GERMAN'S CAROLINE MASSON IS SHOCK CARNOUSTIE LEADER
CAROLINE MASSON, SNATCHED THE LEAD IN THE LAST HALF-HOUR OF PLAY THIS EVENING AT CARNOUSTIE. Image by Cal Carson Golf Agency.
By COLIN FARQUHARSON
Caroline, out in 32, birdied the short 13th, the 15th and the long 17th to get to 11 under par and take over the pole position from the long-time leader in the clubhouse, South Korea’s Inbee Park.
Masson, playing in the 48th and last group off the tee at 3.30pm, tagged on a bogey-free, seven-birdie 65 to her first-day 68 for a 36-hole total of 133.
Playing one group behind, overnight leader, Meena Lee (South Korea Inbee Park
“It’s an awesome feeling to be leading the British Open at halfway,” said Caroline, a 22-year-old from Gladbach and the daughter of a club tennis professional coach.
“I have had two great days and, yes, I will be nervous going out in the last group on Saturday in the championship. But I have been playing very well this season. It’s all coming together.
“I’ve hit the ball well over the past two days … I’ve putted well.”
Masson has played the US college circuit as a student at Oklahoma State University.
"I only stayed a year but I really enjoyed it and gained from the experience. I had so many other things coming up that I had to come back to Germany after one college year over there. But it was great, I would advise any girl golfer who gets the chance to go there."
Earlier,Carnoustie’s once-feared championship links has never taken such a pounding of birdies and eagles as it did today during the second round of this tournament..
"I only stayed a year but I really enjoyed it and gained from the experience. I had so many other things coming up that I had to come back to Germany after one college year over there. But it was great, I would advise any girl golfer who gets the chance to go there."
Earlier,Carnoustie’s once-feared championship links has never taken such a pounding of birdies and eagles as it did today during the second round of this tournament..
On a mainly sunny and almost windless day and on fairways and greens left soft and receptive by Thursday’s rain, the conditions were ripe for a barrage of birdies – and quite a few eagles as well!
At the end of some 14 hours of play, the position at the halfway stage is
Caroline Masson leads on 133 (11 under par). She has a one-shot lead
from South Korea’s former US Open winner, Inbee Park (70-64) and compatriot Meena Lee (65-69), both on 134.
Masson’s late surge put her three shots ahead of.three players in joint fourth place, the legendary golfing trail-blazer Se Ri Park (72-64). the not so well-known Na Yeon Choi (69-67) and the European standard-bearer, Dewi-Claire Schreefel (70-66)
Four shots off the pace in seventh place is the defending champion and Major title collector, Yani Tseng (Taiwan
Inbee Park and Se Ri Park’s 64s removed the first-day 65 by yet another South Korean Meena Lee from the record books, if a composite course compiled by the Ladies Golf Union especially for the tournament can have a lasting lowest-score record,
The cut fell at one-over-par 145. That 36-hole total or less qualified competitors to play in the weekend rounds
Quite possible if the wind stays away and the top flight of players get more and more used to a links about which they had been perhaps apprehensive before they got here, having heard so many stories down through the years from the men’s Open championships played over the Angus links albeit over lay-outs about 1,000 yards longer.
Defending champion Yani Tseng from Taiwan
“I thnk the course is a little easy today because there’s no wind. It was just very quiet out there. I feel very good before I tee off. I know I am going to shoot a low score,” she said.
“This is the British Open. I expected much tougher weather but, even though it rained a lot yesterday, the bad weather has not come.”
Would she like the conditions to stay like this for the weekend?
“No. I want more wind, more rain to make it more difficult for everybody.”
In all Tseng had an eagle (at the long 14th) , six birdies and two bogeys in halves of 34 (two under) and 32 (four under par).
She took three putts from off the green to bogey the seventh and she had two shots in a bunker to bogey the 11th.
Clubhouse leader at the time she finished on seven-under-par 137, Yani said she expected to be about three or four shots off the lead at the halfway stage – and her prediction was spot on: three strokes behind to be precise.
Se Ri Pak, the player credited with inspiring the flood of South Korean girls on to the world golfing stage, moved the bar up to eight-under-par 136 with a brilliant round of eight-under-par 64.
“I came here with low expectations but I felt really great out there. I am trying to enjoy myself more on and off the golf course – and I enjoyed this round. I putted well, even though I missed a 3ft birdie chance at the 17t,” said the winner of the first Women’s British Open at Sunningdale in 2009.
She birdied the second, fourth, fifth, seventh, 10th, 13th, 14th and 15th in halves of 32 (four under par both ways).
The birdie blitz continuing unabated in the afternoon and evening, even though there was a little more wind to cope with than there had been for the morning starters.
Inbee Park, the US Open champion of 2008 and tied sixth in that Major a couple of weeks ago, raised the bar even higher – to 10 under par 134, thanks to a brilliant round of 64, equalling Se Ri Pak’s effort of less than an hour earlier.
“I hit the ball really well and I putted really good,” said the South Korean who has lived in the United States
“The weather’s been great so far but you know what links golf and the British Open is like – you never know what the next day is going to bring.”
Her putter was hot right from the start. Inbee holed from 20ft for a birdie at the first and from 10 to 12ft to birdie the second.
Birdie No 3 at te fourth was a 10ft putt. She got home in two with a three wood second at the long sixth and two-putted for a birdie 4, completing a hat-trick of birdies with an 8ft putt for a 3 at the seventh and an eight-iron to 5ft for a 2 at the eighth.
Out in 30, Inbee was six under for the day and eight under for tournament, sharing the lead at that stage.
But even Homer nods. She bogeyed the 12th by driving too far right and bunkering her recovery.
The glitch was a temporary one. She soon got back in the groove with a birdie 4 at the long 14th, where she got home in two, followed by a second 2 of the round, at the short 16th where she nonchalantly holed from 20ft.and then she came out of a bunker to hole from 6ft for the last of her birdies, at the long 17th.
“It has been a good season for me and I’m really satisfied with the way I’m playing right now. The US Open gave me a lot of confidence so I am looking forward to it (the last two rounds),” said Inbee.
THREE SCOTS BEAT THE CUT
Three of the four Scots in the field made the cut which fell at 145 (one over par).
Open champion two years ago, Catriona Matthew is playing very solidly and, with rounds of 70 and 69 for five-under 139 she is lying joint 12th, six shots behind leader Masson.
Kylie Walker (The Carrick at Loch Lomond), who has the same coach (Kevin Craggs) as Catriona, made it with a shot to spare, having hit the par mark of 72 on both days.
Kylie came through the Panmure Final Qualifying on Monday, surviving a play-off.
Janice Moodie, the former Scottish amateur champion from Windyhill and now an LPGA player based in the States, had an excellent second-round 67, improving by eight shots to sail through on 142.
The only Scot to be eliminated was Bothwell Castle amateur Pamela Pretswell who finished on 146 with rounds of 72 and 74. She was still in with a chance after reaching the turn today in one-under-par 35 but came back in three-over 39 to kill her chances.
Only two of the six amateurs in the field still have a chance of winning the Smythe Silver Medal. American Danielle Kang is favourite on 139 with scores of 72 and 69 for 141, a total many pros would have been proud of.
Her only challenger is the German Sophia Popov on 145 (70-75).
Some big names failed to make the cut, perhaps the biggest being Laura Davies with a total of 150 (73-77).HALFWAY LEADERS
Par 144 (2x72)
133 (11 under par)
Caroline Masson (Germany) 68 65
134
Inbee Park (S Korea) 70 64
Meena Lee (S Korea) 65 69
136
Se Ri Pak (S Korea) 72 64
Dewi-Claire Schreefel (Netherlands) 70 66
Na Yeon Choi (S Korea) 69 67.
137
Yani Tseng (Taiwan) 71 66
138
Mika Miyazato (Japan) 69 69
Caroline Hedwall (Sweden) 69 69
Brittany Lincicome (United States) 67 71
Amy Yang (S Korea) 68 70
139
Paula Creamer (United States) 69 70
Sophie Gustafson (Sweden) 68 71
Linda Wessberg (Sweden( 73 66
Catriona Matthew (Scotland) 70 69
Sophie Giquel-Bettan (France) 71 68
Pat Hurst (United States) 70 69.
140
Momoko Ueda (Japan) 69 71
Hee Young Park (S Korea) 70 70
Tiffany Joh (United States) 71 69
Brittany Lang (United States) 70 70
141
Cristie Kerr (United States) 70 71
Karrie Webb (Australia) 70 71
Anna Nordqvist (Sweden) 70 71
Beth Allen (United States) 71 70
Cindy Lacrosse (United States) 72 69.
Sun Young Yoo (S Korea) 71 70
Jiyai Shin (S Korea) 75 66
Morgan Pressel (United States) 70 71
Danielle Kang (United States) (amateur) 72 69
Maria Hjorth (Sweden)( 72 69
Angela Stanford (US) 68 72
Amy Hung (S Korea) 69 72
Eun Hee Ji (S Korea 70 71
Vicky Hurst (United States) 70 71
Song-Yee Kim (S Korea) 69 72
Players with 36-hole totals of 145 or better qualified for the last two rounds. See all the scores on the Ladies Golf Union website: http://www.lgu.org/
WHEN TO SEE THE LEADERS AT CARNOUSTIE ON SATURDAY
12.50 Sophie Giquel-Bettan and Catriona Matthew
1pm Linda Wessberg and Sophie Gustafson.
1.10 Paula Creamer and Amy Yang.
1.20 Brittany Lincicome and Caroline Hedwall.
1.30 Mika Miyazato and Yani Tseng.
1.40 Na Yeon Choi and Dewi-Claire Schreefel.
1.50 Se Ri Pak and Meena Lee.
2.0 Inbee Parj and Caroline Masson.
Labels: Pro Ladies
posted by Colin |
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