, Annika’s first victory and
Nancy
’s
closest bid. Until then!
Rhonda Glenn
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Catching Up At Women's Open
One of the cool things about coming to a U.S. Women's Open is catching up with former players you covered at USGA amateur championships. It's been awhile since I last covered one -- 2002 at Prairie Dunes -- and a lot those players have grown up. Ran into Jane Park on the range. I still vividly remember her run to the 2004 U.S. Women's Amateur, a year after she lost in the final. And I talked with Candie Kung, the 2001 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links winner. It's hard to believe it has been six years since she beat Missy Farr-Kaye at Kemper Lakes.
When I first got to the practice range, I saw former PGA Tour player Pat McGowan, better known around Pine Needles as Peggy Kirk Bell's son-in-law. His son, Michael, made match play the 2006 U.S. Amateur, Pat on the bag. Michael will be on the premises later this week. He's currently competing in the North and South Junior Amateur up the road at Pinehurst.
I also chatted briefly with newly hired Georgia women's coach Kelley Hester. Hester, a former Georgia player who played at the 1996 U.S. Women's Open at Pine Needles, took the job after spending the last five seasons at Arkansas. She is caddieing this week for Stacy Lewis, one of her former Arkansas players. Hester told me that if she was still at Arkansas, she could not caddie for Lewis because NCAA rules forbid it because it is deemed as extra coaching out of season. Now that Hester is at Georgia, she is no longer Lewis' coach, so she can work this week, along with do some recruiting since there are a lot of pre-college players in the field.
Lewis, a senior-to-be from The Woodlands, Texas, is one of the best amateurs in the country. She recently won the NCAA title, shooting a 66 in the final round. She also just helped the USA win the Copa de las Americas event in Canada last week under cold and windy conditions. And she won the 2007 Southern Amateur, beating two-time Curtis Cupper Virginia Derby Grimes in the final.
Lewis said she likes the Pine Needles setup and being a long hitter, she shouldn't be intimidated by the 6,640-yard layout. If she rolls the ball well on the Donald Ross greens, Lewis could be a legitimate contender. At the Kraft Nabisco Championship earlier this spring, she finished fifth.
This is a big week for the amateurs, especially those with U.S. passports as it is a great way to get on the radar screen for the 2008 Curtis Cup, which will be played next June in St. Andrews, Scotland. Lewis, Amanda Blumenherst and Jennie Lee have all built sound resumes to be selected (Blumenherst and Lee were on the 2005 team), but some of the younger players like 2007 WAPL champion Mina Harigae and WAPL medalist Tiffany Lua have a tremendous opportunity this week.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing some great golf this week. One thing to keep in mind when trying to pick a winner: the last two champions at Pine Needles have been the previous year's winner, so that trend bodes well for defender Annika Sorenstam, who won here in 1996. Just a thought.
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Warm
It's another barn-burner out there today. Not so much the heat as it is the humidity. But it's not a big deal. Not to the players anyway. They're used to playing in all kinds of conditions. Still, there's nothing like feeling drenched from perspiration then walking into an igloo that is sometimes the media center. They've done a commendable job of keeping the penguins and polar bears out so far this week. In other words, media center temperatures aren't normally moderated. It's usually cold, freezing and Antarctica.
While hanging out at the range this morning, several players gathered around Alexis Thompson to watch her hit. Then they made friendly talk with her, seemingly amazed at her ball-striking ability. Thompson, 12, does seem to be soaking up the experience. It's good to see her smiling.
Laura Davies still attracts a crowd too. She booms the ball a looooong way. It's fun to watch.
Ken
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Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Same Wie
Have to hand it to Michelle Wie. She has goals and won't back off them even after being scrutinized recently by Annika Sorenstam. She came into the media center, big smile plastered on her face, and gave her standard answers to questions.
Is her wrist healed? Sort of. She said it's getting better. We shall find out soon.
Ken
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Monday, June 25, 2007
Out And About
Spent about six hours on the course today
just trying to gather information. Not all of it, of course, will make
it into a story. Much of it simply is much-needed insight. I got some
of that from a respected caddie I see about six or seven times a year.
Good guy. Not because he feeds me information but because he's really
down to earth. We have similar interests, which helps.
The larger point I'm trying to make is that you have to work your
sources. There are always nuggets of information out there. Whether
they make you go 'Ahhhh' is another tale. In the grand scheme of
things, a circumstance, a clumsy situation will be understood more
clearly down the road.
Some of these sources, of course, are players too. It has helped going
through the junior ranks with some of them. They're people; not just
sources. They have families; believe or not, they do mortal things too.
It was rather funny today watching one scrum encircle Morgan Pressel.
One reporter asked her what she likes to do for fun and relaxation.
Pressel is a device geek: loves her computer, Blackberry, iPod,
anything electronic. But when she talked about one device, you would
have thought she orally answered the secret to life from the media
reaction. "Ahhh," a few of them nodded in amazement. Please note, I am
not insinuating that those in the media are of low IQ. Not at all.
This shifts us into what I mentioned earlier. You have to work your
sources and/or get to know them a little bit. There are those brethren
who will nod at anything, smiling foolishly as though the player is the
second coming of Jerry Seinfeld. Many players are personable, but
again, don't try to pump them up. They see right through it more times
than not.
Time for a complete segue into something else. Have to hand it to Peggy
Kirk Bell, owner of Pine Needles. She was out in her cart today under a
beating sun (when out) in humid conditions. And there she was
attracting a crowd in her blue blazer, sitting in the uncovered cart
signing autographs and posing for pictures. She certainly is legendary
in these parts; scratch that, in all of golf.
By the way, my name is Ken and I'll be your ringleader this week. A
little late for introductions, I know, but as mentioned above I had to
pound the course today to get the lay of the land (i.e. talk to
interview subjects).
We'll use this space as updates and to answer questions when need be. Please, don't be shy. We'll be here.
Ken
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Greetings
And we're back. Back from last year, where we blogged from Newport Country Club. Once again, our purpose this week will to blog about anything ancillary to the championship that wouldn't necessarily make it into update or story form.
This year marks a special Women's Open for me on a personal level. The 2001 edition, when it was here, was my first championship with the USGA. A couple of memories stand out: a precocious Morgan Pressel, all of 13 years of age, stealing the show during her media interview session and Karrie Webb's dominance that week. That was during an era when Annika Sorenstam was trying to catch Webb as the best player in the world.
Ken Klavon
USGA Web Editor
kklavon@usga.org
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