A little frustration, but Ochoa still in position
Lorena Ochoa's 8-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole caught the left lip and spun out of the cup, the story of her day.
Still, she was tied for the lead Friday at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, the story of her year.
Ochoa missed 4 birdie putts inside 10 feet that kept her from building a big lead halfway through the first major of the season, settling for a 1-under 71 that left her tied with Heather Young going into the weekend at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
"I can't complain," Ochoa said. "I left a few putts out there that hurt, but that's the way it is. It's a major championship. You have a couple of days to go. I'm in a good position. It's where I like to be."
Ochoa and Young (70) were at 5-under 139, and they had plenty of company.
Mi Hyun Kim, a short hitter who was at an even greater disadvantage playing soft fairways and brick-hard greens, still managed a second straight round of 70 and joined Maria Hjorth (70) at 140.
Another shot back was Annika Sorenstam, a three-time Nabisco winner who posted her 16th consecutive round under par despite feeling so sick on the back nine that she doubled over in pain while speaking to reporters.
"This course is tough enough," Sorenstam said after a 70. "You don't need a stomach ache on top of it."
Ochoa had a chance to put a real hurt on everyone Friday.
The No. 1 player needed only two holes to tie for the lead when she 2-putted for birdie on the par-5 second. It looked as though she was getting ready to pull away from the field in a hurry, but the putter failed to cooperate.
On the 18th, where the tee was moved forward to make the hole play 485 yards. Ochoa easily cleared the lake in 2, just over the green, and her chip stopped 8 feet short. The putt looked good all the way.
"It was like, 'OK, we deserve this one. Come on, let's make it,' " she said. "And it was pretty much in the middle of the hole, and just at the end decided to go left and lipped out. I didn't have anymore emotions to show."
Houston Open: Johnson Wagner played Augusta National four years ago as a guest of his great uncle, a member there.
He's halfway to earning another invitation -- this time to play in next week's Masters.
Wagner shot a 3-under 69 Friday to take the outright lead at the Houston Open in Humble, Texas, before an afternoon storm delayed play for 1 hour, 45 minutes. More rain came later and the second round was suspended at 7:25 p.m. with 36 players still on the course.
Wagner was safely in at 12 under, 3 ahead of Charley Hoffman (70) and Mathew Goggin, who shot a 64 to continue the remarkable history of Australians at the tournament. Chad Campbell was at 7 under after matching Goggin's 64 in the breezy, sunny morning.
Cap Cana Championship: Mark Wiebe shot a course-record 5-under 67 to take a two-stroke lead in the Champions Tour's Cap Cana Championship, the first pro golf event ever in the Dominican Republic.
Vicente Fernandez and Fulton Allem opened with 69s in windy conditions on the Jack Nicklaus designed-Punta Espada course. The sustained 25-mph wind led to an average score of 74.688, the highest opening-round mark this season.
Estoril Open: Gregory Bourdy of France shot 6-under 65 Friday to lead by 2 strokes over Gonzalo Fernadez-Castano of Spain (66) after the second round of the European Tour's Estoril Open in Cascais, Portugal.