Sorenstam holds on despite illness

Annika Sorenstam couldn't even see straight, and it hardly seemed to matter.

Despite a dose of antibiotics, some cough medicine and a brief case of double vision, the ailing Swedish star managed a 3-under 69 on Saturday in the third round of the LPGA Corning Classic to stay in the hunt for her 61st LPGA Tour victory.

``I haven't felt good the last three days, but today was probably the worst,'' said Sorenstam, who trailed Karine Icher by two shots. ``I was almost seeing double at certain holes. I had to sit down several times.''

Icher, who began the round with a one-shot lead over Sorenstam and Sherri Turner, shot a 68 to finish at 12-under 204, one shot better than Hee-Won Han of South Korea.

The 26-year-old from France held the ailing Sorenstam at bay on a cool, rainy day, making four birdies and no bogeys. Although she has four European victories and was a Solheim Cup member in 2002, Icher was in rarefied air atop the leaderboard with Sorenstam lurking so closely. The super Swede is seeking her fifth win in six starts.

``Tomorrow, I don't know. I hope to keep the same,'' said Icher, who had four great par saves. ``To beat her is really, really hard.''

Sorenstam never mounted a serious charge. After birdieing No. 2, she reeled off 10 straight pars, missing at least five good chances to go lower.

``Today, I was just walking along, trying not to make too many mistakes,'' said Sorenstam, who took a nap during a rain delay. ``I was really trying to save some energy. It would have been great if I had finished the putts I had on 15, 16 and 18. It just didn't happen. But you know what? For how I was feeling, three under is pretty good. I think it'll be an exciting finish.''

It was for Han, whose career-best 62 was the lowest score of the year on the LPGA Tour and matched the course record set two years ago by Juli Inkster.

``Everything's perfect. I just kept thinking about rhythm,'' said Han, who had 10 birdies. ``Today, finally I got some rhythm and everything went together.''

South Korea's Jimin Kang (68) was three strokes back at 9 under, Meena Lee (68) was 8 under, and Dorothy Delasin (67), Moira Dunn (71) and Sung Ah Yim (70) were another shot behind at 7 under.

Liselotte Neumann and Michelle Ellis were at 6 under and Turner dropped to 5 under after a 74, tied with two-time Corning champion Rosie Jones, first-round co-leader Sophie Gustafson, Joo Mi Kim and Duke star Brittany Lang.

A four-hour weather delay on Friday prevented 62 players from finishing their second rounds. Icher was one of them, but the delay didn't seem to affect her. She completed her second round early Saturday with a birdie for a career-best 66 to take sole possession of the lead.

Icher, who missed the cut last week in the Sybase Classic after shooting an 81 in the second round, seemed far from intimidated by her playing partners, Sorenstam and Turner. Facing a steady wind, she hit her second shot at No. 1 within 3 feet of the pin and made a birdie to go two shots ahead at 9 under.

Sorenstam almost made a double eagle at the 446-yard, par-5 No. 2 when her second shot nearly landed in the hole. She settled for a two-putt birdie from 14 feet, her only one on the front nine.

But with thunder reverberating through the rolling hills, officials called another halt to play just before 1 p.m. When play resumed about an hour and a half later, Icher birdied the par-5 fifth hole to reach 11 under as Sorenstam struggled to find some momentum.

``I went out and felt a little shaky,'' Sorenstam said. ``Then, all of a sudden I got some energy -- I don't know where it came from -- and I felt pretty good for six or seven holes.''

Sorenstam missed a short putt for birdie at No. 5 and her putt for birdie at No. 7 curled just past the hole as the gallery groaned. A 15-foot birdie putt at the par-5 12th hole brought her to 9 under.

Intermittent rain fell throughout the day as the temperature struggled to reach 60 degrees. It had no effect on the 26-year-old Han, who made six birdie putts from inside 5 feet. An uphill 20-foot putt for birdie at No. 17 moved her to 10 under and she drained a 5-footer at 18 to briefly tie Icher.

After four straight pars, Sorenstam rallied with a birdie at 17.

``I hit some good shots in the end and had some chances, couldn't make them the last few holes,'' she said. ``But it doesn't matter. I'm right there. I just need some rest.''

Email this page to a friend | Return to top of page