toledoblade.com --

Strong winds during a golf tournament can generate a variety of reactions.

Few players like it, some fear it, some use it for an excuse. And then there are others who see it as an opportunity.

Morgan Pressel was in the latter mind-set yesterday as she negotiated the swirling winds well enough to scorch Highland Meadows Golf Club for a 7-under-par 64 and climb into contention with leader and four-time champion Se Ri Pak at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic.

Pak produced a respectable 2-under 69 to go to 13-under for the tournament, two shots ahead of Pressel.

Both players closed in style by sinking four-foot birdie putts on the 18th green.

ALSO

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HACKENBERG: Pressel perfectly prepared

PHOTO GALLERY: Updated Farr Classic photo gallery

VIEW: Jamie Farr Classic Web site
VIEW: Blade golf coverage
VIEW: Golf Guide
VIEW: LPGA Web site

Pak's extended her string of scores in the 60s at Highland Meadows to eight straight rounds - and her 27th in 41 career treks at the Farr.

Pressel's enabled her to match her career low round in her second full year on tour. She shot a 64 at last year's LPGA Corning Classic in New York.

The two will tee off in today's final pairing at 12:58 p.m.

If Pak wins, she will join Annika Sorenstam and Mickey Wright as the only LPGA players to triumph five times at the same tournament. Sorenstam has done it at two events.

"It was so difficult out there today," Pak said. "The wind was [blowing] really hard and every second it was changing. It was a pretty hard time deciding what club to use. But it was still a really solid round today. There's no complaints. I feel really great.

"Hopefully, after 18 [today], I'll take my glove off and be holding the trophy in my hand."

If Pressel wins, she will become the youngest player to win a Farr Classic, unseating Pak for that honor. Pak was 20 when she set single-round (61) and 72-hole (261) LPGA records in winning her first Farr title in 1998. Both marks have since been bettered.

Pressel's only prior tour victory came on April 1 at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, an LPGA major.

"I played well, hit the ball solidly and I just didn't make many mistakes," Pressel said. "That's what you need out here. There's a lot of guesswork that goes into a day like today where the wind is swirling and gusting. I hit one iron that came up about 40 yards short and I was like, what happened? I had no idea.

"But, other than that, the numbers [reading distances] were pretty solid. I think the scoring conditions are going to be a little better [today], so I've just got to go out there and grind it, and hopefully make some birdies and make some putts."

If someone else should rise up to prevent these potential milestones, others are possible and some have already been achieved.

South Korean In-Kyung Kim enters final-round play in third place at 8-under for the tournament, that after posting the best start in the 23-year history of the Farr Classic and one of the best in LPGA history.

Like Pressel, Kim, 19, could become this event's youngest champion. Kim opened play yesterday with seven birdies on her first seven holes, and tied Jimin Kang, another South Korean, for the lowest nine-hole raw score in LPGA history at 27. When Pak shot her 61 here in '98, she went 29-32 on the par 34-37-71 Meadows layout.

Only Sorenstam, who began with eight birdies in a row during her LPGA-record score of 59 in 2001, posted a better start to a round. Beth Daniel holds the tour record for consecutive birdies during any portion of a round with nine during a 1999 event.

"On the front nine I played really good," Kim said, "and on the back nine I was still trying to play well. But I didn't really hit lots of fairways and greens, so that made it a little harder."

Canadian player Alena Sharp, who has turned in a see-saw 65-74-67 effort thus far, is alone in fourth at 7-under. Like Kim, Sharp is seeking her first LPGA tournament victory, and was oblivious to the wind.

"I went to school at New Mexico State and we have the Texas spring winds," Sharp said, "so I had played in it the last few years. They taught us to hit the ball low and hard, and the ball didn't really move a lot for me in the wind today.

"Some people, when it's windy, they think, 'Oh, no!' Other people take it as, 'Oh, the scores are going to be high today, so I can make my move.'•"

Also chasing their first titles are two of the five players tied for fifth place at 6-under -American Carri Wood and Linda Wessberg of Sweden.

"I grew up [playing golf] on an island and I'm pretty used to playing in the wind, and I was hitting the ball really good today," said Wessberg, who summered on the island of Ourst while growing up in Sweden. "If you strike the ball well the wind doesn't really affect it. I'm very pleased with the round.

"You just have to figure out where the wind is coming from and go from there. You've got to stay patient in this weather."

The others tied at 6-under are veterans Laura Davies, who included a pair of eagles in her round of 67 yesterday, Laura Diaz, and 2004 Farr champion Meg Mallon.

Jin Young Pak, who entered play in second place at 6-under yesterday, earning the right to play the third round with her hero, Se Ri Pak, opened with a double bogey on the first hole and finished with a 74 to move to 3-under for the tourney.

Jin Young admitted that nerves, from playing with Se Ri, played a part in the poor start.

Contact Steve Junga at: sjunga@theblade.com or 419-724-6461.

TODAY'S TEE TIMES

Tee No. 1

8:02 a.m. Jill McGill.
8:10 a.m. Reilley Rankin, Meaghan Francella.
8:18 a.m. Brooke Tull, Soo Young Moon.
8:26 a.m. Jane Park, Natalie Gulbis.
8:34 a.m. Aree Song, Aram Cho.
8:42 a.m. Eva Dahllof, Dina Ammaccapane.
8:50 a.m. Sarah Lynn Sargent, Heather Young.
8:58 a.m. Janice Moodie, Jimin Kang.
9:06 a.m. Brittany Lang, Dorothy Delasin.
9:14 a.m. Sherri Turner, Patricia Meunier-Lebouc.
9:22 a.m. Michele Redman, Virada Nirapathpongporn.
9:34 a.m. Moira Dunn, Yu Ping Lin.
9:42 a.m. Diana D’Alessio, Charlotte Mayorkas.
9:50 a.m. Kristi Albers, Cristie Kerr.
9:58 a.m. Beth Daniel, Jacqueline Yang.
10:06 a.m. *Stacy Lewis, Nancy Scranton.
10:14 a.m. Irene Cho, Katherine Hull.
10:22 a.m. Joo Mi Kim, Sherri Steinhauer.
10:30 a.m. Ji-Young Oh, Lorie Kane.
10:38 a.m. Sophie Giquel, Angela Park.
10:46 a.m. Erica Blasberg, Brittany Lincicome.
10:54 a.m. Kristy McPherson, Julieta Granada.
11:02 a.m. Kim Hall, Christina Kim.
11:10 a.m. Rachel Hetherington, Mi Hyun Kim.
11:22 a.m. Nicole Castrale, Na Ri Kim.
11:30 a.m. Mikaela Parmlid, Katie Futcher.
11:38 a.m. Jee Young Lee, Gloria Park.
11:46 a.m. Jin Young Pak, Karine Icher.
11:54 a.m. Seon Hwa Lee, Marcy Hart.
12:02 p.m. Stacy Prammanasudh, Kelly Cap.
12:10 p.m. Candie Kung, Jeong Jang.
12:18 p.m. Wendy Ward, Angela Stanford.
12:26 p.m. Carri Wood, Beth Bader.
12:34 p.m. Laura Diaz, Meg Mallon.
12:42 p.m. Linda Wessberg, Laura Davies.
12:50 p.m. In-Kyung Kim, Alena Sharp.
12:58 p.m. Se Ri Pak, Morgan Pressel.

THIRD ROUND SCORES

At Highland Meadows Golf Club Sylvania; Par: 71
a-amateur

Se Ri Pak 63-68-69–200
Morgan Pressel 68-70-64–202
In-Kyung Kim 72-68-65–205
Alena Sharp 65-74-67–206
Linda Wessberg 73-68-66–207
Laura Davies 71-69-67–207
Laura Diaz 69-70-68–207
Meg Mallon 72-65-70–207
Carri Wood 68-69-70–207
Beth Bader 69-73-66–208
Wendy Ward 71-70-67–208
Angela Stanford 69-70-69–208
Candie Kung 70-70-69–209
Jeong Jang 69-71-69–209
Stacy Prammanasudh 71-70-69–210
Kelly Cap 71-70-69–210
Seon Hwa Lee 70-70-70–210
Marcy Hart 72-67-71–210
Jin Young Pak 67-69-74–210
Karine Icher 71-72-68–211
Jee Young Lee 71-71-69–211
Gloria Park 72-69-70–211
Mikaela Parmlid 69-71-71–211
Katie Futcher 72-69-71–212
Nicole Castrale 71-70-71–212
Na Ri Kim 70-71-71–212
Rachel Hetherington 70-71-71–212
Mi Hyun Kim 68-73-71–212
Kim Hall 73-67-72–212
Christina Kim 69-71-72–212
Kristy McPherson 72-72-69–213
Julieta Granada 71-73-69–213
Erica Blasberg 69-72-72–213
Brittany Lincicome 69-72-72–213
Sophie Giquel 72-68-73–213
Angela Park 71-69-73–213
Ji-Young Oh 70-69-74–213
Lorie Kane 69-70-74–213
Joo Mi Kim 74-70-70–214
Sherri Steinhauer 73-70-71–214
Irene Cho 72-71-71–214
Katherine Hull 71-72-71–214
a-Stacy Lewis 71-72-71–214
Nancy Scranton 70-73-71–214
Beth Daniel 71-71-72–214
Jacqueline Yang 70-72-72–214
Kristi Albers 69-73-72–214
Cristie Kerr 69-70-75–214
Diana D’Alessio 72-72-71–215
Charlotte Mayorkas 72-71-72–215
Moira Dunn 71-71-73–215
Yu Ping Lin 70-72-73–215
Michele Redman 73-68-74–215
Virada Nirapathpongporn 72-69-74–215
Sherri Turner 72-68-75–215
Patricia Meunier-Lebouc 75-68-73–216
Brittany Lang 72-70-74–216
Dorothy Delasin 71-70-75–216
Janice Moodie 69-72-75–216
Jimin Kang 70-68-78–216
Sarah Lynn Sargent 76-68-73–217
Heather Young 73-71-73–217
Eva Dahllof 74-68-75–217
Dina Ammaccapane 69-73-75–217
Aree Song 72-69-76–217
Aram Cho 68-73-76–217
Jane Park 70-70-77–217
Natalie Gulbis 75-69-74–218
Brooke Tull 75-69-74–218
Soo Young Moon 73-70-75–218
Reilley Rankin 76-68-75–219
Meaghan Francella 72-72-76–220
Jill McGill 74-66-80–220

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