Cristie Kerr's lowest round in a U.S. Open (69) came at Pine Needles in 2001. She's looking to do that several shots better in the third round of this year's 62nd U.S. Women's Open championship. Kerr, six shots back of Angela Park entering Saturday's third round, shot a front-nine 31 and was 5-under par on the day through 13 holes when play was suspended due to darkness.

Kerr came out firing with birdies on hole Nos. 2, 4, 5 and 7 and added a birdie on the par-4 11th to move into a three-way tie for second place at 4-under par with Mexico's Lorena Ochoa (-4 thru 11 holes) and second-round leader Park (+1 thru 10 holes). They're all chasing Korea's Ji-Yai Shin (-1 thru 10), who birdied her final hole of the day, the par-5 10th hole, to take sole ownership of the lead. Shin is playing in only her third LPGA event and second major. She finished in a tie for 15th at the Kraft Nabisco Championship.

Ochoa, seeking her first major championship to validate her No. 1 world ranking, also made her charge on the easier front nine at Pine Needles, birdieing holes 1, 3 and 9.  She also birdied the 10th hole.

Two shots back of the leader was Nabisco champion Morgan Pressel (-3 thru 11 holes). Paraguay's Julieta Granada (+1 thru 11 holes) was three shots back.

The third round will resume tomorrow morning at 7:30 a.m., with the fourth and final round scheduled to begin at approximately 10:45 a.m. Once again, players will go off both tees (1 and 10). Isolated thunderstorms  are in the forecast for Sunday morning, although the storms predicted for Saturday stayed away for the first time all week. Play had been suspended twice on Friday because of dangerous weather, pushing the third round back to 3:40 p.m. on Saturday.

Kerr has nine LPGA Tour wins on her resume, but none in 2007. She has been playing well of late, however, posting a third-place finish at the Ginn Tribute earlier this month and a fourth at last week's Wegmans LPGA. Ochoa is coming off a win at Wegmans, her third of the season and 12th career LPGA victory overall. Ochoa is trying to shed the label as the "Best Player Not to Have Won a Major" this week. She nearly captured that elusive major two years ago at Cherry Hills, but made a triple-bogey 8 on her final hole to finish three shots back of eventual winner Birdie Kim. Ochoa also lost in a sudden-death playoff to Karrie Webb at the 2006 Kraft Nabisco. 

In her pre-tournament press conference this week, Michelle Wie said she was perfectly capable of making her own decisions and that ultimately, her decision to play this week, despite an injured wrist, was hers.

If that's the case, then Michelle really has only one decision to make right now, and that's to put the wrist on ice for awhile. Take a break, Michelle. Forget about the Ricoh Women's British Open next month and let your wrist and wounded psyche heal. Start thinking about your class schedule at Stanford, and not breaking 80.

For the second time this month, Wie WD'd from a tournament due to her injured left wrist, which she fractured back in January. Wie hit two shots on the 1st hole of the U.S. Open championship Saturday, her tenth hole of the day, and then told playing partners Christina Kim and Natalie Gulbis "no mas." At the time of her withdrawal, the 17-year-old was 6-over par on the day and 17-over par overall (through 27 holes), invoking memories of her controversial withdrawal at the Ginn Tribute hosted by Annika Sorenstam earlier this month. In that event, Wie was 14 over after 16 holes and dangerously close to shooting 88, which would have made her ineligible for the rest of the LPGA season. She didn't make any friends or alleviate the skepticism surrounding her withdrawal at Ginn by showing up the next day in Maryland to practice for the following week's McDonald's LPGA Championship.

In fairness to Wie, she definitely appeared to hurt the wrist Saturday. After "tweaking" it on the 17th tee, she drew a nasty lie in the rough off the fairway on 18. Upon hitting her second shot, she immediately pulled her left hand off the club and began shaking her wrist. Not long afterwards, a medic appeared and began massaging Wie's wrist as she walked toward the 18th green. About 10 minutes later, after snap-hooking her drive on No. 1, she withdrew.

Wie, looking teary-eyed at her press conference, says she will head to Florida in the coming days to have her wrist examined, and then will re-evaluate her playing schedule. As of now, the plan is to play the Evian Masters in France in late July, and then head to the British Open, which is being played at historic St Andrews for the first time. But for Wie, the decision should be easy. Skip them both.

It's obvious her wrist hasn't healed, and what's worse is her game has completely deteriorated to the point she has a hard time breaking 80. That can't do much for her confidence. Or her future. Wie hasn't broken par for 22 consecutive rounds. In five LPGA rounds this season, she's averaging 78 strokes. In addition to the 82 she shot in the first round on Thursday, she carded an 83 in the third round of the McDonald's LPGA Championship (which she finished dead last in, by 10 strokes).

It looked like she was headed for her third 80-plus score in four rounds before she withdrew Saturday.

These scores are shocking, considering Wie was tied for the lead after three rounds in this very same championship a year ago in Rhode Island, and at Cherry Hills two years ago. In four previous U.S. Open appearances, Wie's worst finish was a tie for 39th. A final-round 82 at Cherry Hills was the only real blip on her U.S. Open resume.

Wie still draws the largest galleries--there were at least 2,000 spectators following her on Saturday when there might have been 100 watching second-round leader Angela Park a few holes earlier--but most are there to see if she can break 80. They're not there to witness her once-tremendous talent. Golf Digest Senior Writer Ron Sirak called it the NASCAR-viewing mentality: People are watching Wie to see her wreck.

"It's really a shame," said Gary Gilchrist, who coached Wie between the ages of 12 and 14, when Wie first blossomed on the scene and came to be known as the Big Wie-sy. "They've taken her natural ability away.  When she was 13, she was swinging beautifully, much better than she is now. It doesn't get much better than that. She's been hitting it poorly for a year now."

Wie left Gilchrist for David Leadbetter three years ago, and has been in high demand recently for analysis of Wie's swing as Leadbetter has been fairly mum about her struggles. Wie's swing is much more compact now than it used to be, says Gilchrist, and her tempo is quicker. Too quick, he says.

"Her full swing is three-quarters now," said Gilchrist, who coaches McDonald's LPGA champion Suzann Pettersen. "There's too much lift in her backswing and not enough body turn, so there's no time to hit the ball. It's very handsy.  She needs to have more feel to her swing if she wants to get it back."

Wie is an amazing talent and the LPGA Tour, in particular, needs her back. But not this way. Not when she's struggling to break 80 and all the focus on her is negative. Whoever is making the decisions, whether it's really Michelle or it's her father, B.J., or someone else in the Wie camp, they need to start making better decisions right now. They can start by giving her some time off. If they don't, we might not see Wie at the top of the leaderboard again anytime soon at the U.S. Open, and that would be a shame.

Tee times for the third round of the 62nd U.S. Women's Open championship were just released. Players will be in groups of three and will go off the 1st and 10th tees beginning at 3:40 p.m.

Thirty-six hole leader Angela Park (-5) is paired with Korea's Jiyai Shin (-3) and Chinese Taipei's Amy Hung (-3) and will tee off No. 1 at 5:30 p.m.

Other notable tee times:

• In-Bee Park (E), Morgan Pressel (-1) and Julieta Granada (-3), 5:19, 1st tee
• Lorena Ochoa (E), Catriona Matthew (E) and Shiho Oyama (E), 5:08, 1st tee
• Natalie Gulbis (+4), Se Ri Pak (+4), Ai Miyazato (+4), 4:24, 10th tee
• Janice Moodie (+5), Laura Davies (+5), Annika Sorenstam (+5), 4:46, 10th tee

Angela Park will be trying to make it a South American sweep of the U.S. Open championships this weekend. Park, who hails from Brazil, shot a 2-under-par 69 Saturday morning and holds a two-shot lead after 36 holes of the U.S. Women's Open in Southern Pines, NC. Argentina's Angel Cabrera won the men's U.S. Open title two weekends ago at Oakmont CC outside Pittsburgh, holding off the world's No.-1 ranked player, Tiger Woods, and Jim Furyk by one shot.

Park, who is at 5-under 137 overall, just might have to hold off the women's top-ranked player, Lorena Ochoa, this weekend to pull off the rare South American double. Ochoa is at even par after 36 holes, five shots back.

"His name is Angel without an 'A' so it would be kind of funny to have an Angela win it," said Park, a rookie who has made only two major appearances prior to this week, missing the cut in her only U.S. Open appearance at Cherry Hills two years ago. "Standing in this position and having the opportunity to go for it and win, it's amazing."

Park, who played the back nine first Saturday, is 6-under par on the front nine over the first two rounds and 1 over on the back. She's recorded only 24 putts on the front nine over the first  36 holes.

The second round of the U.S. Women's Open is nearly complete, with first-round leader Angela Park still on top after firing a 2-under par 69 Saturday. Park, a rookie from Brazil, is at 5-under 137 on the Pine Needles layout, two shots ahead of Paraguay's Julieta Granada (69), Taiwan's Amy Hung (69) and Korea's Jiyai Shin (69). Kraft Nabisco champion Morgan Pressel (70) is alone in fifth pace at 1-under 141.

Five shots back at even par are world No. 1 Lorena Ochoa (71), In-Bee Park (73), Shiho Oyama (73), Catriona Matthew (67) and Shi Hyun Ahn. Matthew's 67 was the low round of the tournament.

The cut (low 60 players and ties, and players within 10 strokes of the lead), is expected to fall at +6. Among the notables heading home early are Michelle Wie (withdrew with wrist injury), McDonald's LPGA champion Suzann Pettersen (+7) and two-time U.S. Open champions Juli Inkster (+7) and Karrie Webb (+12). Webb rebounded nicely from an opening-round 83 by shooting an even-par 71.

Once the second round is completed and the cut established, players will go off in groups of three in the third round on tees 1 and 10 at approximately 3:30 p.m. EST, weather permitting. The rains and thunderstorms have held off until this point but are forecasted for later this afternoon in the Southern Pines area.

Michelle Wie withdrew today from the 62nd U.S. Women's Open after re-injuring her left wrist during the the second round at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club. Wie called it quits after punching out from the rough with her second shot on the par-5 1st hole, her tenth of the day. She was 6-over par in her round and 17-over par overall at the time of her withdraw.

Wie said her wrist, which she fractured back in January after taking a spill jogging, was a little sore when she woke up today. She "tweaked" it on the 17th hole when her tee shot found the right rough, some 30 yards short of playing partner Christina Kim's ball. After driving into the right rough again on the 18th hole, Wie appeared to re-aggravate the wrist on her second shot, pulling her left hand off the club in her follow-through and grimacing in pain. Wie started shaking her wrist and appeared visibly upset when she called for a rules official. Soon afterwards, a medic was allowed to come out and massage Wie's wrist as she walked toward the 18th green.

After failing to get the ball up and down from the bunker on 18, she snap-hooked her tee shot off the 1st tee. It was after she blasted out of the rough that she informed playing partners' Kim and Natalie Gulbis that she was withdrawing.

"The last thing I want to do is withdraw but I have no choice," said Wie. "I haven't felt pain like that before."

Wie's next scheduled event is the Evian Masters (July 26-29 in France), but her latest withdrawal has her re-evaluating her playing schedule. She says she'll head to Florida in the coming days to have her wrist evaluated by doctors. Wie withdrew from the Ginn Tribute Hosted by Annika earlier this month, citing an injured wrist, but raised suspicions that she quit because of the LPGA Tour's 88 Rule. Wie was 14-over par through 16 holes at the time of her withdraw, just two shots short of the number. Had she shot 88, she would not have been allowed to play in another LPGA event this year.

Several weeks later, Wie finished dead last among those players making the cut at the McDonald's LPGA Championship--by 10 strokes--shooting 21-over par.

As for any skepticism surrounding her latest withdraw, Wie said, "I was in enough pain to bring tears to my eyes, and that's not easy with me.

"I definitely want to compete because that's what I love to do, but I have to think about my health now," she continued. "There are good days and bad days; today wasn't one of my best."

Wristgate continues. Michelle Wie withdrew today from the 62nd U.S. Women's Open after re-injuring her left wrist during the course of the second round at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club. Wie withdrew after punching out from the rough with her second shot on the par-5 1st hole, her tenth of the day. She was 6-over par in her round and +17 overall at the time of her withdraw.

More to come.

All the electricity surrounding the 62nd U.S. Women's Open has been up in the skies surrounding the Southern Pines area the last few days. But finally, they're getting around to playing some golf.

Second-round play resumed this morning at 7:35 a.m. after play was suspended on Friday at 5:30 p.m. with 132 players yet to complete the second round, many of which had yet to tee off. Among those players completing their second round this morning was defending champion Annika Sorenstam, who woke up early to hit just three shots--an approach to the 9th green and two putts. The three strokes completed a disappointing 77 for Sorenstam, who is 5-over par overall.

"I might go back to bed," said Sorenstam following her brief morning appearance. "I got off to a terrible start on Friday. Luckily, I bounced back and shot even par on the back. That didn't put me too far behind."

Sorenstam is currently eight shots back of the leader, Angela Park, who is 3 under after six holes this morning. Park birdied her first hole of the day, the par-5 10th, to move to 4 under, but bogeyed the 12th. Other notable scores of note this morning include Lorena Ochoa (+1 thru 3 holes), Morgan Pressel (-1 thru 4) and Michelle Wie (+2 thru 3, +13 overall). Alexis Thompson, the youngest player ever to compete in the U.S. Women's Open at age 12, shot an 11-over 82 and finished at 16 over for the tournament.

Even at 5 over, Sorenstam expects to be in the mix this weekend. A winner here at Pine Needles in 1996, Sorenstam is playing in just her third tournament since missing almost two months with a neck injury.

"I'm not too far behind, but I'm going to need two good rounds," said Sorenstam. "The good thing is that it's the U.S. Open and there are always high scores. Who knows how I'll finish by the end of the day. If you play the weekend and you play solid, who knows. I've been around long enough to know that you have to be patient."

Second-round play at the U.S. Women's Open was officially suspended at 5:30 p.m. today, with the leader, Angela Park, yet to tee off. None of the Friday afternoon pairings, which included Park, world No. 1 Lorena Ochoa, Morgan Pressel and Michelle Wie, had teed off when play was halted for a second time at 3:18 p.m. because of dangerous weather in the Southern Pines area. After a more than two-hour delay, which included only a few drops or rain but plenty of lightning, play was halted for good with another line of storms expected to pass through the area at 6:30 p.m.

The second round will resume tomorrow morning at 7:30 a.m., although heavy rain is forecasted overnight and into the mid-morning hours on Saturday. The hope is to get the second round completed by 3 p.m. Once the cut is established, the third round will be played in groups of three with players going off the 1st and 10th tees at 3:30.

Friday marked the fifth consecutive day, including practice rounds, that play was suspended at some point due to dangerous weather. According to Mike Davis, Senior Director of Rules and Competition for the USGA, play has never been suspended for all seven days of a USGA championship event. "So, come Sunday, we might just have a record," mused Davis.

"We most definitely will play 72 holes to decide a champion," Davis continued. "We'll go to Monday if we have to."

The clubhouse leader is In-Bee Park at even-par 142. Park shot a 2-over par 73.

McDonald's LPGA champion Suzann Pettersen got off to an inauspicious start during Thursday's opening round of the U.S. Women's Open, recording bogeys on her first six holes, including a double bogey on the par-4, 14th hole. She stood at 7-over par after six holes, but picked herself up off the canvas with four birdies on the front nine (her back nine) to finish at 5 over, still within shouting distance of the leaders.

Pettersen's Thursday comeback was a sign of her growing maturity and patience this season. The 26-year-old Norwegian lost final-round leads in back-to-back tournaments earlier this season, including a four-hole meltdown at the Kraft Nabisco Championship which cost her the season's first major. But Pettersen rebounded quickly to win her first LPGA Tour event, the Michelob ULTRA Open, three tournaments later and then added her first major title at the McDonalds LPGA Championship three weeks ago. At the McDonalds, Pettersen fired a final-round 67 to hold off a spirited charge from Karrie Webb by one stroke.

Much of the credit for Pettersen's emergence this season belongs to Golf For Women Top 50 Teachers and regular contributors Pia Nilsson and Lynn Marriott. Pettersen attended one of their Golf54 schools in Phoenix last year, and Nilsson and Marriott have been coaching her ever since on the mental and emotional aspects of the game (Gary Gilchrist, Michelle Wie's former swing coach, is Pettersen's instructor).

Nilsson and Marriott told me an interesting story today. They were watching a television broadcast of Saturday's third round of the McDonalds in Sweden when they noticed how tense Pettersen appeared, especially in her facial expressions. They phoned Pettersen prior to Sunday's final round and advised her to smile more inwardly on the course. This would help relax her jaw, lips and other facial features, Marriott explained, so she wouldn't be so tight in her shoulders and upper body.   

Their tip worked wonders. Pettersen not only held it together down the stretch, but she recorded four birdies on her back nine against no bogeys.

So if you see Pettersen mouthing a smile during this weekend's coverage of the U.S. Open, you'll know why.

Play was suspended for the second time today at 3:18 p.m. due to dangerous weather in the area. It's the third weather delay in two days at the 62nd U.S. Women's Open, although it has yet to rain.

Defending champion Annika Sorenstam was in the middle of the 9th fairway, her 18th hole of the second round, when the horn sounded. Sorenstam was coming off a birdie on the par-4 8th hole, her first since this morning when she completed her first round. Sorenstam, struggling with her ball-striking, shot a 6-over-par 42 over her first nine holes. She's at 5-over par for the tournament, and appears safe to make the weekend cut. The leader, Angela Park, is at 3 under. She was scheduled to tee off at 3:48 but that time will be pushed back yet again.

The leader in the clubhouse is In-Bee Park at even-par 142. One of six players with the last name of Park in the field, Park fired a 2-over-par 73 after an opening-round 69. Two other players, Japan's Shiho Oyama and Korea's Jee Young Lee, are also at even par through 16 holes.

Play was suspended at 1:47 p.m. this afternoon due to inclement weather in the Southern Pines area. With more thunderstorms forecasted for this afternoon, and a 70 percent chance of showers tomorrow, it looks like the 62nd version of the U.S. Women's Open may be headed to a Monday conclusion.

Leader Angela Park (-3) was scheduled to tee off this afternoon at 3:18 p.m., along with Morgan Pressel (3:51), Michelle Wie (3:51) and Lorena Ochoa (4:02). Wie is trying to break a dubious streak of 21 consecutive rounds over par in professional men's and women's events. She shot an opening-round 82 on Thursday, and is tied for 135th place overall. But with the shaky forecast, she looks to be playing on Saturday. It's unlikely that Wie, Ochoa or any of today's afternoon groupings will play more than nine holes.

But some good news to share with you: the horn just sounded, resuming play at 2:16 p.m. following a 29-minute delay.

The wheels are coming off Annika Sorenstam's bid for a second consecutive U.S. Open title. After putting the finishing touches on a 1-under-par 70 in her first round this morning, Sorenstam shot a 6-over-par 42 over the back nine at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club in the second round, falling eight shots back of leader Angela Park.

Sorenstam looked to come charging out of the gates in the second round, teeing off on the par-5 10th hole (a hole she birdied on Thursday). But after missing the green with her third shot, her pitch shot rolled back to her feet. She pitched her par attempt eight feet past the hole and missed the comebacker for a double-bogey 7.

The eight-time Rolex Player of the Year nearly made it back-to-back double bogeys on the par-4 11th hole when her chip ran past the hole and off the green, but she made an 8-footer to save bogey. On the par-3 13th, Sorenstam hit her tee shot to 15 feet but missed her birdie attempt and the subsequent  3-footer for par.

Sidelined for seven weeks following the Kraft Nabisco Championship with a ruptured disk in her neck, Sorenstam appears to be tentative on the course, despite being given a clean bill of health by her doctor. She's hitting her irons left and not displaying the laser-like distance control she's known for. On the par-5 15th hole, Sorenstam's normally stellar wedge game betrayed her, as she pushed a wedge from 90 yards into the greenside bunker. She failed to get the ball up and down to go 3 over on the par 5s. On the 18th, she pulled her approach shot into the greenside bunker and made bogey to complete her first nine holes at 6 over par.

Among the leaders teeing off in the second round this morning, In-Bee Park has held steady through her first 15 holes and remains at 2 under, one shot behind Angela Park. The player making the biggest charge this morning is Korea's Jee Young Lee, who is 3-under through her first 10 holes and 2 under overall for the tournament.

Alexis Thompson, bidding to become the youngest player ever to make the cut at the U.S. Women's Open, stands at 9-over overall through her first eight holes. The 12-year-old from Coral Springs, Fla., is 4-over par on the day.

The opening round of the 62nd U.S. Women's Open is winding down this morning, with one familiar name making a move up the leader board in the early hours. Defending U.S. Open champion Annika Sorenstam birdied her second hole of the morning, the par-5 15th, en route to a 1-under par 70. Sorenstam, playing in just her third tournament following a seven-week absence for a neck injury, is just two strokes back of Angela Park (3-under 68) in her quest for a fourth U.S. Open championship.

Sorenstam was one of 78 players getting the early wake-up call this morning, with first-round play being called at 8:25 p.m. Thursday night due to darkness. The Swede will have just enough time to change and perhaps grab a bite to eat, as her second-round tee time is slated for 10:10 a.m.

Other notables completing their first rounds this morning are 12-year-old Alexis Thompson, who is 6-over par through 17 holes, and Paula Creamer, who currently is tied for 20th after a 1-over-par 72.

Creamer has a quick turnaround this morning as well, teeing off at 9:59 a.m.

Other notable second-round tee times:

• Angela Park (-3): 3:18 p.m., 10th hole
• Morgan Pressel (Even): 3:51 p.m., 1st
• Michelle Wie (+11), 3:51, 10th
• Lorena Ochoa (Even): 4:02, 10th
• Suzann Pettersen (+5), 4:02, 1st
• Julieta Granada (-1), 4:13, 1st

Thunderstorms are expected again this afternoon, with rain showers being forecasted for tomorrow. Sunday and Monday (if necessary) look to be sunny and much cooler.

I had an opportunity last night to read the USGA's U.S. Open blog and they have been doing a stellar job of keeping fans up-to-date on the championship, especially in regard to yesterday's rain delays. Rhonda Glenn, the USGA's communication manager who has covered 30(!) Women's Opens, has been sharing her favorite memories from the championship -- a great read. Also, don't forget to check out our editors' blog this weekend, as Golf for Women senior editor Dave Allen will be blogging from Pine Needles. If there anything -- or anyone -- you want us to keep tabs on during the championship, let us know!

I have a confession to make: I love people with bad taste. The kind of person who breaks all the rules, mixing big obnoxious stripes with over-the-top floral patterns. Anyone who wears too much makeup, whose hair is too big and coiffed. These are the people who get my attention on and off the course. I love their attempts, even if they appear to fail.

For me, true failure rests with the countless number sporting a safe pair of pleated khakis and nondescript polos trying to hide, not get noticed, in the crowd. Or worse, the type of person who  tries to re-create Tiger or Annika's latest get-up in hopes of improving his or her game; that could make for a fun instruction story: Want to break 90? Wear a tight fitting flaming red mock neck top and billowing khakis...

I applaud the effort of anyone who makes a choice to stand out. To pick a hat that's inappropriate and wear it with a sense of ease and comfort. That's why I have a fondness for misfits. I loved Christina Kim pre-weight loss, when she flaunted her ample figure in flamboyant prints that would be deemed inappropriate for a girl of her stature. I loved that she never caved in to the criticism and had fun with her look. Isn't that what golf is all about, having fun?

Terrible start for Michelle Wie, who shot an opening-round 82 to sink to the bottom of the leaderboard. Another notable name at the way back of the line? Karrie Webb (yes, my pick to win the Open), who shot an 83.

World No. 1 Lorena Ochoa just eagled the par-4, 426-yard 14th hole to move to 2-under par, one shot back of leader Angela Park (-3). Park just made her first bogey of the championship on the par-4, 440-yard 17th at Pine Needles. She started the day with back-to-back-to-back birdies. The surprise of the day has to be two-time U.S. Open champion Karrie Webb, who is 12 over after 16 holes. Webb, who played the front nine first, double-bogeyed the par-4, 411-yard 6th hole to cap a string of five straight holes with at least a bogey. Webb, who finished as the runner-up to Suzann Pettersen at the McDonald's LPGA Championship three weeks ago, won by eight shots the last time the U.S. Open was held at Pine Needles in 2001.

Some other notables:

• Michelle Wie (+9 thru 16 holes)
• Suzann Pettersen (+6 thru 15)
• Brittany Lincicome (E thru 15)
• Morgan Pressel (Even thru 16)
• Cristie Kerr (Even thru 18)

And they thought Oakmont was tough. The early tallies are in from the 62nd U.S. Women's Open and the winner is the Pine Needles golf course.   Check out some of these early train wrecks:

Suzann Pettersen: +7 thru 6 holes
Karrie Webb: +4 thru 7
Michelle Wie: Ditto. +4 thru 7
Of the 78 players who teed off as of 10:20 a.m., only 17 are even or under par, including world No. 1 Lorena Ochoa (Even thru 7). The leader is Angela Park, who birdied her first three holes and is 4 under thru her first 10 holes.

I am always reminding friends, relatives and even strangers to wear sunscreen—and then I hound them to reapply it! It still shocks me that women go out to hit balls and think that a hat is enough protection. Craziness! It only takes fifteen minutes to cause serious damage and add ten years to your appearance. Who wants wrinkles and skin cancer? Not me. I wear sunscreen every day and my moisturizer, foundation and powder all contain an SPF. Now you can get additional protection in really cool and innovative wash-on formulas.  Earlier this year Freeze 24/7 introduced IceShield Facial Cleanser with SPF 15, which protects against incidental sun exposure with broad spectrum protection—it also infuses skin with antioxidants—or as I like to call them, the age fighters. Now there is a similar product that protects your body—BY142 Body Wash (picture below) with SPF 15 binds sunscreen to skin and lasts for six to eight hours. Add a dollop to your loofah, or washcloth, in the shower and benefit from the added sun protection throughout the day. (IceShield: $48 for 4.2 oz, freeze247.com; BY142 Body Wash: $32 for 8.0 oz, BY142.com)

It looks as if an end is nearing  in the ongoing divorce saga of Greg and Laura Norman, who have split after 25 years of marriage. The couple agreed to a divorce settlement on Saturday, to be finalized in court in September, and signed a confidentiality agreement. However, according to the New York Post's Page Six column, as talks stalled over monetary compensation, Laura's lawyers threatened to drag Greg's new girlfriend, tennis star Chris Evert, into the proceedings. That seemed the impetus to finalize negotiations on divvying up an estimated $500 million fortune, with Laura asking for an equal distribution.  Since the couple filed for divorce last June,  relations had become quite acrimonious, with Greg Norman's lawyers at one point filing a motion claiming he deserved most of the fortune, arguing that "The wife did not teach the husband how to swing a golf club. The wife did not teach the husband how to win."

What do you think? Is Laura Norman entitled to half of Greg Norman's fortune?

If you haven't seen them already, Tiger released pictures of new baby Sam Alexis. Check out the cute family shots below. There are a few more pics available on brother site golfdigest.com. Tiger has that familiar new dad look -- tired and happy. I hope we see more pictures soon!

World No. 1 Lorena Ochoa, coming off her first sudden-death playoff win in five career attempts,  tries to lift an even larger monkey off her back and capture her first major title at this week's U.S. Women's Open. Ochoa is 0 for 21 in the big events, but has finished in the top 10 in seven of her last nine major appearances and 10 of 14, including a tie for sixth at the McDonald's LPGA Championship just three weeks ago.

Perhaps Ochoa's best chance to win a major to date came at this very same championship in 2005 at Cherry Hills, when she hit her tee shot in the water on No. 18 and made a triple-bogey 8 on the par 5. (A par, it turns out later, would have put her in a playoff.)

Can she claim the championship that was almost hers two years ago and shed the label of "Best Player Never to Have Won a Major?" That, and the ongoing soap opera that is Michelle Wie's wrist, figure to steal the headlines this week at Southern Pines.

Here's a look at the contenders and several other players to watch this week.

CONTENDERS
Lorena Ochoa (Odds: 7-2)
Super Ochoa certainly has momentum on her side after rallying on Sunday from three shots down with two to play to defeat In-Kyung Kim at the Wegmans LPGA. She also has the game to win a U.S. Open, ranking first on the LPGA Tour in greens in regulation (75.7 percent) and fifth in putts per GIR (1.77 strokes per hole). If she can eliminate the occasional double- or triple-bogey that have haunted her in majors past, she will be the toast of Mexico come Sunday night.

Karrie Webb 9-2
The last time the U.S. Women's Open was held at Pine Needles, in 2001, Webb did her best Tiger Woods impersonation and ran away from the field by eight shots. She's coming in on a roll, too: If not for a remarkable back nine by Suzann Pettersen during the final round at the McDonalds, Webb's 5-under-par 67 would have been enough for her eighth major.

Annika Sorenstam 5-1
The 10-time major champion defended her U.S. Open title at Pine Needles in 1996 and is looking to repeat again this week. No one would be surprised if she did, despite being diagnosed with a ruptured disk in her neck just eight weeks ago. She finished tied for 15th at the McDonald's LPGA Championship (just her second event back) three weeks ago, and followed that up a week later by defeating Ochoa 11-7 in a Skins Game in Acapulco, Mexico. She estimates she's at about 85 percent now but that just might be good enough this week.

Suzann Pettersen 8-1
If not for a meltdown over the final three holes at the Kraft Nabisco, much of the talk this week would be about a possible Pettersen Grand Slam. She has home run power (Pettersen ranks third on the Tour in driving distance at 273.1 yards) and with the help of Wie's former swing coach, Gary Gilchrist, is becoming a major force in the women's game.

Morgan Pressel 10-1
The only thing surprising about Pressel's first major title (this year's Kraft Nabisco) was that it wasn't a U.S. Open. Ever since she qualified for the event as a 12-year-old in 2001, her name has been synonymous with the U.S. Open. She was seemingly headed for a playoff in 2005 when Birdie Kim sank that miraculous bunker shot on No. 18 at Cherry Hills. Pressel is a fighter, and if anyone can grind out 18 pars on Sunday, it's her.

OTHERS TO WATCH

Paula Creamer 12-1
Third in greens in regulation on Tour and 11th in both driving accuracy and putts per GIR. Those are the ingredients of a U.S. Open champion.

Brittany Lincicome 15-1
Defending Match Play champ seems to raise her game up another notch when the stakes are highest. Tied for second at the Kraft Nabisco and sixth at McDonald's.

Se Ri Pak 20-1
Has had a disappointing year to date, but as last year's McDonald's win proved, she's always dangerous. Has four top-5 finishes in this event, including a tie for third last year at Newport Country Club.

LONG SHOTS
Mi Hyun Kim
Stacy Prammanasudh
Cristie Kerr
Julieta Granada

There are so many celebrity golf tournaments out there, which is a good thing, I guess—all those actors and retired athletes need somewhere to show off their golf skills! Recently I was invited to phone into a media teleconference for the American Century Championship, a celebrity golf invitational taking place in Lake Tahoe July 13-15. The Lance Armstrong Foundation is the sole beneficiary of this charity event, and since I have had a huge crush on Lance for about 10 years (Lance, do you mind if I call you Lance?) I phoned in to ask him some questions. (Oh, football players Jerry Rice and Carson Palmer were there too, but I didn't care about them.)

Celebrity golf tournaments are heavy on male athletes and actors, but other than Cheryl Ladd, you don't see many women celebs participating. Catherine Zeta-Jones plays in the Michael Douglas and Friends tournament, but he's her husband, so that's understandable. Anyway, I was curious to know which women would be playing in the Tahoe event. And how could I pass up a chance to speak with my longtime crush?

A bunch of writers phoned into the teleconference. As I listened in, I heard that there would be 81 golfers in the field, including Michael Jordan, Donald Trump, Ray Romano (he never misses one of these tournaments!), Matt Lauer, and Bill Crudup, who is well-known for dumping his pregnant girlfriend, Mary Louise Parker, for Claire Danes a couple of years ago, but who apparently has become a diehard golfer. Lance, who claims to not be much of a golfer, will play in the celebrity pro-am.

"I'm a big believer in mulligans," he said. "I'll use as many as they give me. I don't play much; I've played Shadow Creek in Vegas and a lot of great courses in around Austin [he's from there]. I'm going to consider a run at the game one of these days. It's a very frustrating game that takes a lot of patience, and patience is not my strongest suit. If I break 100, I'm happy."

When it came my turn to ask questions, I did my best not to gush (ohmygod I'm talking to Lance!) and asked him which women celebs would be participating. One of the event organizers said soccer legend Brandi Chastain had signed on, and that while they'd extended invitations to a lot of high profile actresses, they hadn't gotten a lot of takers. "A lot of people don't want to put their game on display," he said, referring, I guess, to female people.

Yes, even famous women get first-tee jitters.

When I asked the three athletes if it was important to them that the women in their lives play golf, I heard nothing but silence on the other end for a few seconds. Finally Lance said, "If I played more, sure, why not?" (I was hoping he'd dish about his current involvement with fashion designer Tory Burch, but no such luck. Hey, I tried.)

Jerry Rice was disturbingly honestly, admitting his wife had no interest in the game. "When I go into a golf shop or a clubhouse, my heart rate goes up. When my wife goes to the mall, her heart rate goes up."

Oh, okay. Bye. I love you anyway Lance!!!!

I only play golf with my sister Karin about once a year, and it usually happens on my annual summer trip to my home country of Sweden. I've always maintained that Karin's a better player than I am, she just never had enough interest in the game to play more than a few times a year once we grew up and stopped playing competitively.

But today, during our obligatory rain-soaked yearly outing (I am currently in Sweden visiting my family), I saw a fire rekindled in my sister that I hadn't seen in 15 years. She was blasting drives 40 yards past me, pitching it close and sinking putts from everywhere. She couldn't believe her own eyes. And she owed it all to her new equipment. Well, really, to MY new equipment, as Karin decided to play out of my bag. For once, I brought my clubs home on this trip—I usually leave the sticks behind and rent clubs when I go home, since it's so far away and I always lose my luggage on these trips.

As equipment editor for Golf For Women, I am constantly testing new products, so my clubs are on a never-ending rotation, and the revelation of playing with brand-new gear was almost overwhelming to my sister. She'd been using the same clubs for 10 years and never thought her equipment mattered. Today, she got to see what a high-MOI, 460cc driver could do for her driving distance. She got to experience the sensation of flying a 180-yard hybrid shot onto an elevated green from the rough. And she got to learn what perfect roll feels like after using a high-MOI mallet putter. She's now committed to picking up the game seriously again, and she wants to buy a whole new bag of clubs.

I write about the virtues of modern equipment on a regular basis and consider myself more well-versed in the topic than most, but to witness it affect someone I care about this much was really something else. I haven't seen Karin this excited about anything in years.

Of course, beating her sister may have had something to do with it...

I couldn't ask for a better day to write my first blog post! I've been the Assistant Editor at Golf for Women for six months, and came here straight from college. My twin sister, Kira, and I grew up in NYC and lived there until we were 14. We've always played sports (we were on the swim team, played tennis and danced ballet for nine years), but it was during the summer before high school, when we vacationed in Florida, that we began playing golf. We both hated it! We felt it was a boring, pointless sport (I know I'm not supposed to say that). So when we came back to New York and started high school, we put golf on the backburner.

But when we returned to Florida for vacation the following summer, our parents urged us to play in our first golf tournament. The fierce competition against the course, and not against another person, is what got us hooked. It became the most exciting sport we played. From then on, we breathed, ate and slept golf. In fact, what began as a summer vacation turned into a permanent move to Florida. We completed high school in Miami and played golf every day. We played good enough to become part of the inaugural University of Virginia Women's Golf team (after meeting Coach Jan Mann, we knew UVa was the place to be). What an experience! Being a student-athlete is something I'll always remember and cherish.

Leah Wigger, a good friend and college teammate at UVa, is competing Thursday in the U.S. Women's Open, her first major LPGA championship. From the first day I met Leah in 2003 I knew she would turn pro after college. My game was decent, so I thought. Compared to hers, however, I felt as though I had no right to be part of the team! She hit the ball a mile and her iron play was remarkably accurate. She worked on her short game throughout college, which has improved dramatically. The one thing that made me realize right away that she would turn pro is how confident she was. She rarely doubts her abilities, and confidence is something you need to succeed.

After shooting 73 in her local qualifier in Fox Chapel Golf Club in Pittsburg, PA on May 17th, Leah shot 76, 72 in the sectional qualifier at The Village Links of Glen Ellyn, in Glen Ellyn, Ill. on June 11th. Her score of 148, however, placed her in a 7-way tie. If she was nervous during the sudden-death playoff, nobody could tell: she birdied the first hole to secure her spot today at the U.S. Open. She called me on a Tuesday morning, right after she qualified. I hadn't spoken to her since her last Futures Tour event, where she shot 6 over par and finished in a tie for 13th place. So the first thing I said was, "Girl, you're getting rich now!" She immediately responded by saying, "Well, I'm gonna get even more rich 'cause I just qualified for the Open." That's when I let out the loudest scream of the year (luckily, I was walking on a NYC sidewalk, so nobody seemed to care). It made me smile for the rest of the day.

Leah joined the Futures Tour after graduating last May and has already played really well in three events. She's now looking to win on the LPGA Tour—maybe even a major (yes win...not just make the cut)! This shouldn't be surprising. Leah was a college-golf standout: she played in every college tournament, she led the UVA team in scoring average all four years with a 72.35 scoring average in her last year, placed in the top-10 in 2 NCAA Championships, set a school-record 24 top-10 finishes, and was awarded with the Best Female Athlete at the University of Virginia this past year. And the psychology major did all this while graduating with a 3.56 GPA. Just writing about it is exhausting.

I spoke to Leah this morning and she's pumped for what's in store at the U.S. Open. "I'm definitely excited about playing this week," said Leah. "It's pretty cool being here with players you see on TV all the time. The course will be tough, and the greens will be quick. My plan is to hit to the middle of the green and not at the flag."

Among Leah's many attributes, there's one that surprises me the most: she's the nicest, most down-to-earth girl I met in college. Maybe this is because she worked hard to get where she is today. Leah didn't jump out as a junior golfer. In fact, part of the reason why she committed to UVa was because it didn't even have a program: Leah and I and 5 other girls made up made up Virginia's inaugural Women's Golf Team in 2003. And college turned out to be the key to Leah's success. We've called her Biscuit since watching Seabiscuit as a team in 2003. If you don't remember, the movie is about a race horse who became an unlikely champion. I don't want to put the cart before the horse, but that nickname really seems to hit the nail on the head. I'll be rooting her on this week—and in the future.

Congratulations to Tiger and Elin Woods, who welcomed daughter Sam Alexis Monday morning following Tiger's second-place finish in the 2007 U.S. Open. Probably the only folks more excited than all of us at Golf for Women are Carol Bivens and the folks at the LPGA, who are likely hoping for a Tigress invasion in about 18 years.

I remember the birth of my first child within two years of my father's death from lung cancer. I recall the myriad emotions of joy, sorrow, hope and melancholy. I hope the arrival of Sam helps bring peace to Tiger -- at least until the crying jags kick in!  Enjoy the new wee one, Tiger.

So much for home field advantage. Annika Sorenstam defeated Mexican native Lorena Ochoa at the Acapulco Skins Game this past weekend, with Sorenstam taking home $165,000 to Ochoa's $105,000. Meanwhile, the top-ranked Ochoa has committed to playing north of the border, at the CN Canadian Women's Open in August.