Song and Kane lead after 36 holes

On her last day as a 17-year-old, Aree Song hardly played like a teenager.

Then again, she's never really acted her age.

Song surged into position to become the youngest winner ever on the LPGA Tour, shooting a 6-under 66 Friday for a share of the lead at the midway point of the Chick-fil-A Charity Championship.

Song was tied with Lorie Kane, who made birdies on three of her last five holes in a 68, at 9-under 135 after two rounds.

While 14-year-old Michelle Wie is usually billed as the future of women's golf, Song is clearly the more accomplished player at this point.

And maybe this is a telling sign: Song's biography in the LPGA media guide is right alongside Annika Sorenstam's.

The world's best player and her successor?

"It all starts on the inside," Song said. "I really think my game is good enough to win. It's just a matter of getting experience, getting used to everything that goes along with the golf."

The rookie seems to be adjusting just fine to life as a pro. A six-birdie, no-bogey round was hardly out of character.

The South Korea native first played in a major tournament as a 13-year-old amateur, tying for 10th at the Kraft Nabisco Championship. Last year, she was fifth at the U.S. Women's Open. After getting an age exemption from the LPGA, Song turned professional and just missed winning the first major of the year, making a gutsy eagle on the final hole of the Nabisco but losing to Grace Park by a stroke.

"I'm not surprised at all," said Park, who was one shot off the lead. "At 13 and 14, she was playing the Nabisco and holding her own. She's a strong player, very disciplined."

If Song can hold on through the weekend, she would become the youngest winner of an LPGA event. Hall of Famer Marlene Hagge was 18 years, 14 days old when she won the Sarasota Open in 1952.

"It's my last round as a 17-year-old," Song said, "so I wanted to do all right."

Song displayed a steady putter, making 15-foot birdies at 5, 13 and 18. She got a bonus at 16, holing a 35-foot chip from the fringe.

"Consistency. Not doing anything crazy. Just kind of play my own game," Song said, describing her style of play. "I'm getting more comfortable each week as we go, getting used to the travel, being away from home for a long period of time."

Sorenstam was in solid position to go for her third LPGA win of the year, five shots behind the co-leaders after rallying for a 69.

She birdied two of the last three holes to make up for a double bogey at the par-3 4th, where her tee shot landed about 20 feet from the flag but skidded into a creek.

"I'm playing really, really good," Sorenstam said. "I think that's about the highest I could have scored. I'm just waiting for some good momentum and a few putts to drop."

Kane took a leisurely approach to her round, eyeing the luxurious homes that line the Eagles Landing Country Club course south of Atlanta.

"I spent a lot of time looking at the houses, seeing what kind of window dressings they have," she said. "I'm in the process of trying to figure out if I want to put blinds or drapes on my house."

It worked. Kane closed with the three birdies in her final five holes.

And did she decide on a window dressing?

"I think it's going to be plantation shudders," she said with a smile.

Christine Kim, who led after an opening-round 65, was nine strokes worse on Friday. She couldn't build any momentum after bogeying the first hole, settling for a 74 that left her four strokes behind Song and Kane.

"Everything was just a little off," Kim said. "No one cares about the first round, in all honesty. It's all a matter of what happens Sunday afternoon."

Another member of the LPGA's youth movement, 21-year-old Natalie Gulbis, shot a 66 and was tied for second with Park at 136.

Gulbis, a third-year pro who has never finished higher than fifth, credited a new driver with improving her game.

"I was missing quite a few fairways early in the season," she said. "I've started to hit the fairway. It's a little easier to attack the pins, instead of before where I was just trying to get out of trouble."

Park started her round by hitting into the water and taking a double bogey. But she's learned to control her emotions better the past few years.

"It's always, 'coulda, woulda, shoulda,"' said Park, who shook off her first-hole travails to shoot a 70. "But then it's past. I'm learning to get over my past and stay in the present."

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