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November 9, 2002
OTSU, Japan -- Bidding for her third victory of the season, Mi Hyun Kim made six straight birdies en route to 7-under 65 Friday for the first-round lead in the Mizuno Classic.
She had seven birdies in eight holes in the LPGA event and held a one-stroke lead over Grace Park, Gloria Park and Chieko Amanuma.
"That's only the second time I've had six straight birdies," Kim said. "I've changed clubs recently and I'm starting to feel more comfortable, especially with the irons."
Kim is trying to win for the sixth time in four years on the tour. During a three-week span in July and August, she won the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic and Wendy's Championship for Children.
She began the birdie run on the par-3 fifth hole and rebounded from a par on No. 11 with a birdie at No. 12.
Kim hit a 6-iron within a foot on the par-3 fifth. On the next hole, she hit a wedge to 3 feet. On No. 8, she hit a 6-iron within a foot, and on the 180-yard No. 9, she hit a 7-wood to 2 feet.
Grace Park is coming off a victory last week in the World Ladies Match Play Championship in Narita.
"I had such a great start, I'm playing well and feeling confident," she said. "I thought I was going to shoot 15 under the way I started.
"Then my swing kind of went away a little, but I still made some good saves for par on the back side. I'm very happy."
Lorie Kane, who won this event in 2000, was two strokes behind at 67 along with Hiromi Kobayashi and Woo-Soon Ko.
Se Ri Pak, a five-time winner this season, topped an eight-player group at 68, and defending champion Annika Sorenstam opened with 69 on the Seta course.
Sorenstam, coming off a first-round loss to Amanuma last week, has nine LPGA and 11 worldwide titles in 23 events this year. She leads the LPGA money list with a record $2,479,404. Pak is second with $1,612,518.
The top 30 on the money list after the tournament advance to the season-ending ADT Championship on Nov. 21-24 in West Palm Beach.
VOLVO MASTERS: Retief Goosen struggled to 3-over 74 in the second round in Sotogrande, Spain, but that was enough to keep him ahead of Padraig Harrington in their competition for the Order of Merit.
Harrington shot 5-over 76 for his second straight bad outing on the Valderrama course. He is three shots behind Goosen but probably would need to overtake him by several shots to win the award that goes to Europe's top money winner.
Goosen entered the final European Tour event leading Harrington by $23,110 in winnings. Goosen, who won the 2001 U.S. Open, had the Order of Merit wrapped up coming into this event last season.
Almost as an afterthought, Angel Cabrera maintained his four-stroke lead after 1-over 72. He shot a first-round 63. Colin Montgomerie made four birdies on the back nine and finished with 69 to move up to second place, tied with Sergio Garcia, Robert Karlsson and Bradley Dredge.
Goosen said if he hadn't putted well, he could have shot 80.
"I played really badly, probably as badly as I've played this year," he said.
He denied that pressure to retain his European No. 1 position was a factor.
"I'm sure what I went through at the U.S. Open last year was a lot worse than trying to win the Order of Merit again," he said.
Goosen parred the first seven holes, bogeyed the eighth and double-bogeyed the short 12th, where he bunkered his tee shot and splashed out over the green, chipping back five feet past and two-putting for 5.
Both he and Harrington birdied the 17th -- their only birdies of the day.
Five bogeys in the first 10 holes wrecked Harrington's chance of recovery after his opening-round 74.
"I have no confidence when I'm hitting approach shots," Harrington said.
"You have to play these shots with confidence, and I'm not a very confident person. That's just the way I am. I think too much. People who do that are not very confident."
Harrington needs to finish no worse than 27th to have a chance of overhauling Goosen, who would have to finish last in the 66-man field.