Wie, Park Move On To Third Round

 

Fairfield, Conn. – Michelle Wie, 13, of Honolulu, Hawaii, defeated Blair Lamb, 16, of Flat Rock, N.C., 5 and 4 to advance to the third round of match play at the 2003 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship. Wie, the 2003 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links champion, will be joined in the third round by defending champion, and this year’s medalist, In-Bee Park, 15, of Eustis, Fla., who won 1 up over Marina Choi, 17, of Los Angeles, Calif., at the 6,303-yard, par-71 Brooklawn Country Club.

 

Wie was able to control the match from the very beginning, though her play was not as sharp as in previous rounds. She made bogeys on two of her first four holes, yet found herself 2 up in the match, as Lamb made bogey on each of her first four holes. Wie’s lone birdie of the day came at the 547-yard, par-5 7th hole. She made pars from there on in, conceded only the 12th, and ended the match with a routine par on the 405-yard 14th .

 

“I was hitting my 3-wood a lot straighter today,” said Wie. “And my opponent was playing a little bit worse than my opponent (yesterday). But it’s a new game, so anything can happen.”

Wie made the cut at the 2003 U.S. Women’s Open at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club and is hoping to become the first competitor to win both the U.S. Girls’ Junior and U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links in the same season. Wie’s next opponent will be fellow 2003 U.S. Women’s Open competitor Morgan Pressel, 15, of Boca Raton, Fla., who won 4 and 2 over Stephanie Kono, 13, of Honolulu, Hawaii .

 

“It’s a whole new game,” said Wie, about her next round opponent. “I don’t really bring in memories from my last match. I just bring in good memories.”

 

The most exciting match of the second round was between Whitney Wade and Naree Song, both of whom played in the 2003 U.S. Women’s Open. Wade, 17, of Glasgow, Ky., closed with birdies on the 17 th and 18 th holes to defeat Song, 17, of Bradenton, Fla., 2 up. Song’s caddie for the championship has been her twin sister, Aree, who won this championship in 1999 and finished as the low amateur, in fifth place, at this year’s U.S. Women’s Open.

 

Wade amassed seven birdies, including four in the final eight holes. Song made four birdies of her own, the most important of which was a 30-foot birdie putt on the 405-yard, par-4 14th hole, to gain a 1 up lead. However, she promptly gave the lead back after three-putting from 12-feet at the 128-yard, par-3 15th hole.

 

With the match all square heading into the 17th hole, Wade had the shot of the match, a 7-wood from 185 yards that came to rest within two feet of the hole. She tapped in the putt after Song missed her 12-foot birdie attempt and headed to the final hole with a 1 up advantage.

 

Wade found the fairway of the 395-yard 18th hole with her drive, while Song hit into the right fairway bunker. With the match on the line, Wade hit a 4-iron from 170 yards to within 20-feet, while Song missed the green right. Song failed to hole her chip from off the green, but it did not matter, as Wade rammed her birdie putt straight into the hole.

 

“I just found out I had seven birdies today,” said Wade . “I guess I just wasn’t paying attention. I started off a little rough, got two down and then came back. It kept getting tighter and tighter. But I was just really focused and kept on playing.”

 

Wade will face In-Bee Park in the third round on Thursday afternoon. She was well aware she could not rest on her stellar second round performance.

 

“Hopefully I can do what I did this morning,” said Wade, who will play for the University of Georgia in the fall. “Because [In-Bee] is just as tough as Naree.”

Defending champion and medalist In-Bee Park survived a scare when Marina Choi took their match to the 18th hole before finally losing 1-up.

 

“I felt very good at the beginning of the day, because I was 4-up through eight,” said the Korean-born Park . “I thought I was going to win, but after 13 we were all square. I was a little nervous. I thought I had to start over, like it was the first hole.”

 

Five of the seven girls who played at the 2003 U.S. Women’s Open are still in the field at the end of the second round of match play. Joining Wie, Wade, and Pressel in the third round are Jane Park, 16, of La Crescenta, Calif., and Paula Creamer, 16, of Pleasanton, Calif., who won their second round matches by scores of 1 up and 4 and 3, respectively.

 

The U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship is one of 13 championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs. The U.S. Girls’ Junior is open to female amateur golfers who have not reached their 18 th birthday prior to the end of the championship and have a USGA Handicap Index of 18.4 or better.

 

 

Fairfield, Conn. – Results of today’s second round of match play from the 2003 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship at the 6,303-yard, par-71 Brooklawn Country Club:

  

Upper Bracket:

In-Bee Park, Eustis, Fla. (140) def. Marina Choi, Los Angeles, Calif. (155), 1 up

Whitney Wade, Glasgow, Ky. (149) def. Naree Song, Korea (149), 2 up

Amanda Blumenherst, Scottsdale, Ariz. (147) def. Laura Caniff, Russell, Ky. (156), 3 and 2

Hsiao-Ching Lu, Chinese Taipei (153) def. Catalina Marin, Colombia (147), 2 up

Paula Creamer, Pleasanton, Calif. (142) def. Valerie Tan, Malaysia (154), 4 and 3

Amie Cochran, Torrance, Calif. (148) def. Amanda Wilson, Hilo, Hawaii (151), 4 and 3

Julieta Granada, Paraguay (145) def. Nicole Hage, Coral Springs, Fla. (156), 1 up

Catherina Wang, Sarasota, Fla. (158) def. Grace Woo, Burbank, Calif. (151), 1 up

 

Lower Bracket:

Michelle Wie, Honolulu, Hawaii (141) def. Blair Lamb, Flat Rock, N.C. (155), 5 and 4

Morgan Pressel, Boca Raton, Fla. (150) def. Stephanie Kono, Honolulu, Hawaii (149), 4 and 2

Brittany Lang, McKinney, Texas (147) def. Ashley Freeman, Belleville, Ill. (156), 4 and 3

Mina Harigae, Monterey, Calif. (148) def. Ki-Shui Liao, Alameda, Calif. (152), 5 and 3

Sukjin-Lee Wuesthoff, Toms River, N.J. (141) def. Songyi Yi, San Diego, Calif. (154), 1 up

Jane Park, Oak Valley, Calif. (148) def. Juli Wightman, Chicopee, Mass. (150), 1 up

Esther Choe, La Quinta, Calif. (146) def. Kelley Louth, Victoria, Texas (154), 2 up

Laura Luethke, Clovis, Calif. (148) def. Alexandra Bodemann, Palm City, Fla. (152), 6 and 4

 

 

Fairfield, Conn. – Pairings for Thursday’s third round of match play at the 2003 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship, played at the 6,303-yard, par-71 Brooklawn Country Club (all times are Eastern):

 

Upper Bracket:

1:00 pm    In-Bee Park, Eustis, Fla. (140) vs. Whitney Wade, Glasgow, Ky. (149)

1:10 pm    Amanda Blumenherst, Scottsdale, Ariz. (147) vs. Hsiao-Ching Lu, Chinese Taipei (153)

1:20 pm    Paula Creamer, Pleasanton, Calif. (142) vs. Amie Cochran, Torrance, Calif. (148)

1:30 pm   Julieta Granada, Paraguay (145) vs. Catherina Wang, Sarasota, Fla. (158)

 

Lower Bracket:   

1:40 pm    Michelle Wie, Honolulu, Hawaii (141) vs. Morgan Pressel, Boca Raton, Fla. (150)

1:50 pm    Brittany Lang, McKinney, Texas (147) vs. Mina Harigae, Monterey, Calif. (148)

2:00 pm    Sukjin-Lee Wuesthoff, Toms River, N.J. (141) vs. Jane Park, Oak Valley, Calif. (148)

2:10 pm    Esther Choe, La Quinta, Calif. (146) vs. Laura Luethke, Clovis, Calif. (148)