Bethlehem, July 11: Cristie Kerr shot a one-under-par 70 on Friday to take a one-stroke lead over fellow-American Paula Creamer at the halfway mark of the US
Women’s Open at Saucon Valley’s Old Course.
Kerr, the 2007 champion, stood at three-under-par 139, while Creamer drained a 35-footer to birdie the last and finish with a 68 for 140.
Another stroke back was unheralded American Jean Reynolds. The 24-year-old Futures Tour player shot 72.
“I played great,” said 31-year-old Kerr, who has three other top-10 showings in the championship besides her victory.
“The mindset for the weekend is you have to be focused on every shot and you got to be paying attention on every shot.”
Tied for fourth on level-par 142 were first-round leader Choi Na-yeon of South Korea, who posted 74, and Giulia Sergas of Italy, who fired a tournament low 67 despite bogeying the 18th.
Kerr, Reynolds and world number one Lorena Ochoa of Mexico were one shot back of Choi after the first round but found themselves tied for the lead when they teed off in the afternoon wave.
Unlike Kerr, Ochoa failed to take advantage and posted an eight-over-par 79 for 148. “It was the whole package, everything was bad today,” she said.
That was still good enough to qualify for weekend play as 72 players made the cut that was set at nine-over-par 151.
Among those missing the cut were 1998 champion Pak Se-ri of South Korea (153), 2008 LPGA Championship winner Yani Tseng of Taiwan (156) and 13-year-old amateur Feng Yueer of China (164).
South Koreans Ji Eun-hee (72) and Kim Song-hee (69) were tied on 143, one shot better than a large group that included Australian Lindsey Wright, American Kraft Nabisco winner Brittany Lincicome and American amateur Alexis Thompson.
The 14-year-old Thompson added a 73 to her opening 71. Kerr had a roller-coaster round that shot her to four-under and a three-stroke lead after three successive birdies from the 15th, her sixth hole of the day. After the turn she bogeyed two in a row and then immediately birdied the next two.
“I made a couple of bad shots and that led to a couple of bogeys in the middle of the round, but I played great,” said Kerr, who has one win and seven other top-10s this season.
“I made a lot of birdies and got the momentum back when I needed it.”
Creamer, who declared herself pain-free after taking shots for an injured thumb that kept her out of the last two tournaments, made five birdies against two bogeys.
She saved the best for last by sinking the big-breaking birdie putt at 18 that brought a thunderous roar from the gallery.
“It’s exciting,” said Creamer, an eight-time winner on the tour seeking her maiden major. “That was nice on the last hole in front of everybody.”
—Agencies