Morgan Pressel’s Very Good Day at the Kia Classic
Jun 9, 2013; Pittsford, NY, USA; Morgan Pressel reacts after missing a putt on the 14th hole during the final round of the Wegmans LPGA Championship at Locust Hill Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports
Just when I was beginning to think that Morgan Pressel’s best golf years were behind her she put on an amazing display of golf mojo during the Kia Classic 2nd round. Pressel carded a career-low, bogey-free, 8-under par 64, tied the course record, and surged from her T29th starting position to a share of the overnight lead going into the weekend! Wow! Just, wow!
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Pressel shares the overnight lead with Mirim Lee, who wasn’t able to repeat her impressive 1st round 65 that put her at the top of the board at the end of the Kia Classic 1st round. But Lee’s 2nd round 69 was enough to keep her even with Pressel. However, Lee has a comeback game in her bag. I saw it in action at last fall’s Reignwood Classic. She and Pressel could put on an edge-of-the-seat show on Saturday!
The co-leaders will go into the weekend at 10-under and one shot ahead of Cristie Kerr and Alison Lee, who’s showing all the signs of having a rookie breakthrough!
With 7 players starting the 3rd round right behind Kerr and Lee and within 3 shots of the co-leaders, and with Aviara giving up birdies, I’m looking for more surprising moves on Saturday.
Hyo Joo Kim. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
Hyo Joo Kim, who rocketed up to 4th in the world rankings after her win last week at the Founders Cup, will certainly be in the mix at the top of the board this weekend. Kim’s carded a pair of 68s and if she has gotten the greens figured out she can easily shave two or three strokes off her 3rd round score on Saturday. Kim’s a fierce, ice-cold competitor with a silky smooth swing that Golf Channel’s Judy Rankin believes we’ll all get to watch for some time to come. I’m looking for her to make a move during the 3rd round.
Stacy Lewis and Lydia Ko are both right below Kim on the board, going into the weekend at 7-under and needing to get into a better position during the 3rd round. Lewis, who twice missed opportunities to take the lead on Thursday, carded 68 and 69 but she hasn’t gotten her flat stick fired up on the big Aviara greens and Ko’s doing only marginally better on the putting surface.
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Karrie Webb, who carded her first bogey-free round of the 2015 season but then bungled her Friday round with 3 bogeys and a double that got her a 75 on the card and sent her down the board to a 2-under start for the weekend, knows the Aviara greens well and had this to say about them:
"“. . . it’s a course you gotta be pretty patient on . . . the greens actually are putting the nicest they have out of the three years that we’ve been here, which is helpful. But you know, they’re pretty slopey greens, so you have to leave yourself better, easier putts if you’re going to make a lot out here. . . pin high sometimes is not even a good option. There’s lots of break on them.”"
Lexi Thompson, Michelle Wie, Paula Creamer and Inbee Park could all have benefitted from Webb’s insight. Perhaps they’ll keep Webb’s admonitions in mind for the weekend.
Among the 10 players who hoped to finish the Kia Classic high enough to get their ticket punched to the ANA Inspiration, Maria Hernandez (-8), Katie Burnett (-6), Laetitia Beck (-4) and Brooke Pancake (-4) are still in the mix.
With a flawless 2nd round 66 — 2 shots short of Pressel — Hernandez is now in position to make a charge for the top of the board. Let’s see if she can sustain her pace on Saturday.
Maria Hernandez. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
Burnett, who made her way around those pesky Aviara greens on Friday with 27 putts, seems to have the course figured out and her shots dialed in. And Beck and Pancake, safely into the weekend field with very respectable rounds, are still in the hunt for that ticket to Rancho Mirage too.
All four of the Rancho Mirage hopefuls who are still in the field now have an edge over Wie Ling Hsu, the player they need to pass on the Money List. Hsu’s going into the weekend at 2-under and struggling mightily on the putting surface.
Saturday’s 3rd Round Pairings
Michelle Wie leads off the 3rd round solo at 8:12am local time. Brooke Pancake, paired with Jennifer Rosales, tees off at 11:39 and Laetitia Beck, paired with Juliete Granada, follows immediately behind her. Katie Burnett is paired with Lydia Ko and they tee off at 1pm. Maria Hernandez, paired with Sakura Yokomine, is the last of the Rancho Mirage hopefuls to tee off, going at 1:27.
The final groups, rookie Alison Lee playing with Cristie Kerr and co-leaders Morgan Pressel and Mirim Lee, will all be on the course by 1:45pm local time.
You can follow the 3rd round action at the Kia Classic live on the LPGA electronic leaderboard. Golf Channel begins coverage of the round in progress at 6pm ET, and I’ll provide ongoing commentary at ProGolfNow. Follow me on Twitter @bethbethel and I’ll notify when I post updates.