Fudoh, Shin share Open lead

Yuri Fudoh of Japan and Ji-Yai Shin of South Korea shot 4-under-par 68s Friday at Sunningdale, England, to lead by one stroke and equal the halfway record at the Women’s British Open, while Annika Sorenstam’s 72 was just enough to make the cut.

Fudoh and Shin were at 10-under 134 to tie the record set by Jeong Jang of South Korea, who won three years ago at Royal Birkdale. American Juli Inkster (70) was one shot back, while South Korean Bo Bae Song (68) and American Cristie Kerr (65) were two strokes behind.

Sorenstam stumbled over the front nine for the second day in a row, bogeying the fifth, sixth and seventh holes.

After shooting 72 Thursday, Sorenstam was at 3 over after seven holes and in danger of failing to make it to the weekend of her final major before she quits tournament golf at the end of the year.

The 37-year-old Swede, owner of 10 majors and 72 career titles on the LPGA Tour, responded with three birdies in a row at the ninth, 10th and 11th holes to finish at even-par 144 – safe from the projected cut of 1 over.

The 48-year-old Inkster, aiming to become the oldest winner of a women’s major, followed up her opening-round 65.

“It was a lot harder today,” she said. “I kind of just managed my game today. The wind was going different ways.”

Defending champion Lorena Ochoa (68) was three shots off the lead, along with Natalie Gulbis (68) and Ai Miyazato (69). Wendy Ward of Edwall, Wash., shot her second consecutive 71 and is tied for 34th at 2 under.

U.S. Senior Open

The Broadmoor’s East Course was quite a bear.

Difficult pin placements and faster, drier greens flustered the field and only five golfers managed to shoot less than par, including Fred Funk, whose 1-under 69 gave him the lead at the halfway point at Colorado Springs, Colo.

Funk’s two-day score of 6-under 134 is two shots ahead of Eduardo Romero (69) and four ahead of Mark McNulty (70), Tom Kite (71) and John Cook (72).

Stealing the show, however, was a black bear that ambled out of the mountains in the morning and crossed the 13th fairway before checking out spectators outside the ropes.

Nobody was harmed, and neither was the bear.

“(Jack) Nicklaus isn’t here, so I guess that’s a substitute,” cracked Funk.

WGC

Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson brought some star power to the final World Golf Championship event of the year.

Singh twice escaped from the trees on his closing holes at Firestone and renewed his affair with a belly putter on his way to a 4-under 66 at the Bridgestone Invitational at Akron, Ohio, putting his name atop the leaderboard for the first time in more than four months.

He was one shot ahead of Mickelson, who holed a 20-foot par putt to finish off a 66 that put him in the final group with Singh.

Sean O’Hair had a 67 and joined the group at 5-under 135 that included Lee Westwood (65), former Masters champion Zach Johnson (68) and Peter Lonard (66).

PGA Tour

Michelle Wie failed in her eighth attempt to make the cut on the tour, shooting a second-round 80 at the Legends Reno-Tahoe Open in Reno, Nev.

Parker McLachlin tied the course record with a 62 to take a four-stroke lead over 1987 Masters winner Larry Mize and three others.

Wie was 1-over 73 Thursday as she attempted to become the first woman since World War II to make the cut on the tour. But a quintuple-bogey 9 in the second round helped push her to 9-over 153 at Montreux Golf & Country Club.