A
AALARD
Guest
Creamer shares lead at U.S. Women's Open
OAKMONT, Pa., (UPI) -- Paula Creamer built a four-shot lead with six holes to play Saturday when play was suspended by darkness in the third round of the U.S. Women's Open.
Creamer completed a 1-under 70 in the rain-suspended second round earlier in the day and played the first 12 holes of the third round in 2-under before play was halted.
She stood at 2-under for the tournament as she seeks the first major championship of her career.
Wendy Ward was alone in second place at 1-under for the third round and 2-over for the tournament with two holes to play. Tied for third at 4-over were Suzann Pettersen, Brittany Lang, Amy Yang and Alexis Thompson.
Thompson was the only player among the first six to have completed play in the third round. She shot a 1-under 70 over the demanding Oakmont Country Club course.
Thunderstorms forced a halt to the action on Friday with Creamer having played only two holes of her second round. Nursing a sore thumb, she closed the second round with three birdies in the final four holes early Saturday to grab a share of the lead with Sakura Yokomine.
Creamer then played the first nine holes of the third round in even par and made birdies on both the par-4 10th and par-5 12th before it became too dark to continue.
Cristie Kerr, who is seeking her second straight major title after winning the LPGA Championship by 12 shots, was 5-over through 12 holes of the third round and 6-over for the tournament -- tied for 11th place. Yokomine also slipped back to 6-over for the event.
After the final groups complete the third round early Sunday, the field will be re-paired and sent out for the fourth round.
Creamer was one shot off the lead in this tournament after 54 holes in 2008 and a shot back after 36 holes in 2009. She finished sixth both times.
OAKMONT, Pa., (UPI) -- Paula Creamer built a four-shot lead with six holes to play Saturday when play was suspended by darkness in the third round of the U.S. Women's Open.
Creamer completed a 1-under 70 in the rain-suspended second round earlier in the day and played the first 12 holes of the third round in 2-under before play was halted.
She stood at 2-under for the tournament as she seeks the first major championship of her career.
Wendy Ward was alone in second place at 1-under for the third round and 2-over for the tournament with two holes to play. Tied for third at 4-over were Suzann Pettersen, Brittany Lang, Amy Yang and Alexis Thompson.
Thompson was the only player among the first six to have completed play in the third round. She shot a 1-under 70 over the demanding Oakmont Country Club course.
Thunderstorms forced a halt to the action on Friday with Creamer having played only two holes of her second round. Nursing a sore thumb, she closed the second round with three birdies in the final four holes early Saturday to grab a share of the lead with Sakura Yokomine.
Creamer then played the first nine holes of the third round in even par and made birdies on both the par-4 10th and par-5 12th before it became too dark to continue.
Cristie Kerr, who is seeking her second straight major title after winning the LPGA Championship by 12 shots, was 5-over through 12 holes of the third round and 6-over for the tournament -- tied for 11th place. Yokomine also slipped back to 6-over for the event.
After the final groups complete the third round early Sunday, the field will be re-paired and sent out for the fourth round.
Creamer was one shot off the lead in this tournament after 54 holes in 2008 and a shot back after 36 holes in 2009. She finished sixth both times.
