Swedish superstar Annika Sorenstam fired a second-round 67 on Friday to seize a share of the lead in the US$1.1 million SBS Open on Friday alongside Erica Blasberg.
Sorenstam, who is making her first appearance in the event, followed up a first-round 70 with a five-under effort that included seven birdies -- five of them on the back nine -- and a double-bogey at the par-three fourth.
"I got off to a little so-so start," Sorenstam said. "I made a double on the par-3 and I felt I was playing well. I didn't want to leave any shots out there."
PHOTO: AP
"The wind picked up and it got a little tougher. But it's just a thing where I hit some greens and putts on the back nine," she added. "I'm very pleased with the strong finish. It's always fun to see and fun to do."
Sorenstam, whose 69 US LPGA Tour victories include 10 major titles, is seeking to rebound from a disappointing last year in which she was hampered by a ruptured disk in her neck.
The 37-year-old, an eight-time Player of the Year, played just 13 events last season and didn't win on the US women's tour, although she did win a European tour event in Dubai in December.
"I worked a lot on my swing," Sorenstam said. "One of the biggest things I worked on was I was moving laterally last year and I think a lot of it had to do with the injury and being weaker."
"I was trying to get some power by using the hips. When you use the hips, it's tough to be consistent. Therefore, I didn't hit a lot of fairways, didn't hit a lot of greens. It wasn't consistent," she said.
"Now it's just a matter for me to play and under competition circumstances. It's a lot of fun when you stand over a shot and you know you can do it rather than worrying where is it going this time," she said.
Blasberg, 23 and in search of her first career title, fired a four-under 68 that included five birdies and one bogey.
Blasberg's best career finish is a tie for 18th at last year's Corona Championship.
Cristie Kerr, Laura Diaz, Jane Park and Japan's Momoko Ueda were tied for third, one shot off the pace. Ueda fired a 67, while Park and Diaz both shot 68 and Kerr posted a 69.
Australian Lindsey Wright carded a 70 to lie two strokes back on 139.
Ueda, a newcomer on the US women's tour who won last year's Mizuno Classic in her homeland, said greater concentration and a better day on the greens enabled to improve on her first-round effort.
"I thought about each shot that I was taking and how I approach each shot," she said. "I thought about it, and I think that was what worked out for me. Yesterday, I wasn't putting so well, but today it seemed like the putts went in a lot better. So with a combination of the two, I was able to switch gears."
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