It's all part of a grand plan
Late birdie binge boosts Sorenstam
HAVRE DE GRACE, Md. -- Precision and power stepped to the forefront in yesterday's second round of the
But so, too, did the perplexing Se Ri Pak, who offered notable news at the other end of the results. The once-dominant player missed the cut in a major championship for the first time in her eight-year career. Having gone 29 for 29 since her debut in 1998, Pak greeted the news with a shrug of the shoulders, her trips of 75-78 having left her far down the list.
''I'm disappointed, because the last seven years I have had unbelievable success," said Pak, who at 27 is a four-time major winner and automatic Hall of Fame inductee once she completes her 10th season, in 2007. But after ranking second on the money list each of the previous three seasons, Pak fell to 11th a year ago and is noticeably off her game and struggling to get it back.
''I know the answers," said Pak, who emphasized she is not frustrated, even though in her last 21 tournaments she has missed seven cuts and had just one top-10 finish. ''If I play well, that's good. If not, that's good, too."
It's a philosophical picture Sorenstam doesn't have to focus on. The incomparable Swede continues to rule the women's golf world with a cool demeanor and deadly iron game. Having taken note of the 2-under-par 70 that Davies had shot to get into the clubhouse lead at 7-under 137, Sorenstam played 13 holes in a quiet 2 under to get within a shot, then put on one of her vintage finishing touches to serve notice that she is in charge.
At the 372-yard, par-4 14th, a sand wedge to 2 feet.
At the 330-yard, par-4 16th, a sand wedge to 3 feet.
At the 171-yard, par-3 17th, a 7-iron to 2 feet.
Birdie, birdie, birdie. A round of 67 to push to 135 and with a two-shot lead over Davies and three over Natalie Gulbis (71--138), Sorenstam is in position to win her second straight major of the season and keep alive her dream of a historic Grand Slam.
''I could not have asked for a better start," said Sorenstam, already a winner in five of her seven starts this season.
And Davies was hardly surprised, even after a roller coaster ride of four bogeys, four birdies, and one eagle had afforded her the top spot on the leaderboard. Sorenstam was about to tee off, so Davies surveyed the landscape and shook her head.
''She'll probably be around 10 [under] by the end of the day," said Davies, and later it was suggested that she was joking.
''That's no joke," said the Englishwoman, renowned for her passion for casinos and all things with odds, which is reflected in her style of play -- hell-bent and go-for-broke. ''That's a fact. I'll be more surprised if she's not 9 or 10 [under]. She hasn't had a bogey yet this week. She's getting on my nerves."
The machine-like Sorenstam missed the green at the par-5 11th with a wedge in her hands, failed to get it up-and-down, and made a 6 to fall one behind Davies. It halted a bogey-free stretch of 54 holes, dating to last week's win in New Jersey, but more than that, it rekindled the spirit that drives Sorenstam. Though she failed to birdie the par-5 15th to extend her surprisingly lackluster play on the long holes (one birdie, one bogey, six pars), Sorenstam caught fire coming home to get into a position she cherishes.
The frontrunner.
''I felt like [Davies's 7 under] was a score that I could reach and pass," said Sorenstam. ''I like to be up there by the end of the day."
For good reason. Sorenstam has led this tournament after 36 holes each of the last two years and gone on to win. Or that she has won 14 straight times with the 36-hole lead. Or that in her career she has won 30 of the 46 events in which she has led after two rounds.
All contributing factors to the long odds against Davies, but at 41, she is not about to change her style. She'll attack, apply whatever pressure she is capable of, and do her darndest to end a winless stretch on the LPGA Tour that goes back to 2001. There's nothing Davies can do about Sorenstam's mastery of the fairways and greens; there's also nothing she'll alter about her game plan.
''It's built for a long hitter," said Davies of Bulle Rock. ''There's a few risks that you can take."
At the 596-yard 11th, for instance. Davies each day has pounded driver off the tee in a determined bid to reach in two. Sorenstam chooses to attack with a 4-wood drive, 4-wood approach. Or at the 330-yard 16th. Whereas Sorenstam later chose to hit a safe 7-wood to get in play (she birdied), Davies ripped a driver to the front of the green, then chipped in for eagle.
It was an effective use of her power, but Davies was sloppy with the deft clubs -- three-putting twice, missing another green with a wedge -- that led to four bogeys, hardly a blueprint to catch Sorenstam.
Still, Davies is just two shots behind: ''Not like when [Sorenstam] was in Atlanta [leading by six through 36, winning by 10] where no one could get to her. If you're within five, you still feel like you've got a chance."
Hours later, the suffocating heat had hardly relaxed its grip when Pak signed her card behind the ninth green
''Playing golf," she said, slowly shaking her head, ''you need luck, too."
Precision and power help, too.
