HARRIS -- First-round leader Stephanie Kim held on to her one-stroke advantage after today's second round of the $100,000 Island Resort Championship presented by Delta County Chamber of Commerce.
Kim carded an even-par score of 72 to maintain her lead at 5-under 139. Her round included two birdies and two bogeys.
With calm skies and warm temperatures today after Friday's 25-mph winds, scoring conditions appeared perfect for members the LPGA Futures Tour at Sweetgrass Golf Club.
"The difference between today and yesterday is like two different courses," said Kim, 19, of Bayside, N.Y. "Evidently, I need gale-force winds to go low. It's a different view from the top, but I like it."
Kim holds a one-shot cushion over Hanna Kang (69) of Seoul, South Korea and rookie Lizette Salas (72) of Azusa, Calif., who are tied for second at 4-under 140.
Kang recorded six birdies, one bogey and a double-bogey 5 on the par-3 15th hole in today's second round. The fourth-year tour member needed only 26 putts to jump from a tie for eighth into a tie for second.
Playing in her third tournament as a pro, Salas said her tempo "was a little off" today and that she's still learning how to play in front of galleries. But the four-time All-American from the University of Southern California showed that she could steady her hands when necessary. Finishing on the ninth hole, Salas drained a 15-foot putt for birdie to move within one shot of the lead.
"I like not having a target on my back," said Salas, who was a member of USC's winning 2008 NCAA Championship team. "I like coming from behind."
Tied for fourth at 3-under 141 are Sarah Brown (68) of Lopatcong, N.J., Mo Martin (72) of Altadena Calif., Jodi Ewart (72) of North Yorkshire, England, and Jane Rah (68) of Torrance, Calif.
Home-state native Laura Kueny of Whitehall, Mich., carded a 4-under 68 today. The former Michigan State University collegian moved into solo eighth place at 2-under 142 in this week's inaugural event in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
A total of 17 players posted rounds of even-par 144 or better after two rounds, with 11 players finishing the day under par on the rolling 6,287-yard course.
Seventy-six players made the 36-hole cut at 150 (+6).
Sunday's final round of the inaugural Island Resort Championship presented by Delta County Chamber of Commerce will begin at 7:45 a.m., off the first tee only. The leaders will tee off at 12:05 p.m.
For scores and more information, visit lpgafuturestour.com.
Weather: Sunny with temperatures in the mid-70s with light winds between 5-10 mph.
Local Amateur Is Biggest Crowd Pleaser At Island Resort Championship
Local amateur invitee Carley Saint-Onge got a glimpse of the future this week with her spot in the LPGA Futures Tour's Island Resort Championship. And golf fans in this Upper Peninsula town also got a chance to see a rising future talent in the teen who attracted the largest gallery of anyone in the field.
After she rolled in a three-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to finish with an even-par 72, the gallery of a couple hundred fans clapped, whooped and called her a "good Yooper," meaning, one of their own from the U.P.
"It felt really good walking up to that last putt and being able to end with a bang," said Saint-Onge, 18, of Marquette, Mich. "I'm happy about being here and putting myself in position to be out here, and I'm happy that I came back today with a better round."
Saint-Onge will start her freshman season on the women's golf team at Michigan State University this fall. And even though she missed the tournament's 36-hole cut, she was able to fight back from her wind-blown and nervous first-round score of 87 to today's 72.
"The pros were really nice to me and very helpful this week," added Saint-Onge. "I played with (Two-time tournament winner) Lisa Ferrero in the first round and she came up to me between the first and second hole and told me just to stay calm. This was a great experience and I think my tournaments to come in college golf will be a lot less stressful after this."
Futures Tour Pro Gets New Adventure Every Week While Camping On Tour
Swedish LPGA Futures Tour player Madeleine (Madde) Holmblad and husband Henrik (Hempa) Alexandersson have found a way to not only save money while traveling on tour, but also to guarantee regular adventures along the way.
The couple are pulling a 16-foot camper trailer behind their car and spending each tournament week in campgrounds with their dog Zeke. Most of the time, they travel simply, eat simply and enjoy meeting people in campgrounds. And many of those people they meet wonder why two young people from Sweden are living in campgrounds with mostly retirees?
"It's pretty fun and you meet nice people," said Holmblad, of Stockholm. "We had never camped before we got here, but I like it because I don't have to pack and unpack my bag every week and we can bring more stuff."
"This is the way to go," added her husband, who also caddies for Holmblad. "And in the campgrounds, we see everything from big $250,000 motor homes to ours, which we got for $5,000."
Of course sometimes there are real bumps in the road - like the week when they had two flat tires on their trailer while driving from Iowa to Ohio. They only had one spare tire and weren't sure how good the spare was.
"I had to leave Hempa and the trailer on the side of the road, and I took Zeke (the dog) and went to buy two new tires," said Holmblad. "But Hempa was fine. He took off his shirt and sunbathed beside the road while we were gone."
When Holmblad got back with the new tires, they had to improvise because their jack fit the car, but not their trailer. So the Swedes stacked two boxes of golf balls on top of each other to make the jack high enough to fix the trailer's flat tires.
"That trip ended up being expensive," said Holmblad.
And then this week in Michigan's Upper Peninsula began with four inches of rain and temperatures in the 40s and 50s. The couple had a heater in their trailer, but they couldn't get it to work.
"We slept in pants and long shirts with the dog," laughed Holmblad.
"It felt like it was outside," added Alexandersson. "Everything was kind of wet and damp."
But at $15 a night to camp, the price was right and the two were still laughing as they headed out to play -- fearing nothing ahead on the golf course.
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