Davies leads despite eye surgery

Laura Davies loves a good bet, so she couldn't resist the gamble of having lasik eye surgery less than 24 hours before playing in the LPGA Los Angeles Women's Championship.

"I took a chance and it paid off," she said after shooting a bogey-free 5-under 67 to take a one-shot lead in today's opening round. "The way I putted and chipped was the best I have in a long time. I can see to the green where before it was a bit of a guess."

The English star birdied three of the first nine holes, including a chip-in from 35 feet on the par-4, 371-yard 4th. She used a 9-iron to get within 20 feet and then birdied the par-4, 346-yard 14th.

"The round was all about my short game," she said.

Laura Philo, Moira Dunn, and Janice Moodie of Scotland were tied at 68 after each had six birdies and two bogeys over the 6,222-yard Wood Ranch Golf Club course.

Sherri Steinhauer, a two-time winner last year, led a group of six at 69 in cold, overcast conditions. The course was wet from a soaking rain Thursday and more rain was forecast overnight.

"The course absorbed a lot of the water, but it was a little soggy out there," Philo said.

Steinhauer was joined by Brandie Burton, South Korean rookie Mi Hyun Kim, Tina Barrett, Jen Hanna, Suzanne Strudwick and Tina Barrett, who was one of only three players among the leaders to shoot a bogey-free round.

Burton was out all of last year because of shoulder surgery, then she missed the cut in her first tournament in Florida.

"I was tired of playing in pain and I knew it was time to fix things up," Burton said. "My shoulder is actually feeling pretty good. The cooler weather this morning did make it a little tight, but overall it feels good."

Rookie Grace Park of South Korea was part of a six-player logjam at 70.

Davies described her eyesight as "rubbage" during the 12 years she wore glasses. A year-long experiment with contact lenses didn't help. Every ball she stood over was surrounded by haze and she couldn't see the edges of the hole on short putts.

"I just used to hit the shot and say where did that one go to the caddie," she said. "Your friends are waving at you in the fairway and you can't see them. Everyone thinks I'm rude because I never used to wave back; I didn't know who I was waving at, but now I do."

Davies played the pro-am Wednesday with a partner who had recently had the same surgery. He raved about the results and promised to make an appointment for Davies with his doctor in Brea.

Davies wanted to have the surgery anyway, so she was determined not to chicken out once it was arranged.

She got up at 5 a.m. Thursday, arrived at the doctor's office at 7:30 a.m., ate breakfast, had her eyes tested, then went shopping until her 3 p.m. surgery.

"It's the least I ever bought at a mall. I didn't have my mind on it because I knew they'd be digging my eyes out," she said.

Davies said she experienced eight minutes of intense pain when a brace was placed in each eye. She was driven back to Simi Valley and went to sleep early.

"I woke up this morning and pulled the patches off and could see everything I couldn't see before," she said. "Normally, I would reach for the glasses, but the first thing I did was reach for the remote control and watch TV."

Davies tied for 68th in the season-opening tournament in West Palm Beach, Fla., then tied for 24th in Naples, Fla.

She's in search of her first victory in North America since 1998. She came close last year, losing to Se Ri Pak on the first hole of sudden death in the LPGA Tour Championship in Las Vegas and finishing second in the du Maurier Classic, one of the LPGA's majors.

"I know I'll win again over here, and if I don't I'll eat my words," she said. "I could've won a few times last year, but it just didn't work out. I don't let that sort of thing worry me."

DIVOTS: Hall of Famer Patty Sheehan shot a 75 playing her first tournament in 11 months. ... Defending champion Catrin Nilsmark was at 71, along with Pak, who had a large contingent of Korean fans and media following her. ... Pak had lasik eye surgery last month, but her immediate results weren't as impressive. She was disqualified after shooting a 79 and failing to sign her scorecard in the Office Depot tournament. She said her eyes bothered her in the windy conditions. Pak has joined Tiger Woods as a spokesperson for a Maryland provider of lasik eye surgery. ... Dottie Pepper, who strained her neck and had whiplash after being rear-ended in a December car crash, shot a 72. ... Annika Sorenstam, who lost to Nilsmark in a playoff last year when the tournament was played in Glendale, wanted to be here this week. After she called the LPGA to verbally commit, the tour mailed her a confirmation. However, she never received the letter and the LPGA said it had no record of her verbal commitment. Her agent appealed to LPGA Tour commissioner Ty Votaw, who said that rules are rules.

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