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Alright, Aree Song One Wongluekiet makes cut at Nabisco, other misses
Posted: Friday March 24, 2000 08:31 PM
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (AP) -- Aree Song Wongluekiet should have been in school studying algebra, English and Spanish on Friday. Instead, the 13-year-old taught the LPGA Tour how to master a tough course in the year's first major championship. Wongluekiet (pronounced Wahn-gloo-KEE-it) shot a 1-under 71 and made the cut in the Nabisco Championship with a 2-over 146 total -- one stroke behind former U.S. Open champion Laura Davies. Aree and her twin sister, Naree, are the second-youngest ever to compete in an LPGA tournament. "I expected to make the cut. It was one of my goals," said Aree, who along with her sister, dominated the junior circuit in the last half of 1999. Dottie Pepper, second after Thursday's first round, teed off early and posted a par-72 for a 4-under 140 total. First-round leader Karrie Webb birdied the first three holes to get to 8-under. She was still on the course. Naree didn't fare as well as her sister, failing to make the cut after an 82 that included one birdie, a double bogey and seven bogeys. She finished at 12-over 156. "I'm very happy for my sister. She's having a blast," Naree said. "I tried my best. I wasn't nervous. From six on, I struggled to make some putts." That means their older brother, Chan, is out of a job as Naree's caddie. The 17-year-old, one of the nation's top junior boys' golfers, won't be on Aree's bag for the final two rounds. "My brother tried to caddy for her in the Korean Open, and I don't think they got along very well," Naree said. "He's a great caddie." Naree was just as popular with fans, who pushed golf balls and caps at her to sign. "That's a long name. You're going to have to shorten it," a woman told Naree as she squeezed her name in careful script on a golf ball. Aree double-bogeyed the par-4, 403-yard 13th when she pushed her tee shot into the thick rough on the right side of the fairway and ended up behind a tree. She sank a 6-footer to salvage the double bogey. "When I'm out there, I don't think about anything else except just playing my game and sticking to my game plan," Aree said. That was evident in the way she calmly bounced back with a birdie on the par-3, 148-yard 14th -- one of four in her round. "That's what a champion does," said Sherri Turner, a 15-year tour veteran. "You forget you're playing with a 13-year-old. She's very focused, especially for a kid. I look for great things to happen for her." Turner, 43, said playing with Aree helped her own game. She shot a 2-under 70 and was at 147, one behind Aree. "I thought, `Man, I'm going to be really embarrassed if she makes the cut and I don't.' She had no concept how difficult this course is," she said. "I put a lot of pressure on myself before we even started." Hall of Famer Nancy Lopez was a 17-year-old amateur when she played in her first LPGA tournament. She also made the cut and tied for 18th. Both Wongluekiet sisters are missing a week of school in Bradenton, Fla., where they attend the private David Leadbetter Academy to hone their golf games. Their mother, who is from Thailand, and father, who is from South Korea, are here this week. The sisters have said they'll play Monday qualifying to try to get into three more LPGA tournaments, including the U.S. Open in July. They received sponsor exemptions this week. "My only concern is that she might get burned out. They're so programmed to do this," Turner said of Aree. "What does she do for the next five years? I hope she's allowed to be a kid." Divots: Webb said she and countrywoman Rachel Hetherington never discussed turning pro when they competed together as juniors in Australia. "It's not like over here in the States. You talk to the Wongluekiets and they tell you when they're going to turn pro," Webb said. "In Australia, you mention it to anyone and if it gets back to an official, they're going to say it's against your amateur status." ... The late Jim Murray, who was a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the Los Angeles Times, and Bob Rosburg, an ABC golf reporter for 25 years, were the first recipients of the Babe Zaharias LPGA Journalism Awards presented Friday.
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