Pebble Beach is one of those places where people come to rejuvenate their mind, body and soul. From the breathtaking vistas to its iconic golf courses and world-class amenities, it’s hard not to become a new person in this remarkable region of the world.
Just ask Bailey Tardy.
A struggling LPGA Tour rookie who had to earn her card via the Q-Series last fall after finishing outside the top 10 on the Epson Tour money list by less than $2,000 – the top 10 are guaranteed LPGA cards – has found something through two rounds of the 78th U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links.
On Friday, Tardy, 26, of Norcross, Ga., who had missed five cuts in 10 LPGA Tour events, used her 7 a.m. tee time to full advantage, posting a second-consecutive round in the 60s on the 6,424-yard, par-72 layout to grab the 36-hole lead. Buoyed by a front-nine 31, which included an eagle-3 on the sixth hole and a birdie on the par-3 seventh hole on consecutive days, Tardy carded a 4-under 68 in cool but overcast conditions to match the championship’s lowest round.
At 7-under 137, the 2016 USA Curtis Cup competitor and former University of Georgia All-American leads Allisen Corpuz and 2014 Amundi Evian champion Hyo Joo Kim by two strokes. Hae Ran Ryu (72) is four strokes back, while Leona Maguire (74) and 2021 runner-up Nasa Hataoka (74) were the only other players under par through 36 holes at 143.
Coming off a missed cut in the year’s second major two weeks ago, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Baltusrol Golf Club, Tardy used the brief hiatus to work on her putting. She even contemplated ditching her flatstick, but instead put the club in a brief “timeout for three or four days,” while adding a Simpsons-themed headcover.
“I think I hit 16 out of 18 greens first round at KPMG and shot 4 over,” said Tardy, “so it was on my putting there. I really focused on that in the off week, and it's worked out, I guess.”
Actually, where she’s done most of her damage the first two days is from the fairway at a venue known for being a second-shot course. Tardy ranks No. 1 in strokes gained approach at +4.57 and is tied for first in greens in regulation (28 of 36), a vital statistic considering Pebble has some of the smallest green complexes in golf (average size of 3,500 square feet).
Add it all up and two of Tardy’s seven rounds in the 60s this season have come at this seaside paradise.
It did help that she laced a 307-yard drive on the par-5 sixth that set up a 183-yard approach to 4 feet to set up the eagle. And with favorable wind on No. 7, she knocked her tee shot on the 107-yard hole to 3 feet. Two holes later, she left herself a 108-yard approach on the 434-yard, par-4 that she stuck to 8 feet for what would be the day’s final birdie, although she had one more birdie chance on the par-5 closing hole but missed from 7 feet.
“Honestly I'm just enjoying the moment,” said Tardy, competing in her fourth U.S. Women’s Open but first since turning professional in 2017. “I'm leading the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, and I think that's just something so special. I’m trying not to get too ahead of myself. There's so much golf left.”
Kim, the runner-up in 2018, briefly reached 7 under for the championship with a birdie on the par-4 first hole, her 10th of the day, but closed with consecutive birdies on Nos. 8 and 9, statistically the hardest (4.69) and sixth-toughest (4.30) in Round 2.
Corpuz, 25, of Kapolei, Hawaii, was a member of the victorious 2021 USA Curtis Cup Team in Wales before turning professional. The former University of Southern California standout added a 2-under 70 to the 69 she posted on Thursday.
