Two More Match Victories Get Wie Closer to History

Michelle Wie is three wins away from an invitation to the Masters.

The 15-year-old from Honolulu birdied three of the final five holes and beat Jim Renner, 3 and 1, in her second match of the day Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Amateur Public Links at Lebanon, Ohio.

She conceded that Augusta National has crept into the back of her mind.

“Obviously I’m thinking about that, but I’m taking it one match at a time,” she said.

Wie, the first female to qualify for a men’s USGA championship, earlier routed C.D. Hockersmith, 6 and 5.

Wie would have to win two matches for a second consecutive day to reach the final. She next plays Brigham Young junior Clay Ogden, who defeated Andrew Black of Chattanooga, Tenn., 3 and 2, in the quarterfinals in the morning. The semifinals are this afternoon, followed by the 36-hole championship on Saturday.

“I was kind of joking and I actually said that I hoped I play her,” Ogden said. “And here we go.”

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Playing on his only sponsor exemption of the year, rookie Matt Hendrix shot a nine-under 63, tying Glen Day for the first-round lead in the B.C. Open at Endicott, N.Y.

Mike Springer, Jason Bohn, Ben Crane, and South Africa’s Brenden Pappas are a stroke back.

Hendrix rallied from an awful start. His first drive landed next to a tree. He punched his second shot into a water hazard, and finished with a double bogey.

Day started on No. 10 and used an eagle on the par-four 18th to surge into contention. Using a pitching wedge from 118 yards, his second shot landed two inches from the hole and then disappeared into the cup.

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Janice Moodie’s thoughts quickly shifted to her late father after her opening round in the Canadian Women’s Open at Halifax.

Minutes after birdieing the final hole to take the outright lead at six-under 66, the 32-year-old Scot broke down in tears in the media center when she tried to answer a question about her busy trans-Atlantic playing schedule.

“I have probably racked up in the last month, I don’t know, 20-something-thousand miles. My dad passed away, so it’s been a lot,” Moodie said before she was overcome by grief that left her unable to finish the interview session.

Her father, John Moodie, died last month. He was a lecturer in shipbuilding engineering at Anniesland College in Glasgow.

After missing a short birdie putt on the first hole, Moodie reeled off four straight birdies on the scenic Glen Arbour course and tied rookie Emily Bastel for the lead at five under with a birdie on No. 9. Moodie parred the next eight holes and capped her bogey-free round with a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-five 18th.

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Co-medalist Mari Chun of Pearl City, Hawaii, survived two 1-up matches and advanced to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links at Kansas City, Mo.

Chun, 17, who will enter Stanford this fall, defeated UCLA junior Hannah Jun and Renee Skidmore of Everett, Wash.

Chun will meet 14-year-old Jane Rah of Torrance in the quarterfinals this morning.

Angela Park of Torrance, the other co-medalist, lost 1-up to Juli Wightman of Brigham Young in the second round.