Five tied into last round

Dottie Pepper lost a three-stroke lead in the final three holes today, dropping into a five-way tie for the lead heading into the final round of the Safeway LPGA Golf Championship.

Pepper ended her second round at the Columbia Edgewater Country Club course with a double bogey on No. 17 and a bogey on 18. That gave her a 2-over 74 for the day and a two-day total of 143. Also at 143 were 14-year-old amateur sensation Aree Wongluekeit, Donna Andrews, Annika Sorenstam, and Mi Hyun Kim.

Pepper, a 35-year-old veteran, and Wongluekeit opened the day tied for the lead at 3-under. But Pepper, who was playing in her first tournament since injuring her back in July, quickly took control with a birdie on the first hole while Wongluekeit opened with three straight bogeys.

Then Pepper stumbled with a bogey on the short par-5 7th hole, dropping her lead to two strokes. She pushed her lead back to three strokes with a birdie on the par-4 11th moments before Andrews eagled the par-5 12th, her second eagle in three holes, to move into contention.

After her slow start, Wongluekeit picked up her first birdie of the day at No. 13. She followed with another birdie at No. 16, a par-3, to cut Pepper's advantage to two strokes.

Pepper lost the rest of her lead when she three-putted No. 17 for a double bogey. Wongluekeit, who received an exemption to play in this weekend's tournament, only needed to par the 17th to put pull into a tie at the top of the leaderboard.

Wongluekeit appeared to be in trouble on the final hole, a 377-yard par 4, when she hit her approach shot into a greenside pond. But she still managed to scramble for a bogey while Pepper two-putted for a bogey after putting her approach shot into a bunker.

Kim, who also played in the final group, wound up with a share of the lead when she parred the last hole and finished the day with a 73. Andrews and Sorenstam, who played together in the next to last group, both shot 72.

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