Ochoa 6 strokes behind Creamer
Paula Creamer and Lorena Ochoa played together for the first 36 holes at the SemGroup Championship, battling a vicious wind that came from two directions and getting two very different results.
Creamer has made enough birdies that another sloppy finish Friday -- 2 bogeys on the final three holes -- still left her satisfied. She shot an even-par 71 and was the only player remaining under par at Cedar Ridge in Broken Arrow, Okla., giving her a 1-shot lead over Ji Young Oh.
Ochoa was 6 shots behind after a 3-over 74, the first time since the 2006 Women's British Open that she has had two rounds over par in the same tournament. Even more troublesome was that Ochoa, going for her record-tying fifth consecutive LPGA Tour victory, finished the second round without a birdie.
It was the first time in more than two years Ochoa played a round without a birdie, and she has gone 26 holes without a birdie or an eagle at Cedar Ridge, surprising for a player who came into this tournament averaging 5.4 birdies a round.
"I don't know what happened," Ochoa said. "I don't feel bad. It's hard to hit the ball close to the hole. I have nobody to blame. I didn't give myself enough birdie chances."
Wachovia Championship: As Phil Mickelson's round imploded with a series of wayward shots, the Wachovia Championship in Charlotte, N.C., flew in a different direction.
Jason Bohn fired a 5-under 67 to take a 2-shot lead at 9 under after the second round, while Mickelson's double bogey on Quail Hollow Club's easiest hole began a horrible closing stretch that left him 7 shots back.
Mickelson finished with 2 double bogeys in his final four holes on the way to a 74.
With an afternoon tee time, Mickelson birdied the 10th hole to get to 6 under. He missed a birdie putt at No. 14, then strolled to the par-5 15th looking to pick up at least a shot with the leaders at 8 under.
The 15th had a scoring average of about 4½, and is the last good chance to gain ground before the difficult closing three holes.
But Mickelson pulled his tee shot into the left rough. His second shot was even worse, going nearly straight left. While the ball just cleared the water, it nestled in a horrible lie of pine straw at the base of a tree.
Mickelson hacked at his sunken ball, and it dribbled 30 feet. His fourth shot landed in front of the greenside bunker. A chip shot and 2 putts later, Mickelson had a 7 and had fallen 5 shots behind after Bohn had birdied the same hole in the group ahead of him.
FedEx Kinko's Classic: Nick Price shot a season-best 7-under 65 to take a 1-stroke lead over fellow major champion Mark O'Meara after the first round of the Champions Tour's FedEx Kinko's Classic in Lakeway, Texas.
Defending champion Scott Hoch was two strokes back at 67 along with D.A. Weibring, Fred Funk, Denis Watson and Tom McKnight.
Spanish Open: Ignacio Garrido shot a 9-under 63, a course record, to take a 4-stroke lead at the Spanish Open in Seville, Spain. John Daly, who shot a 75 in the first round, managed to break par on Friday with a 70 -- but still missed the cut by 2 strokes with a 1-over total that left him tied for 93rd.