M.J. Hur Extends Lead in Second Round of CIGNA Golf Classic

BLOOMFIELD, Conn., July 12, 2008 – M.J. Hur of Seoul, South Korea, added to her first-round lead at the CIGNA Golf Classic, firing an even-par 72 on Saturday to post a two-day total of 139 (-5). Hur leads three-time tournament winner Vicky Hurst (73) of Melbourne, Fla., by two strokes at 141 (-3), followed by a two-way tie for third between Tanya Dergal (68) of Durango, Mexico, and Sin Ah Ham (70) of Torrance, Calif., at 2-under-par 142.

After the average score was slightly above 5-over par (77.18) in first-round play, winds caused scores to soar on a day when even-par 72 was a better-than-average score. Players averaged 77.78 strokes in today’s round, nearly six-over par at Gillette Ridge Golf Club.

With the final group of Hur, Hurst and Janell Howland (75) of Boise, Idaho, battling darkness on their way to the 18th green, the trio also had to fight the distraction of bellowing bullfrogs and a gaggle of Canadian geese sitting at the top of the green as they finished their round.

Hur extended her lead by one stroke after she fired a first-round score of 5-under-par 67. Winner of the Louisiana Pelican Classic, Hur knows her second professional victory is anything but clinched. She watched a five-shot lead evaporate with three consecutive bogeys on the back nine near the end of her round.

“My putting was good today, but I finished really bad,” Hur said. “The first shot is so important and I have to finish strong tomorrow.”

Hur built up momentum on the back nine after a rough start with a bogey on her first hole. She made the turn with birdies on holes 10 and 11 to expand her lead to two strokes over Hurst. Hur’s short game, along with 29 putts, saved her from an errant driver that sent her “everywhere.”

Hurst is still within striking distance of Hur, trimming a five-stroke deficit on the back nine to a two-shot margin. She ended the round with a bogey on 18, after making a birdie on 17, and admitted the wind played a critical factor on her scorecard.

“The last couple of days were pretty calm,” Hurst said. “Today, we got a bit of reality because everything played different and longer.”

Hurst trailed Hur by four shots heading into the final round of the Michelob ULTRA Duramed FUTURES Players Championship, but managed to win by as many shots when the tournament came to a close. To earn her fourth Tour win in eight attempts, Hurst knows she has to be sharp in Sunday’s final round.

“When M.J. makes her putts, she’s really tough to beat,” Hurst said. “If the conditions stay like this tomorrow, it’s unpredicatable.”

The move of the day went to Dergal, who carded the day’s lowest score, a 4-under-par 68. Dergal moved up into a tie for third and capped off her round with a 60-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole.

“I had a really good round today and was able to stay patient and use good course management,” said Dergal, a rookie who played collegiately at the University of Southern California.

Seventy players made the cut at 10-over-par 154, the same cut line in Hammond, Ind., two weeks ago at the Horseshoe Casino Classic at Lost Marsh Golf Course. The 2007 CIGNA Golf Classic featured a cut at 11-over-par 155.

Final-round play gets underway Sunday morning at 8 a.m. off the first tee. The leaders will tee off at 11:50 a.m.

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A Different Kind of Sister Act

Kate and Morgan Stepanek of Guilford, Conn., are one of three sets of sisters on the Duramed FUTURES Tour, joining Ashley and Amber Prange of Noblesville, Ind., and Melissa and Nicola Eaton of Port Shepstone, South Africa. With Morgan as the local amateur exemption and Kate being the seasoned pro with eight events under her belt, the local sisters have been enjoying every moment leading up to the tournament.

The Stepaneks were the focus of media attention during Thursday’s pro-am, being paired with their uncle, Eddie Day, and left-handed amateur Dom Perno. The foursome posted the lowest gross score with a 14-under-par 58 out of 38 groups in Thursday’s pro-am.

Morgan, who recently completed her sophomore season at the College of William and Mary, has been shown the ropes by older sister Kate, a graduate of the University of Maryland. The younger Stepanek overcame opening nerves after shooting a 45 (+9) on her front nine. She rebounded by shooting an even-par 36 on the back nine after settling down.

Morgan showed further improvement on Saturday, dropping four strokes from her first-round score with a 5-over-par 77, and the amateur soaked in the experience of her first professional tournament.

“Yesterday, through the first seven holes, I was in a daze,” Morgan said. “My hands were shaking on the front nine, but I pulled it together for the back nine.”

Kate struggled with an opening round of 89 (+17), missing the 18-hole cut, but supported her younger sister on Saturday, serving as Morgan’s caddie. It wasn’t the exact script they were hoping to write for the tournament, but the support of one another was all the Stepaneks needed.

“Today was a very good ball-striking day for Morgan,” Kate said. “It’s been a great experience for her.”

Next in line for the Stepanek family is 18-year old Brooke, who will be playing collegiate golf at Rutgers University in the fall. Brooke served as a caddie for Morgan in Friday’s first round.

Special Day For Arizona State Alums Kuczka and Tavee

Tiffany Tavee of Tempe, Ariz., and Alissa Kuczka of Phoenix, Ariz., were teammates at Arizona State University and combine for five years of experience on the Duramed FUTURES Tour. Interestingly, the two players have never been paired together in junior, collegiate or professional golf.

That changed on Saturday, with the pair teeing off at 1:15 p.m. The pair of former Sun Devils each finished with a first-round score of 1-over-par 73 and began the day in a tie for 19th.

Kuczka and Tavee still own weathered head covers of the ASU mascot, “Sparky.” Tavee’s headcover is missing part of the moustache while Kuczka’s is missing eyebrows, moustache, goatee and eyes.

“It gives him character, and quite honestly, Sparky looks better beat up because he really is a creepy mascot,” Kuczka said.

While it’s OK the two have matching ASU headcovers, it’s not OK if they show up in the same outfit for the day. Kuczka called Tavee this morning to make sure they didn’t match, because both players are sponsored by Antigua.

Choi Overcoming Newly-Discovered Wrist Injury

Susan Choi of Natick, Mass., received news that no golfer wanted to hear after going to the doctor on Friday morning before her tee time – a ganglion cyst has developed in her left wrist. Choi has battled through the pain after sitting on the alternate list waiting to get into the CIGNA Golf Classic and went into the doctor for an MRI on Thursday. Finally, she moved into the tournament field off the alternate list earlier this week.

Instead of opting for surgical removal and a six-to-eight week rehabilitation schedule, Choi, along with her coach and caddie, Bill McInerney, decided to try to play the remainder of the year and wait to have it removed after the LPGA Qualifying Tournament. 

“It’s more of random pain on my backswing than anything,” said Choi of the pain she’s experienced. “It’s not an impact thing. I just struggled with distance control off my second shots today and had a lot of lip-outs.”

Entering this week, Choi thought the course would be suited for her style of play, relishing the chance to attack Gillette Ridge Golf Club with her short game. Despite the nagging pain, the Tour rookie tied her season-low round yesterday with a 3-over-par 75, but followed up with a 9-over-par 81 in today’s second-round and missed the 36-hole cut by just two strokes.

The Golf Channel’s “Big Break: Ka’anapali” contestant is hoping that the pain will subside over time. McInerney was Choi’s coach at NCAA Division III Wellesley College and traveled from Boston to serve as her caddie this week.

Weather: Mostly sunny with a high temperature of 82 degrees and winds blowing from the south at 10-25 mph.

Contact: Ben Schlesselman, 386-274-6228, Ben@duramedfuturestour.com.