Vincent Publishing - Index

Vincent Publishing - 2008 Michelob ULTRA Open - Index

M I C H E L O B U L T R A O P E N 2 0 0 8 O F F I C I A L P R O G R A M
Edward bogeys for a 72, and Becky Morgan couldn't
back up the 65 that had her in second at the
midpoint. She shot a 74 and dropped into a
five-way tie at 206 as the wind picked up on
several Edwardholes.
That the lead stayed at 11 under was good news
to that group, which also included Pettersen
(68) Creamer (67), Ai Miyazato (66) and Koch
(70), pulling them all within a one-hole swing
or just a good start on Sunday to make it interesting.
Morgan, Seon Hwa Lee (65) and Morgan
Pressel (68) were five shots off the lead.
Pettersen, who was seeking her first Tour victory,
needed help on the green.
"I haven't putted well at all," she said. "I don't
think I could hit it much better than I am now.
I'm just trying to be really patient with my
game."
Four stokes behind Lee to start the day,
Pettersen shot a 3-under 68 to match Lee (72)
at 10-under 274, avoiding the bogeys that
plagued Lee and many others as a stiff wind
changed the course.
"The wind was good for me," Pettersen said,
since she felt it didn’t matter because she was
MICHELOB ULTRA OPEN • 2008 OFFICIAL PROGRAM
22
Suzann Pettersen
striking the ball so purely. "It made it a little
difficult for the other ones."
Also encouraging was Pettersen's recent history
of near misses, including two before her victory.
One came despite her best effort, and the other
was as demoralizing as the way Lee lost.
Placing second twice in her first seven events
last year, the 26-year-old Pettersen closed with
a bogey-free 66 in the Safeway International in
March, but lost when top-ranked Lorena Ochoa
birdied four of the last five holes. Pettersen
then blew a three-shot lead with a bogey-double
bogey-bogey-par finish at the Kraft
Nabisco Championship - a major - the next
week.
Those experiences, she said, helped her get
through Sunday's tension.
"Even the playoff, I don't think my heart rate
was much more than when I played the regular
18 holes," Pettersen said. "It could possibly be
the experience I had a month ago."
This time, she let the opponent flinch.
Both players parred the par-4 18th on the first
two extra holes, and Lee seemed to have the
upper hand the third time around when she hit
her approach to about 12 feet while Pettersen's