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Four-shot cushion Course record 62 sends Andrews into Williams lead
Updated: Saturday September 08, 2001 8:20 PM
TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Donna Andrews was scoring so well Saturday, she figured everyone else must be doing the same thing in the tamed breezes at the Tulsa Country Club. But no one came close to Andrews' record performance in the second round of the inaugural Williams Championship. She set a course record with a career-best 8-under-par 62 that included a self-imposed penalty stroke on the final hole and took a four-stroke lead heading into Sunday's final round. "I knew the course was playing easier today than it did yesterday and I expected the scores to be a lot lower," she said. "I was actually surprised when there was not anybody else that was shooting lights out." Andrews started the round two shots behind co-leaders Kelly Robbins and Gloria Park and ended it at 8-under 132. Andrews had six birdies in a front-nine 29 and she appeared headed for a chance at becoming the second woman in history to shoot a 59 after adding birdies at Nos. 10, 12 and 15. But she bogeyed 16 when she hit into the rough off the tee and then hit a tree, winding up with a tricky lie off the cart path. She had another birdie on 17, but took a one-stroke penalty on the final hole after telling officials that she double-hit her final putt. "I had to go with my gut instinct even though TV was inclusive. I felt like I hit the ball twice," she said. "Unfortunately 61 sounds a lot better, but I probably wouldn't have slept very well." Andrews, whose previous best round was a 64, has held a lead going into the final round of an LPGA event eight times, but she hasn't won since 1998. She broke the Tulsa Country Club record of 64, which had been tied earlier in the day by Karen Weiss. Her closest challengers, Rachel Teske, Rosie Jones and Wendy Ward, were at 136. Jones shot a 65 Saturday, while Ward had a 66 and Teske a 67. Jones believed Andrews' challengers had a chance to make up the lost ground. "I actually didn't know that she bogeyed the last hole until I got up to 18. That made that putt on 18 important -- to get within four," she said. "You can catch that up. I can get hot tomorrow and this could be a good tournament for me." The wild breeze that left only four players under par in Friday's first round eased considerably under mostly cloudy skies. Robbins had bucked gusts in excess of 30 mph to tie Park for the opening-round lead with 68s. Robbins struggled to hit greens early and fell to 11th after a 71. Park landed in a tie for fifth after shooting a 69. She said she pulled a muscle in her left arm while hitting a shot on No. 11. "After that my arm was not as good," she said. Andrews' first birdie came when she hit a 7-iron from 143 yards within 3 feet on No. 1. She had three straight birdies beginning on No. 6. After she birdied No. 15, she said she started thinking about matching Annika Sorenstam's record 59 from earlier this year. That's when the trouble came on the par-5 16th. Andrews said she "tried to get too cute" when she attempted to use her 7-wood to hit around a tree to the green. The shot hit the tree instead.
"When you're hitting it good, you feel like you can pull off
just about anything," she said. "Unfortunately, my 7-wood is
probably one of my hardest clubs to try and cut."
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