Wetlands, Louisiana lives up to its name!

Futures Tour event hit by bad weather

By LISA D MICKEY
LAFAYETTE, Louisiana., April 18 – The second round of the $90,000 Louisiana Pelican Classic was suspended this afternoon due to dangerous weather conditions. Seventy players completed the second round, while 72 players will return to The Wetlands Golf Course Sunday at 7:30 a.m. CDT to finish.
Barring more inclement weather, the second round is expected to be completed Sunday around 11:45 a.m. local time. Once the 36-hole cut is made, the final round is expected to start around 12:15 p.m., utilizing both the first and 10th tees.
“We’ll finish the final round tomorrow, weather permitting, but Monday is a consideration,” said Christy Barks, vice president of tournament operations for the Duramed Futures Tour. “We’re preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.”
The Wetlands was exactly that this morning after heavy rains saturated the course, making it unplayable for the original first tee times at 8 a.m. Tour officials issued a two-hour delay to allow water to drain. Standing water on the tees and landing areas of several fairways made play impossible when the day began.
By day’s end, second-year player Whitney Myers of York, Pa., held the clubhouse lead among those who have completed 36 holes. The former University of Florida Gator bounced back from a 76 on Friday to a four-under-par score of 68 today to improve from a tie for 81st into a current tie for 20th at even-par 144.
Becky Lucidi (70) of Poway, Calif., Gerina Mendoza (71) of Roswell, New Mexico, and two-time winner Stephanie George (70) of Myerstown, Pa., all moved up the leaderboard into a current clubhouse tie for second at 146 (+2).
“I feel like I actually played like a professional golfer today,” said Myers. “I was really calm and in the back of my mind, I was thinking about Liz Janangelo’s round yesterday. We all wondered how she did that [shot a 65 on a windy day]. Now, I know how it’s done.”
Myers did her Janangelo imitation when she also put together a string of five consecutive birdies in today’s second round, starting with Nos. 12 (10 feet), 13 (10 feet), 14 (1 foot), 15 (eight feet) and 16 (six feet). She hit 16 greens in regulation on a muddy day in which players were allowed to lift, clean and place the ball.
“I haven’t been making anything, so I’ve really been working on my putting,” said Myers. “Last week on our off-week, that’s all I did – just work entirely on my putting. It finally paid off today.”
Mendoza’s scorecard was decorated with circles and squares for her last five holes, with a birdie on the 14th, a bogey on the 15th, then a birdie on the 16th to again reach three under for the round. But bogeys on the 17th and 18th holes allowed her only to finish at one under for the day, improving from 64th into a tie for 43rd.
With the delayed tee times, overall tournament leader Liz Janangelo of West Hartford, Conn., was pushed back from her 2:30 p.m. start to a start at 4:30 p.m., with angry gray clouds already shrouding the low-lying course. She took par on the first hole and was in the middle of the fairway of the second hole when the suspension horns were blown.
“It’s OK,” said the former Duke University All-American. “I’ve gotta find my lucky ball mark tonight. I think I left it in the pocket of my Golftini skirt from yesterday.”
Weather: Cloudy with temperatures in mid-70s with wind between 13-18 mph. Rain beginning around 4:40 p.m. local time, with play suspended for dangerous weather at 4:50 p.m.
COMPLETED SECOND ROUND TOTALS
Par 144 (2 x 72) 6421yd
6421-yard, par 36-36 - 72 The Wetlands, Lafayette, La. (a-denotes amateur):
Whitney Myers (York. Pa.) 76-68 - 144
Becky Lucidi (Poway, Calif.) 76-70 - 146
Stephanie George (Myerstown, Pa.) 76-70 - 146
Gerina Mendoza (Roswell, N.M.) 75-71 - 146
Michaela Cavener (Ponca City, Okla.) 76-71 - 147
Janice Olivencia (Caguas, Puerto Rico) 76-71 - 147
Lee Ann Walker-Cooper (Southport, N.C.) 76-71 - 147
Jessica Carafiello (Coral Springs, Fla.) 75-72 - 147
Noon Huachai (Bangkok, Thailand) 78-70 - 148
Pornanong Phatlum (Chaiyaphum, Thailand) 75-73 - 148
Jenna Pearson (Wheaton, Ill.) 75-73 - 148
Susan Nam (Edmonton, Alberta) 75-73 - 148
Violeta Retamoza (Aguascalientes, Mexico) 76-73 - 149
Carol Robertson (Virginia Beach, Va.) 79-70 - 149
Sophia Sheridan (Guadalajara, Mexico) 77-73 - 150
Devan Andersen (Guadalajara, Mexico) 80-70 - 150
Sara Brown (Tucson, Ariz.) 76-74 - 150
Carling Coffing (Middletown, Ohio) 75-75 - 150
Rachel Bailey (Faulconbridge, Australia) 77-74 - 151
Lisa Meldrum (Montreal, Quebec) 77-74 - 151
Sookhee Baek (Altamonte Springs, Fla.) 77-74 - 151
Dana Je (Orlando, Fla.) 76-75 - 151
Jennifer Ackerson (Dallas, Texas) 79-72 - 151
Brandi Jackson (Greenville, S.C.) 76-75 - 151
Dewi-Claire Schreefel (Netherlands) 75-76 - 151
Y. J. Jin (Seoul, South Korea) 77-75 - 152
Maggie Simons (Raleigh, N.C.) 77-75 - 152
Kim Augusta (Rumford, R.I.) 77-75 - 152
Moon Su (Incheon, South Korea) 78-74 - 152
Cindy Lee-Pridgen (Sabah, Malaysia) 78-74 - 152
Heather Angell (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 76-76 - 152
Esther Choe (Scottsdale, Ariz.) 76-76 - 152
Gina Umeck (Redlands, Calif.) 80-72 - 152
Kim Welch (Sacramento, Calif.) 81-71 - 152
Kelly Lagedrost (Brooksville, Fla.) 77-76 - 153
Kimberly Goedecke (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.) 77-76 - 153
Erina Yamato (Yamagata, Japan) 76-77 - 153
Tiffany Prats (Williston, Fla.) 79-74 - 153
Stephanie Kim (a) (Orlando, Fla.) 79-74 - 153
Whitney Wade (Glasgow, Ky.) 75-78 - 153
Benedikte Grotvedt (Nesbru, Norway) 78-76 - 154
Stacey Tate (Auckland, New Zealand) 76-78 - 154
Stephanie Oukeo (Paris, France) 76-78 - 154
Lindsey Bergeon (Sarasota, Fla.) 79-75 - 154
Marci Turner (Tompkinsville, Ky.) 80-74 - 154
Marcela Leon (Monterrey, Mexico) 80-74 - 154
Katie Miller (Jeannette, Pa.) 77-78 - 155
Jenny Suh (Fairfax, Va.) 78-77 - 155
Malinda Johnson (Eau Claire, Wis.) 76-79 - 155
Laura Bavaird (Grosse Ile, Mich.) 80-75 - 155
Michelle Jarman (Wilmington, N.C.) 76-79 - 155
Jieun Oh (Je Ju, South Korea) 78-78 - 156
Kylene Pulley (Kokomo, Ind.) 81-75 - 156
Taya Battistella (Bend, Ore.) 81-75 - 156
Jessica Shepley (Oakville, Ontario) 77-80 - 157
Katie Fraley (Brandenburg, Ky.) 79-78 - 157
Susan Choi (Natick, Mass.) 76-81 - 157
Sam White (Potomac, Md.) 76-82 - 158
Dana Bates (Thousand Palms, Calif.) 80-78 - 158
Georgette Rolle (Nassau, Bahamas) 81-77 - 158
Sin Ah Ham (Seoul, South Korea) 81-77 - 158
Kelly Froelich (Raizeux, France) 84-75 - 159
Santie Koch (Potgietersrus, South Africa) 78-82 - 160
Bridget Dwyer (Kailua, Hawaii) 78-82 - 160
Lorraine Ballerano (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) 78-83 - 161
Moah Chang (Los Angeles, Calif.) 78-83 - 161
Renee Skidmore (Everett, Wash.) 81-80 - 161
Jill Frantz (Iowa City, Iowa) 81-80 - 161
Tzu-Chi Lin (Taichung, Taiwan) 83-78 - 161
Eva Yoe (Hong Kong, China) 84-77 - 161