Feb 26, 2021 4 min read

Annika Sorenstam went more than 12 years without playing on the LPGA Tour. Now she gets two more days.

Sorenstam made three birdies after making the turn Friday at Lake Nona and posted a 1-under 71 in the Gainbridge LPGA. And even with the wrong ruling the previous day that led to an extra stroke, she still made the cut on the number.

“I did what I could,” Sorenstam said. “The goal was to shoot under par and I did, and so that’s all I can do.”

She still was 12 shots out of the lead as Lydia Ko posted a 3-under 69 and took a one-shot lead over Nelly Korda (68). Ryan O’Toole had her second straight 68 and was another shot behind.

Sorenstam, making a one-time appearance because the LPGA Tour is at her home course, finally got some putts to drop and ran off three birdies on her second nine. She finished 36 holes at 2-over 146 and was right on the cut line.

And then she had to wait for the other half to play in the afternoon, wonder if that ruling in the opening round would come back to cost her the weekend.

Sorenstam took a triple bogey on the fifth hole of the opening round when her tee shot avoided going out-of-bounds by a fraction. But it was directly under the gate of a wrought iron fence, the boundary. She asked about opening the gate but was told a stipulation in the rules didn’t allow for that.

So she chose to take a penalty drop, pitched out to the fairway and three-putted from 18 feet in her round of 75.

Turns out that was one of the changes to the modernization of the Rules of Golf in 2019, the largest overhaul ever. The gate now is treated as a movable obstruction – meaning it could be swung open, provided it was not locked (it wasn’t).

The penalty could not be rescinded because Sorenstam played from a different spot.

Mickelson in contention: Phil Mickelson made a birdie after hitting out of the mud on the par-5 15th hole during a 3-under 70 at the Cologuard Classic, putting him in contention for a third straight victory to open his PGA Tour Champions career.

Mickelson was four shots behind Mike Weir, who had a bogey-free 66 in windy conditions at Tucson National. Scott Verplank holed out from a greenside bunker for birdie on the par-4 ninth to close out a 65.

Mickelson is bidding to become the first player to win his first three starts on a PGA Tour-sanctioned tour.

Lefty had a relatively stress-free front nine, shooting 3 under on one of the courses where he became the last amateur to win on the PGA Tour 30 years earlier.

The five-time major champion began having trouble on the back nine, starting with a three-putt bogey on the par-4 11th. Mickelson took double bogey after hitting out-of-bounds on the par-4 13th and appeared to be in trouble when his tee shot on No. 15 rolled into a pond at the corner of the dogleg.

With the ball sitting on the edge in the mud, he waded in and punched an iron shot down the fairway, earning applause from playing partner Fred Couples. Mickelson hit his third shot on the par 5 to 4 feet and, after wiping mud off his shoes, drained the putt.

Late string works for Koepka: Brooks Koepka hit one his worst tee shots of the day that barely cleared the water on the 15th hole. That turned out to be the start of three straight birdies that led to a 6-under 66 and a one-shot lead in the Workday Championship.

Coming off a pair of missed cuts, Koepka won the Phoenix Open to end an 18-month drought. And now he’s starting to hit his stride with the first major of the year creeping up quickly.

Koepka hit a chip 9-iron to 6 feet for birdie on No. 15, nearly holed his wedge on the next hole and then birdied the par-5 17th with a splendid bunker shot across the ridges and down the slope to tap-in range.

He closed with a bogey by avoiding a deceptive pin near the water on the closing hole at The Concession. Koepka, who finished at 11-under 133, had a one-shot lead over Cameron Smith, Billy Horschel and PGA champion Collin Morikawa, who made up ground quick with six birdies over his last 10 holes.

Wu leads in windy Puerto Rico:

Brandon Wu birdied the final two holes for a 5-under 67 and the second-round lead in the PGA Tour’s Puerto Rico Open.

Wu played the back nine in 4 under at windy Grand Reserve. He birdied the par-4 12th, par-5 15th, par-4 17th and par-5 18th to reach 11-under 133.