Oh comes out swinging

Teen shoots 67 to earn share of lead

Ji Young Oh, 19, carded seven birdies and had eight 3s in Round 1 of the US Women's Open. (David Cannon/Getty Images)

EDINA, Minn. - Committed to her job of informing fans by the 10th green who was approaching, the woman working the scoreboard was determined to be accurate, no matter how many letters it took.

NIRAPATHPONGPORN, read the name. Next, the woman put up GRZEBIEN.

Twenty-four letters and not a one of them out of place, even if each name spilled over to the column where the score would go. So it was a shame when the careful work had to be taken down quickly. Virada Nirapathpongporn and Anna Grzebien were in the 12:30 p.m. group and what was approaching was the 7 a.m. group.

If the mistake had caused even the least bit of discontent, it shouldn't have. By day's end, the first-round leaderboard in the 63d US Women's Open was confounding for all concerned.

Ji Young Oh with a share of the lead at 6-under-par 67? Song-Hee Kim third at 68? Maria Jose Uribe outshining the world's best player and the defending champion to get into joint fourth with a 69? A 20-year-old amateur named Sydnee Michaels with one of the better scores by an American? Heralded players Lorena Ochoa (73) and Annika Sorenstam (75) combining for five birdies against seven bogeys? Michelle Wie shooting herself out of the competition on one hole?

It was all in a day's adventure at a Donald Ross design that features five par 5s, elevated greens, false fronts, and a remarkable walk amid tree-lined fairways.

What could be seen after 156 players had signed scorecards was a leaderboard topped by Oh and Pat Hurst, whose afternoon assault on Interlachen was one of the bright spots for the Americans, as only four (Paula Creamer, 70; Brittany Lang and Michaels at 71) sit within the top 20. With Kim alone in third, Uribe - the reigning US Women's Amateur champ from Colombia - is tied for fourth with Louise Friberg and Ji-Ya Shin, while Creamer is next, tied with Catriona Matthew, Laura Davies, and Helen Alfredsson, a trio of players who offer proof that not everyone in this field has a hall pass from daycare; it only seems that way.

"It's the nature of the game," said Heather Daly-Donofrio, hardly surprised to hear that 18 percent of the field (28 of 156) consists of teenagers.

Daly-Donofrio turned pro when she was 24 and played in her first US Women's Open two years later, so she obviously wasn't a trendsetter, because her playing competitor, Michaels, isn't even out of college and already she's in her third US Women's Open. The field is littered with similar examples, including 13-year-old Alexis Thompson, already playing in her second national championship.

Daly-Donofrio, content that her 74 had featured solid ball-striking, sighed. They are splendid players, "so seasoned, so poised," she said, but . . .

"I still think it's too much, too soon, and I worry how long they'll play into their careers."

But it's doubtful that such a thought was on Uribe's mind as she stood on the first tee with her playing competitors - the irrepressible Ochoa with 23 career wins; and the grim-faced Cristie Kerr with a firm grip on last year's US Women's Open trophy.

"I was trying not to play aggressive," said Uribe, 18. "I was just trying to have fun today."

Somewhere, the Cyndi Lauper music must be playing, because indeed the girls just wanted to have fun, and even those who didn't factor in high leaderboard positions made their presences felt.

Fourteen-year-old Victoria Tanco of Colombia holed out from the fairway for the only eagle at the par-4 ninth and thus needed seven fewer shots than Wie, whose quintuple bogey there was the lowlight in her dismal 81.

Cyd Okino, also 14, didn't make a birdie and shot 79, but she and 16-year-old Kimberly Kim (77) made sure it would be Wie who would finish with the highest score of the girls from Hawaii.

On a day when the field average was 75.53 and 32 broke par, eight of those who shot 2 under or better were 20 or younger.

While second-year LPGA Tour member Oh, 19, had a performance in which she made seven birdies and dotted her scorecard with eight 3s, Uribe clearly was the best young story in a day filled with them. She birdied the ninth to make the turn in 1 under, then birdied the par-4 18th to come home in 4-under 33 and steal the thunder from her more heralded playing competitors. Along the way, her fiery fist pump and wide smile drew accolades.

"They just come from my body," she said. "Maybe it's the Latin fire."

That's always been an Ochoa trademark, but it was missing in yet another lackluster start in the US Women's Open. In eight tries, Ochoa has never broken par in an opening round, though she made birdies at three of the final five holes to at least salvage an even-par score, which left her tied for 33d.

"I'm really happy with my even par," she said. "I know there are some low scores today, but at the same time I think I'm still in it and that's what's important."

Later in the day, Sorenstam went 2 under through seven holes, but 4 over on her next 11, including bogeys on two par 5s. Sloppy stuff, though she didn't quite see it that way after settling into joint 66th, her worst first-round position in this championship since 1997.

"I'm hitting the ball beautifully. Maybe just one shot here or there that I missed," she said.

Sounds like the oldest story in golf. On a day when the youngest ones took hold.

Jim McCabe can be reached at jmccabe@globe.com.