Karrie Webb had
four straight birdies today on the way to an opening-round 66 and a one-stroke
lead over Cindy Figg-Currier in the LPGA Tournament of Champions.
Webb had birdies on holes seven through 10, dropping putts of 5, 15, 20 and 6
feet on the undulating greens of the Magnolia Grove Golf Course.
"I didn't really think about
it (the birdie streak) until the 10th," Webb said. "Then I gave myself a chance
on the next hole and didn't make it. But the hole was definitely looking bigger
by that point. It was good to see those go in because I had a lot of chances on
the first six holes and none fell."
Webb, an Australian who has won a tour-high six tournaments this year, gave back
a stroke on No. 12 before birdies on the 13th and par-3 17th, where she missed
a hole-in-one by less than a foot.
"The
momentum got going and I had more confidence on the greens," she said. "I played
smart out there today. On these greens, you have to look at the best place to
hit it, so I was trying to look at the pin placement and know where the ridges
were and work from there."
Figg-Currier, of Austin, Texas, playing in the second group of the day, had a
bogey-free round and posted a 5-under par 67.
"I
had lots of opportunities to make birdies out there," she said. "I could have
shot a lot lower today. You definitely have to hit it in the right spot on these
greens."
Wendy
Ward, another Texan, was three shots behind Webb after a 3-under-par 69.
Four shots back was a group
of four players including Chris Johnson, Hall of Famers Pat Bradley and Betsy
King, and last year's Rookie of the Year, Se Ri Pak. Defending champion Kelly
Robbins shot a 74, and Juli Inkster carded an even-par 72.
The tournament, sponsored by AFLAC, is a no-cut event featuring only winners of
LPGA events in the last three years and active members of the LPGA Hall of Fame.
Total prize money is $750,000, with the winner receiving $122,000.
DIVOTS: Terry-Jo Myers
holed a 5-iron for a hole-in-one on the 155-yard 17th. This is Myers' first tournament
since suffering a back injury in June. There have been a record 34 holes-in-one
on the tour this year, breaking the old mark of 27 set in 1997. ... Dottie Pepper,
winner of the inaugural AFLAC Champions in 1994, was forced to withdraw when she
re-injured her left arm in Wednesday's pro-am. Pepper originally injured the arm
on Sept. 9 at the Samsung World Championship, but recovered well enough to win
the Gillette Tour Challenge Championship in Bermuda last weekend. ... The field
includes seven of the eight active members of the LPGA Hall of Fame, including
JoAnne Carner, who is 60 and has been on the tour more than 30 years. There has
never been a repeat winner in the five-year history of the AFLAC Champions.
