Moving day at Grey Silo certainly did not disappoint, as Gerina Piller set the tournament record at the Manulife Financial LPGA Classic with a 9-birdie 62, only to have it broken a couple of hours later by Hee Young Park, whose 61 gave her a 1-shot lead on 1st-round co-leader Angela Stanford (64, -19), a 2-shot lead on 2nd-round leader Catriona Matthew (68, -18), and a 3-shot lead on Meena Lee (65, -17). Having roared into the lead with a 29 on the back that was sparked by 6 3s in a row from the par-4 8th through the par-4 13th, Park is well aware that no 54-hole lead is truly safe in Waterloo. And with Anna Nordqvist only 5 back, Piller, Amy Yang, and Austin Ernst 6 behind, and Inbee Park and Suzann Pettersen "only" 7 off the pace, the Rocket isn't taking anything for granted. After all, 20 players have not yet strayed into the 70s yet this week. Heck, if Hanna Kang is throwing a 64 at the field, like she did today, a round in the low or mid 60s could come from anywhere tomorrow. Only time will tell from where!
[Update 1 (8:52 am): Nice quick write-up from Ruthless Mike! Note that all the 64s that have been registered this week rightly don't even register on his radar!]
3 comments:
One of the things I'm watching for today is the race for the last two Solheim Cup captain's picks. Gerina Piller tied for 6th (-14). Michelle Wie and Jennifer Johnson tied for 16th place (-10). Johnson has a win this year and I think that and her Rolex Ranking puts her on the team. Wie has the 1.5 point lead in the Solheim Cup points but Piller is 24 places ahead in the Rolex Rankings and has 4 top-ten finishes this year.
sports medic
Definitely worth a close look!
Right now Wie at 13 in points looks to be out, with Piller and Johnson in as captain's picks. Pressel has the last automatic spot, maybe, in next week's Rolex--but she is certainly vulnerable.
Wie has to outplay someone ahead of her in the next two events to get a captain's pick. But what does that mean? This week Pressel was T26 worth no points, but still a good result for a marginal Solheim Cup player. A couple of results like that could put Wie ahead of a player just ahead of her in points, but who misses the next two cuts. On the other hand, a couple of solid results like that could keep a player ahead of Wie even if Wie passes her in points.
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