Daniel takes lead into the weekend

Beth Daniel birdied her final hole Friday to cap a 3-under 69 and took a one-shot lead over Janice Moodie after two rounds of the Canadian Women s Open.

"I was starting to get a little frustrated with myself because I thought I should have made more birdies," said Daniel, who was at 6-under 138. "But I think it's that sort of golf course that you feel you should be burning it up, but nobody is."

That was especially true Friday. When the winds picked up, the greens firmed up, and the scores went up at the 6,389-yard Point Grey Golf and Country Club. Only 18 players were under par in the second round on the tight, tree-lined layout.

Despite the tough conditions, Daniel hit a cut 3-wood to 8 feet for an eagle on No. 3 and then had a tap-in birdie on the next hole.

"That combination was pretty much my whole round," said Daniel, who had a bogey on No. 6, but made up for it with a 6-foot birdie on the par-5 18th. "I actually hit the ball better yesterday, but that's how golf is. I hit enough shots out there to make an eagle and two birdies and then I stayed pretty steady from then on."

Moodie was atop the leaderboard most of the day before a bogey on her final hole dropped her one shot behind Daniel. Moodie's 68 was still the low round Friday.

"I played very, very solid. Nothing terribly long or anything, but some nice putts," said Moodie, who missed a short par putt on the tough par-4 ninth to fall out of the lead. "My only bad hole was the ninth, but I think that was everybody's bad hole."

Juli Inkster, Kim Saiki and first-round leader Heather Bowie were at 140. Laura Davies led a group of four at 3 under, but only 18 players were below par after two rounds.

"The wind is swirling out there," said Inkster, who followed an opening 68 with an even-par 72. "I think it's playing pretty tough."

Bowie was cruising with the lead at 7 under until an errant drive and poor approach shot turned into a triple-bogey 7 on the 401-yard 14th. She added another bogey before a birdie on No. 18 put her back at 4 under.

"It was just the one hole and other than that I would have been under par on the day," said Bowie, who opened with a 66.

Daniel, a 23-year LPGA veteran, took advantage of accurate driving. She leads the field with 25 of 28 fairways hit after two rounds.

"Accuracy is very important and that's something I've done well for two days," she said. "I've been able to keep the ball in play."

Daniel, who has close to $7 million in career winnings, hasn't won a tournament since 1995, but the 46-year-old wasn't worried about getting extra rest Friday night.

She planed to join a handful of other players at a Dixie Chicks concert Friday night. And she certainly wasn't thinking about her chances to win the $1.3 million event improving after LPGA money-leader Annika Sörenstam withdrew from the tournament after six holes Thursday.

"For me it doesn't change one thing," she said. "It doesn't change the way I'm going to play golf, it doesn't change the golf course, it doesn't change what I have to do."

Divots:

•Hilary Lunke, who won the U.S. Women's Open with a 15-foot birdie putt on the final playoff hole Monday, shot a 77 Friday to finish 9 over and missed the cut.

•Seventy-eight players, including four Canadians, made the cut of 4-over 148.

•The winner of the event sponsored by the BMO Financial Group will earn $195,000.

•Tournament director Jocelyne Bourassa was the last Canadian to win an LPGA event on home soil - in 1973 at Montreal.

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