Cristie Kerr isn’t accustomed to going much more than a year without winning an event on the LPGA Tour.
From 2004 through 2010, the American won at least one tournament each calendar year, and at this time in 2010 she was the No. 1-ranked female golfer in the world.
But Kerr, a 14-time LPGA champion, hasn’t captured an official Tour title since the 2010 LPGA Championship a little more than 12 months ago.
That’s a situation the 33-year-old hopes to rectify this week as the U.S. Women’s Open comes to the Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs. Championship play runs Thursday through Sunday (July 7-10).
“I feel like (I’m close to a breakthrough), but you can’t rush a good thing,” Kerr said Monday after a practice round at the Broadmoor. “I’ve just got to put myself in position, and keep being hungry because I’ve had a lot of close calls lately.”
That is an understatement. In her last four LPGA events, Kerr has finished second, second, second and third.
In fact, though Kerr hasn’t won in the last year, she’s hit about every spot on the leaderboard except for the top one. In her last 20 tournaments (10 this year and 10 last year), she’s placed in the top five an amazing 12 times. And, for the record, that includes four seconds and four thirds.
Kerr, who’s now ranked No. 2 in the world behind Yani Tseng, won the 2007 U.S. Women’s Open and admits she “absolutely” puts the highest priority on this event. “But I’m trying to just play my game and not make such a big deal out of it that I can’t perform. You want to start not slow but start and build up to a big finish instead of trying to do everything in the practice rounds.”
Warriors Team Up to Defeat Lewis: On Military Family Day at the U.S. Women’s Open, Kraft Nabisco Championship winner Stacy Lewis played an informal four-hole match against three “wounded warriors” Monday at the Broadmoor’s West Course. The “warriors” — Jason Mazzella, Jason Wilcox and Chris Helton — used a scramble format while Lewis played her own ball.
After Lewis birdied the first hole and the warriors the second, both sides parred the third, leaving the match to be settled on the fourth hole. There, the last warrior to putt sank a birdie putt for the victory.
It’s All About the Green(s): It’s pretty much unanimous: How players fare on the notoriously tricky greens at the Broadmoor will decide who comes out the champion on Sunday.
“It’s definitely all about the greens,” said Morgan Pressel, winner of the 2007 Kraft Nabisco Championship. “”¦ As long as you can give yourself an uphill putt, I think you’ll do OK this week.
“It’s a lot of strategy. It’s where you leave yourself coming into the greens, where you end up placing it on the greens. Chipping uphill is sometimes easier than putting downhill. Whoever can have the least amount of three-putts (should be in contention).”
Noted defending champion Paula Creamer during a recent visit: “Trusting that (putts) are going to go left to right even though it looks right to left — that’s going to be one of the hardest things to do out there.”
USGA Not Going to Go Overboard on Greens: During the second round of the 2008 U.S. Senior Open, numerous contestants were openly critical of some of the pin placements the USGA used at the Broadmoor.
Don’t expect a repeat of that situation this week at the U.S. Women’s Open. USGA executive director Mike Davis said the association learned a lesson from the Senior Open and therefore the greens for the Women’s Open will be slightly slower than what was utilized for the seniors three years ago.
“Our staff that did the setup for the Senior Open found that that speed was slightly too fast,” Davis said. “We started to lose some neat hole locations that we don’t want to lose for the Women’s Open.
“”¦ You learn from those things. I came out and saw that they had lost a couple of quadrants (of greens) where they just couldn’t use them (at the Senior Open). And I said we’re not going to get greens this fast for the Women’s Open. I think there are strategic places that I don’t want to lose just because we’ve gotten the greens too fast.”
Autograph Sessions Planned: Several LPGA Tour players — past and present — will sign autographs for fans this week at the Broadmoor in the days leading up to the championship. All signing sessions will take place at the Merchandise Pavilion.
Here’s the lineup: Morgan Pressel Tuesday (July 5), 10 a.m.; Christina Kim Tuesday, 3 p.m.; Brittany Lincicome, Wednesday (July 6), 11:30 a.m.; Natalie Gulbis, Wednesday, 1 p.m.; Annika Sorenstam, honorary chair of the tournament, Wednesday, 2:30 p.m.
“Finsty” On Hand: Among those in attendance for Monday’s practice rounds was Dow Finsterwald, who for 28 years served as the Broadmoor’s director of golf.
During his competitive playing days, Finsterwald won 12 PGA Tour events, including the 1958 PGA Championship.
