DUBLIN, Ohio (AP-CP) _ The South Korean contingent is once again
leading the way at the Wendy's Championship for Children.
Defending champion, and Canadian Open winner, Cristie Kerr ran
into problems down the stretch to leave Soo-Yun Kang and Jee Young
Lee atop the leaderboard through Friday's second round.
``I had it going all day until the last couple of holes,'' Kerr
said, adding she was ``furious'' with her finish.
Kang shot a 6-under 66 and Lee had a 67 to share the top spot at
11-under 133 at the tournament's midpoint.
The four Canadians are not faring as well and are all in danger
of missing the cut.
Charlottetown's Lorie Kane is tied for 74th after shooting a
minus-1 to sit at plus-1, 12 strokes behind the co-leaders, while
Dawn Coe-Jones of Campbell River, B.C., ended the second round tied
for 93rd after shooting a plus-3 to finish the round at plus-3.
Hamilton, Ont.'s Alena Sharp and Nancy Harvey of Swift Current,
Sask. are further down the leaderboard tied at 111th and 131st after
firing a plus-5 and plus-4, respectively.
``We are very friendly,'' Kang said of the relationship between
the 32 South Koreans on the LPGA Tour. ``After we finish a round, we
go to dinner sometimes, and we drink. We talk a lot.''
They have a lot to discuss. No fewer than 12 South Koreans are
among the top 30 on the tour money list. They've already won nine
times this season.
Lee said there is a natural rivalry between the players but all
is forgotten off the course.
``I cannot deny the competition among Korean players,'' she said.
``But on the other hand, I know that golf is actually against one's
self.''
Se Ri Pak opened the door for South Koreans with four wins in
1998. Since then they have made themselves right at home.
Pak has collected five major championships among her 23
victories, while Mi Hyun Kim, Hee-Won Han, Jeong Jang, Birdie Kim
and Gloria Park have all made names for themselves. Seon-Hwa Lee is
11th on the money list and the frontrunner for rookie of the year,
with pressure from Lee, who is 22nd.
Sweden's Mikaela Parmlid shot her second consecutive 67 and was a
shot back along with Colombia's Marisa Baena, who had a 65 to match
the low round of the day with two more Koreans, Joo Mi Kim and Young
Kim.
Things finally came together for Parmlid.
``I've been playing amazing the last three weeks really, and I
haven't putted well,'' she said. ``So finally I talked to my teacher
right before the tournament, he helped me out a little bit and the
putts started dropping.''
Brittany Lincicome, Lorena Ochoa and Karrie Webb each had a 68 to
stand two strokes back at 135. Paula Creamer had a double-bogey on
the second hole but mustered her second 68 and was at 136 along with
Joo-Mi Kim (65), Stacy Prammanasudh (70) and Ai Miyazato (68).
``You walk away with a double and you're not really feeling too
good about yourself,'' Creamer said. ``But I fought back and had
three birdies in a row and then birdied No. 9. Things happen like
that and you just have to overcome it and come back.''
Kerr was the hottest player on the course for most of the day but
faltered at the finish. She three-putted the 17th for bogey and then
pulled her second shot into a small creek on the par-4 18th. She had
to settle for a double that capped a 67 and left her at 137.
``I just made an absolutely horrendous swing on the last hole,''
she said as she hurried to the fitness trailer for therapy on a sore
neck. ``All I had to do was hit it to the right side of the green
and it would kick down to the hole. It was an awful, awful shot.''
Even after giving away three shots to par on the final two holes,
she was only four back of the leaders.
``It's really hard right after I walk off the green to be
positive about it but I'm sure by the time I relax and get my neck
worked on, I'll look back on the overall day instead of the
finish,'' she said. ``But right now I'm furious.''
Prammanasudh, Lee, Katie Futcher and Kristal Parker-Manzo shared
the first-round lead at 66. Futcher, a rookie, came back with a 73
while Parker-Manzo, who said she would retire after this tournament,
faded to a 76.
With the greens holding, the leaders vowed to continue firing at
pins _ possibly leading to the lowest 72-hole scores of the year on
tour.
``If the greens stay receptive, it could be a possibility that
20-under could win the tournament,'' Baena said.
