MASON, Ohio, June 19, 2009 - Today's first round of the $125,000 Duramed Championship featured temperatures that were toasty and rounds that were hot. So it was appropriate that Swedish rookie Pernilla Lindberg's game got fired up at just the right time on the eve of Sweden's most anticipated summertime festival known as "midsommar."

Lindberg blistered the Grizzly Course at The Golf Center at Kings Island today with an 8-under-par round of 63 that tied the course record for a women's professional tournament. That score was last carded here in 1984 by LPGA and World Golf Halls of Fame member Patty Sheehan, back when the course hosted the LPGA Championship.

"I've been striking the ball well for a long time and all the pieces fell together today," said Lindberg of Bollnas, Sweden, playing in only her third tournament as a professional, following her sparkling amateur and collegiate career. "I'm most excited about my putting."

Lindberg's bogey-free round featured eight birdies and a handful of birdie chances with 23 total putts to give her a two-shot lead at the end of the day. But while the Swede's reputation as a steady and effective player was established as a two-time All-American at Oklahoma State University, as well as a Swedish National Team player who was on the three-member squad that won the 2008 Women's World Amateur Team Championship (alongside last week's McDonald's LPGA Championship winner Anna Nordqvist), this page of her golf resume had been heretofore an open page. Lindberg decorated that page today with hint of what the rest of her summer could look like.

Fellow rookie Cindy LaCrosse of Tampa, Fla., and 2009 tournament winner Samantha Richdale of Kelowna, British Columbia, fired their own respective 6-under-par scores of 65 on the par-71 Grizzly Course. LaCrosse benefited from a windless morning of sticky-hot, but perfect scoring conditions, while Richdale used her experience and on-course patience in the afternoon wind to jump into a share of second place with LaCrosse. Each player tied her career-low round of 65.

"I've come out here with no expectations, so I feel good today getting in a low round like this," said LaCrosse, a recent University of Louisville grad who also is playing in her third tournament as a pro. "If I can be in contention, I'm glad to be there."

LaCrosse missed only two greens today and capitalized on her strong iron play, holding steady with 28 putts for a round that included seven birdies and one bogey. Winner of the Tour's tournament earlier this spring in Lafayette, La., and the 2008 Gettysburg Championship (Pa.), Richdale called today's opener a "stress-free round" highlighted by six birdies, 14 greens in regulation and a bogey-free scorecard.

"By the time I played this afternoon, the course was drying out, allowing more roll," she said. "I like that you can hit lots of wedges into the greens."

Four players carded rounds of 4-under-par 67, including 2009 tournament winners Angela Buzminski of Oshawa, Ontario, and Misun Cho of Cheongju, South Korea. Joining them was amateur Victoria Kiser of Orlando, Fla., and second-year professional Tanya Dergal of Durango, Mexico.

"I felt lousy today and I'm glad to have this round done," said Cho, who was nursing a sore throat. "I missed only three greens today and hit it well, but I think playing a lot of golf finally caught up to me."

Buzminski used her veteran smarts to pull it together when she found herself three-over par after five holes today. Starting on the back nine, the Canadian missed a one-foot putt for par on the 14^th hole – which served as her little wake-up call that there was still a lot of golf to play.

"That made me refocus a little bit," said Buzminski, who hit 15 greens in regulation. "Maybe it's an age thing, but I got it together pretty fast."

Buzminski birdied holes 17 and 18 from four and eight feet respectively, and then made the turn to go to the front nine, where she rattled in five birdies. The day turned into a satisfying turn-around for the player who says she was "hitting it so bad" that she withdrew from Monday's sectional qualifying for the U.S. Women's Open and flew to New York for a golf lesson with her swing coach.

"Usually, when you miss shots, you miss them one way, but when you miss left and right, short and long, thin and fat, it becomes a real uncomfortable crapshoot," said Buzminski, who has spent the last few years rebuilding her golf swing. "I have a totally different swing now and it requires some regular maintenance. I could feel it really deteriorating, so I went for a lesson and we looked at it on video, made a few repairs, and now I feel like my swing is getting back to where it needs to be."

Dergal needed only 24 putts today in her round that included seven birdies and three bogeys. Like Buzminski, she had hammered away on her game earlier this season with her coach, Mauro Gonzales in Los Angeles. Finally, the former University of Southern California collegian was starting to see results.

"This is one of those courses where you need everything in your game," said Dergal. "You need to hit the ball well because the rough is high and you have to be aware of what the greens will do. It's a good course."

But while even the newly turned professionals drew on experience to go low in today's opening round, Kiser, a 17-year-old amateur, moved into the hunt with a little help from a former Dayton, Ohio schoolmate, who is caddying for her this week. The former classmates kept it light on the course and Kiser posted her low score of the year.

"Since I've lived in Florida, it kind of feels like vacation," she said. "This definitely feels like home and I love the grass up here."

While the Jack Nicklaus-designed Grizzly Course can show its teeth at times with subtleties on the greens and plenty of attention that must be paid to the longer-than-it-measures 6,203-yard tract, it has a storied history of rewarding and punishing players on the PGA Tour, the Champions Tour, the LPGA Tour and now the Duramed FUTURES Tour.

And after today's first round of The Duramed Championship, 31 players finished under par for a run at this year's title. Low scores are out there, which Lindberg proved today on The Grizzly and PGA pro Larry Nelson proved here in the pro-am of the 2000 Kroger Senior Classic when he carded a score of 58 (when the course played as a par-70 layout). A lot has happened here over the years and the walls of the clubhouse bear plaques of winners in a who's-who of golf from the various tours on a course that has been designed and renovated twice.

If this is indeed the kickoff for a fine "midsommar" for Pernilla Lindberg, rest assured she is hoping for a smorgasbord of birdies in Saturday's second round.

Saturday's second round of The Duramed Championship, presented by Time Warner Cable, will begin at 7:30 a.m., off the first and tenth tees, with the afternoon tee times starting at 12:10 p.m. The leaders will tee off at 2 p.m.

For scores and more information, visit duramedfuturestour.com.

Weather: Mostly sunny and humid with temperatures reaching 90 degrees and afternoon wind between 8-13 mph.

Three Tour Members Make Hair Donations

Three members of the Duramed FUTURES Tour will leave their ponytails in Ohio after each donated eight or more inches of hair to the "Pantene Beautiful Lengths Share Your Shining Strength" program. The charity works with the American Cancer Society to provide wigs to women with cancer.

And this week's charitable act was dreamed up by Tour member Cindy Lee-Pridgen of Sabah, Malaysia, whose mother died two years ago today after a battle with cancer. Lee watched her mother lose her hair following chemotherapy and saw the resulting loss of self-esteem. When she and her sister attempted to buy a wig for their mom, they were shocked that wigs cost from $350 to $500.

Lee-Pridgen decided to have her long hair fully buzzed to the scalp, donating all of her hair – three ponytails -- to the charity, while fellow Tour members Kim Welch of Sacramento, Calif., and Violeta Retamoza of Aguascalientes, Mexico, respectively donated eight inches of their long locks.

"I want to make a statement that it's just hair and that it will grow back," said Lee-Pridgeon, who is based with her husband in Oklahoma. "I don't need it as much as somebody else does."

Welch had her long hair cut by eight inches at the same time as Lee-Pridgen on Tuesday, while many fellow Tour members watched.

"I'm doing this because my friend's mom died of cancer," said Welch, a 2008 tournament winner on the Duramed FUTURES Tour and the winner of the Golf Channel's "Big Break Ka'anapali" show last year. "Cancer affects so many women. If I were in the situation where I needed a wig, I would really appreciate something like this."

The next day, Retamoza saw fellow professional Lee-Pridgen's buzzed hair and asked why she did it? After the veteran pro explained the story of her mother, Retamoza said she would also donate her ponytail for the charity.

So, on Thursday in the players' locker room at The Golf Center at Kings Island, with professional hair stylists present, Retamoza allowed Lee-Pridgeon to measure eight inches of hair and cut off her ponytail. Retamoza sat in a professional styling chair while Lee-Pridgen cut her hair, again surrounded by Tour members who clapped and cheered. As Lee-Pridgen stood holding Retamoza's curly locks in her hand, the emotion of the gift hit her and tears flowed down her cheeks, exactly one day before the two-year anniversary of her mother's death.

"In my heart, I was more nervous cutting her hair than having my own hair cut off," said Lee-Pridgen. "It feels nice that others are contributing. I think my mom would be really proud of this."

Retamoza admitted that she gave some serious thought to cutting her hair and called her own mother at home in Mexico. Her mother encouraged her to do it.

"It's a good cause," said Retamoza, a one-time winner on the Duramed FUTURES Tour and a former LPGA Tour member. "God gave me the gift to be healthy. If I can do something to help others, I want to do it. It makes you feel good when you can do little things to help."

To view a video of the haircuts, check out: http://duramedfuturestour.com/2009/MasonMedia.asp

Three Tour Members Sponsored This Week By Local IKEA Store

The timing was right this week for the Cincinnati IKEA store to sponsor three members of the Duramed FUTURES Tour, who are wearing the store's logo shirts. This week's Duramed Championship coincides with the annual observation of "midsommar," signaling the longest day of the year in Sweden – home to the giant home furnishings store – and brings players from around the world to the Cincinnati suburb of Mason, Ohio.

So three Swedish members of the Tour who returned to Mason this year were designated as the store's ambassadors for the week. Their $500 entry fees were paid into the tournament and they were on hand to meet and greet store customers on Thursday night, where they offered putting tips on an artificial putting green in the store lobby and handed out free passes to the tournament.

"We love IKEA for a lot of reasons," said Rebecka Heinmert of Hasselholm, Sweden, who is one-over-par 72 after the first round. "It's almost like a meeting point for Swedes all over the world. I grew up 40 minutes from the original IKEA store in Almhult."

"I go to that store all the time back in Orlando (Fla.), and I was so excited when I heard they were going to sponsor us this week," added Caroline Larsson of Stockholm, Sweden, who carded a 69 (-2). "It's not just a furniture store."

"It's a huge Swedish retail store and multinational company, so it's really nice to see the support for us here in the Cincinnati area at our tournament this week," said Sofie Andersson of Angelholm, Sweden, who posted an even-par score of 71 today. "I even got a text message from my parents this morning saying, 'happy midsommar,' so it's already a great week for us."

Natives of Sweden who now live in the Greater Cincinnati area greeted the players in the store on Thursday evening. The local Swedes wore traditional Swedish dresses and one man played traditional Swedish music on an accordion as customers entered the store.

Customers were greeted by the Swedish golfers and local Swedish residents, who handed out small flags and an invitation for the customers to come over and practice putting. Following the in-store promotion of The Duramed Championship, the golf professionals and Swedish residents went upstairs to the store's restaurant for a real smorgasbord of Swedish food, featuring Swedish meatballs, salmon, sausages, herring and various cookies and pastries.

"I always feel like an ambassador for women's golf, but also for my home," said Heinmert. "I was on the Swedish National Team and it was all about who would represent Sweden the best."

Contact: Lisa D. Mickey, Duramed FUTURES Tour at (386) 214-9726 and at lisa@duramedfuturestour.com.