Golf: Wie Could Be in the Dough As First Female in the Deere
Teenage sensation Michelle Wie is on course to become the first female to make the cut at a US PGA Tour event since 1945.
Michelle Wie suffered a heartbreaking late lapse in form as her bid to make the cut at the John Deere Classic in Illinois fell just short.
The 15-year-old, making her third appearance on the US Tour, went to the turn in the second round in 33 to move up from 70th to 40th.
Starting on the 10th, she birdied three of her first five holes before a bogey at the 15th halted her progress.
However, another birdie at the 18th left her in good shape to become the first woman since Babe Zaharias at the 1945 Los Angeles Open to make the halfway cut on the men's circuit.
On four under par Wie, who opened with a one-under 70, had a couple of strokes to spare as she began the front nine.
After a string of pars, Wie remained four under with four holes to play, but she then double-bogeyed the sixth and bogeyed the next. It left her needing a miracle to survive the cut but she could only par her last two holes to finish on one under, two shots adrift of the projected cut.
In January last year Wie missed the cut at the Sony Open in Hawaii by a single stroke.
The first round leader Hunter Mahan, who has had just one top-10 finish in 18 events this season, made a flawless start to the tournament, carding an eight-under 63 for a one-shot lead over his compatriot JL Lewis with a seven-under 64.
Twelve places in next week's Open will be determined this weekend with 384 players fighting for them. The final qualifying takes place at four courses near St Andrews - Ladybank, Leven, Lundin and Scotscraig - and while the vast majority of the players are not exactly household names there are some familiar faces.
The former European No1 Ronan Rafferty, now very much a part-time golfer, and the American ex-Ryder Cup player Brad Faxon are in the line-up at Lundin, while the 1995 Ryder Cup team-mates Philip Walton and Per-Ulrik Johansson are at Leven and Ladybank respectively.
Brian McElhinney and Matthew Richardson, two of next month's Walker Cup side, are exempt for St Andrews as the respective British and European amateur champions. Six of their team-mates - Robert Dinwiddie, Richie Ramsay, Gary Wolstenholme, Rhys Davies, Gary Lockerbie and Lloyd Saltman - are trying to join them.
The 15-year-old, making her third appearance on the US Tour, went to the turn in the second round in 33 to move up from 70th to 40th.
Starting on the 10th, she birdied three of her first five holes before a bogey at the 15th halted her progress.
However, another birdie at the 18th left her in good shape to become the first woman since Babe Zaharias at the 1945 Los Angeles Open to make the halfway cut on the men's circuit.
On four under par Wie, who opened with a one-under 70, had a couple of strokes to spare as she began the front nine.
After a string of pars, Wie remained four under with four holes to play, but she then double-bogeyed the sixth and bogeyed the next. It left her needing a miracle to survive the cut but she could only par her last two holes to finish on one under, two shots adrift of the projected cut.
In January last year Wie missed the cut at the Sony Open in Hawaii by a single stroke.
The first round leader Hunter Mahan, who has had just one top-10 finish in 18 events this season, made a flawless start to the tournament, carding an eight-under 63 for a one-shot lead over his compatriot JL Lewis with a seven-under 64.
Twelve places in next week's Open will be determined this weekend with 384 players fighting for them. The final qualifying takes place at four courses near St Andrews - Ladybank, Leven, Lundin and Scotscraig - and while the vast majority of the players are not exactly household names there are some familiar faces.
The former European No1 Ronan Rafferty, now very much a part-time golfer, and the American ex-Ryder Cup player Brad Faxon are in the line-up at Lundin, while the 1995 Ryder Cup team-mates Philip Walton and Per-Ulrik Johansson are at Leven and Ladybank respectively.
Brian McElhinney and Matthew Richardson, two of next month's Walker Cup side, are exempt for St Andrews as the respective British and European amateur champions. Six of their team-mates - Robert Dinwiddie, Richie Ramsay, Gary Wolstenholme, Rhys Davies, Gary Lockerbie and Lloyd Saltman - are trying to join them.
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