Southern California's No. 1 Golf Source
SITE
SEARCH
GOLF RESOURCE GUIDE:
News
|
||||
|
After a lackluster 2008 season, Brittany Lincicome is looking to make amends — starting at the Kraft Nabisco Championship. The 23-year-old Floridian grabbed the early lead at the LPGA Tour’s first major of the year, making eight birdies en route to an opening six-under-par 66 at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage. Lincicome, who won in both 2006 and 2007, made only 10 of 21 cuts last year and finished 92nd on the money list after finishing in the top 14 in each of the previous two campaigns. She didn’t blow anybody away in her first three events of 1’09, making a pair of cuts and finishing no better than tied for 39th. Despite spotty play recently, the powerful player has had success in the desert before, finishing one shot behind winner Morgan Pressel in 2007. A trio of players finished the first round a shot behind Lincicome at five-under par — Americans Angela Stanford and Brittany Lang and Korean Ji Young Oh. Michelle Wie, playing in her first Kraft Nabisco since she tied for third in 2006, had an up-and-down day but still posted a one-under 71 to finish inside the top 20. Defending champion Lorena Ochoa’s day was a bit more down than Wie’s. Ochoa, the No. 1 player in the world, hit only four fairways and needed 31 putts to register a one-over 73. That’s a far cry from the 68 she opened with on her way to winning last year. Other prominent competitors: -Beaumont’s Yani Tseng, the reigning LPGA Rookie of the Year, fired a three-under-par 69 and is tied for fifth. -Australian Katherine Hull, a Pepperdine alumna, also shot 69. -American Paula Creamer, considered by many to be the national favorite this week, opened with a solid two-under-par 70. -Natalie Gulbis, who played in the Kraft Nabisco Celebrity Pro-Am with former boyfriend and Super Bowl quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, tallied a 71. For up-to-the-minute scores, visit lpga.com. Check back daily for more from the Kraft Nabisco Championship. Also, check out Southland Golf on Twitter. |
||||
RSS Subscribe
