Golf: Park takes lead as Wie, Webb struggle

In a U.S. Women’s Open dominated by talk of teenagers, one of them wound up atop the leaderboard.

And hardly anyone noticed.

As 17-year-old Michelle Wie continued her free fall and 12-year-old Alexis Thompson played carefree until it was too dark to continue, LPGA Tour rookie Angela Park, 18, birdied her first three holes and hung on for a 3-under-par 68, leaving her in the lead in the first round for the second straight major.

No rain touched the turf at Pine Needles at Southern Pines, N.C., but play was suspended for 3 1/2 hours because of lightning in the area, allowing only the morning batch of 78 players to finish the round.

Thompson, the youngest qualifier in U.S. Women’s Open history, three-putted the 18th green for a bogey that put her at 3 over after nine holes, a respectable start considering she played the tougher back nine first. Wie went off early, and fell off the map quickly. She hit only four fairways, matched her highest score in a Women’s Open with an 82, and offered an assessment that was hard to grasp.

“It’s just a very fine line between shooting 69 and shooting what I shot today,” said Wie, who has 21 straight rounds without breaking par.

Karrie Webb, a seven-time major champion who won the U.S. Women’s Open the last time it was played at Pine Needles in 2001, failed to make a birdie and walked off with an 83, her highest score on the LPGA Tour.

Defending champion Annika Sorenstam was at even par through 13 holes.

Wendy Ward of Edwall, Wash., was 2 over after 11 holes.

PGA

Rocco Mediate’s back is healthy and so is his game.

Mediate shot his lowest score on the PGA Tour in four years, opening the Buick Open with an 8-under 64 for a one-stroke lead at Grand Blanc, Mich.

“This has been one of the best years of my life coming out of this injury,” he said. “I’m ecstatic.”

Brett Quigley, Woody Austin and Brian Bateman shot 65s and Jim Furyk was among a group of four another stroke back, in a tournament up for grabs without Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh in the field for the first time since 2001.

The stars have combined to win four of the previous five Buick Opens.