Albatross and closing birdie lift China's Liu to LPGA Chevron lead
China's Liu Yan made a stunning albatross and a closing birdie to seize a one-stroke lead when darkness halted Friday's second round of the LPGA Chevron Championship.
The 27-year-old sank a 15-foot birdie putt at the par-five 18th hole to finish off a level par 72 and grab the lead on seven-under 137 for 36 holes at Carlton Woods in the year's first major women's tournament.
Advertisement
"I'm glad I made that last birdie," she said. "Today I had so many putts so close. Last hole was my first birdie today so I'm very happy."
Liu's most spectacular shot, however, came at the par-five eighth when she holed out her second shot from 170 yards with a seven-iron.
"There was helping wind and I hit a really solid driver on the fairway," Liu said. "I took my seven-iron and yeah, it was pretty crazy."
It was the first albatross in a women's major since American Morgan Pressel made one at the 2015 Women's British Open.
Liu hopes to make her first LPGA triumph a major victory but a host of rivals were hot on her heels.
Advertisement
American Lindy Duncan birdied her last three holes to shoot 66 and share second on 138 with compatriot Sarah Schmelzel, Japan's Mao Saigo and South Korean Kim Hyo-joo.
South Koreans Choi Hye-jin and Ryu Hae-ran, American Angel Yin and Belgium's Manon De Roey were on 139.
A 90-minute morning fog delay led to the round being halted by darkness with nine players yet to finish. They will complete the second round on Saturday morning before the cut is made and the third round played.
Among those still on the course, China's Zhang Weiwei was on five-under with three holes remaining.
Liu, who began playing golf with her mother 15 years ago, has a best LPGA career finish of third at the 2023 ShopRite Classic.
Advertisement
She had opened with a 65 to share the 18-hole lead, but stumbled with bogeys at the first and sixth holes only to answer with the albatross stunner.
After a bogey at the ninth, Liu's lead was down to one stroke. She parred the next six holes before making bogey at 16, missing an eight-foot par putt to fall back, only to surge into the lead alone again with her closing birdie.
"I think definitely I will feel a little bit (of pressure) because this is a major," Liu said. "I know the course going to be harder so I think I just stay patient, calm, because I'm a very emotional person."
js/bb
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
3 expert theories on why there are so many Wimbledon upsets in 2025
The stats are downright shocking: eight top-10 seeds from both the women's and men's Wimbledon 2025 brackets were upset in the first couple of days of the Grand Slam tournament at the All England Club. So: what gives? What happened to all these top names, from Coco Gauff to Jessica Pegula to Alexander Zverv? There's probably no right answer. There are a number of factors -- including, perhaps, that it's a coincidence, right? -- that you could throw out there to explain the phenomenon. But there are plenty of theories being thrown out there. We've rounded all of them up in one place as the tournament continues: The switch to the grass of Wimbledon is jarring Gauff had this to say, per NBC News: "I would say the quick turnaround," Gauff said after her first-round exit. "I think most of the seeds are going deeper in Roland Garros, and then you spend a long clay season and then you have to come and adjust to grass.' And then former American star Andy Roddick said this: "This is what happens when you actually play tournaments outside of the monosurface, where it's all kind of the same," Roddick said. "You allow different styles in. ... This is what we get. We don't get a six-week lead-in where we're getting a data set from [tournaments in] Monte Carlo through Geneva that matter in predictions and knowing what's going on. Because of the way the ball moves on grass, it's a harder adjustment. It's too soon after the French Open See above for the "quick turnaround" line. Like she said: if you went deep at the French Open, there's a fatigue factor, too. "Upsets are contagious" That's what Brad Gilbert said, via ESPN: "Upsets are contagious," Brad Gilbert, former player and current coach, said on the broadcast on Tuesday. "If you're seeded, be wary before you leave that locker room." Maybe what he's trying to say: if you're a top seed and you're seeing other top seeds go home, it can get in your head. Just check out what Madison Keys said via The Times: The same message came from Madison Keys on Wednesday, who said that she had herself only just 'dodged a bullet' in her first-round match. 'When you are sitting and watching everyone kind of fall, it kind of adds a little bit of stress to the situation,' she said.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Wimbledon refuses to let Taylor Fritz play a normal match
No one would suggest Wimbledon has been anything close to normal this year. Not with so may top names crashing out in the first two rounds. But those upsets were at least more typical David vs. Goliath stories. When it comes to American Taylor Fritz, the No. 5 player in the world seems to be battling the tournament itself more than his opponents. Simply put: the 27-year-old has yet to get through a match without some sort of momentum-altering delay. This has less to do with his play and way more to do with when he's playing. In a first round matchup on Monday with Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard — who set a new tournament record for the fastest serve at 153 mph — Fritz was reeling after dropping the first two sets in tiebreakers before battling back to force a decisive fifth set. But the primetime showdown at Centre Court was halted just as Fritz turned the momentum due to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club's curfew. Despite the fact it was 10:15 p.m. local, officials were worried the match wouldn't conclude before the 11 p.m. cutoff. Fritz wanted to keep playing. Mpetshi Perricard did not because he "wasn't in the best shape, to be honest" and that was that. Fritz was forced to finish off his win on Tuesday, finally putting Mpetshi Perricard away 6-7 (6), 6-7 (8), 6-4, 7-6 (6), 6-4. "I wasn't bothered or, I guess, upset at him for not wanting to play. I totally get it,' Fritz said after. 'But I still felt confident. It would have been easy for me to get frustrated about not being able to play last night. To be honest, I felt confident going into the fifth set — (whether) it was last night or today. I had to tell myself he's going to be sleeping on what just happened in the fourth set. I'm going to come back and keep doing what I was doing.' The question soon became how long Fritz could maintain both that mindset and his stamina, overall. By finishing on Tuesday, Fritz had no true off day before Wednesday's second-round matchup against Canada's Gabriel Diallo. Once again, the match would be played at Centre Court. Once again, in the evening. And, once again, it featured an inevitable delay amid a five-setter. After three sets, the match was paused to close the stadium roof and finish up under the lights. While Fritz was in control and up 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, Diallo was pushing him to the limit — and the Canadian's play seemingly improved once the roof closed. Diallo's serve got faster after the 20-minute delay, he was able to break Fritz's serve and the match seemed to be up for grabs in the fourth set. Fritz was tumbling all across the court trying to save points, eventually receiving a small bit of medical attention for a cut on his arm after one notable dive. Then, finally, victory — 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, 4-6, 6-3 'Really happy to get through that match," Fritz said on the court afterwards, and you feel the relief in his voice. "I felt like he was playing incredible. It was one of those matches where I'm not doing much wrong, I'm playing great tennis, and he's still just going to be too tough for me." Part of that has to be the fact Fritz has now played 109 total games through two matches across three consecutive games. Per ESPN, Fritz is the seventh top-five seed in the Open era to reach the third round with back-to-back five-set wins to start a major, and third to do so at Wimbledon. No one has won a men's single Grand Slam event after opening with back-to-back five-setters since Boris Becker's 1996 Australian Open victory. Fortunately, as the field grows smaller the schedule should be more predictable. Fritz's next match is once again scheduled for Centre Court on Friday against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, but they'll be playing in the early afternoon with two matches scheduled after. With four first-round losses by top-10 seeds in the men's draw, Fritz has a clear path to reach the quarterfinal at Wimbledon for the third time in his career and the second consecutive fortnight. But through two rounds he's already been forced to play longer and with more intensity than much of the field — which is to say little of the fact Fritz played four straight days last week during his victory at the Eastbourne Open. "[Thursday] is going to be a very, a very light hit. I think I've played plenty of tennis," Fritz said Wednesday night. "I'm very due a nice, relaxing day." We'll see if the tournament allows him to relax as much as his body probably needs.
Fox Sports
2 hours ago
- Fox Sports
2025 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest Best Bet: Back Bertoletti To Cover Spread
There's nothing more American than betting on the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest every Fourth of July at Coney Island. Last year's winner, Patrick Bertoletti, crushed 58 hot dogs and buns to win his first career mustard belt in a wide-open field without Joey Chestnut. The first hot dog "total" posted on Bertoletti for this year's event was O/U 49.5, an offshore number that felt way too low. DraftKings opened his number at 50.5 last week and their number is up to 53.5 one day out. Circa Sports is currently the highest on Bertoletti at 55.5. "He was the toughest eater to price," Circa risk manager Dylan Sullivan told me late Wednesday night. "He's been pretty inconsistent over the years, but I saw the direction his market was being bet and wanted to be high. I would rather build a cushion near the ceiling than get run over with Over bets." Patrick Bertoletti +17.5 hot dogs vs. Chestnut Truth be told, my "Bet Sweats" co-host Joe Ostrowski and I loved Bertoletti's prop at Over 49.5, but we won't have a single cent Over 55.5. Chestnut is back at the event this year after being banned last July for a sponsorship issue with Impossible Foods. The 16-time Nathan's champion is the unquestioned favorite, and he's as high as -2500 to win. That means you've got to lay $2500 to win a Benjamin. No thanks. Chestnut's total is very polarizing at O/U 71.5 because we've seen him eat as many as 76 dogs and buns in 2021, but only 63 and 62 in 2022 and 2023, respectively. "You would think he would be motivated to destroy the competition," one bettor told me. "But weather is the most important factor. If it's too hot, the pace slows down and if it's on the cooler side, the food gets cold." "Let's be real, you're gambling on a bet at [O/U] 71.5." Chestnut was on Barstool Sports' "Pardon My Take" podcast this week and said "it'll take perfect conditions" to beat his world record of 76. Temperatures are expected to be in the high 60s, so I have little interest in betting on him to eat 77 or more at a price of +300. As for the women's event, Miki Sudo is the clear favorite, and it's such a forgone conclusion that she'll win her 11th title that most sportsbooks aren't even booking a women's future pool. That's how dominant she is. Sudo's total is in the 45.5 to 46.5 range. I did eye Sudo (+115) against Nick Wehry in a head-to-head matchup at DraftKings. Sudo ate a women's record 51 dogs and buns last year, and I would much rather bet the best woman to beat the fourth-best man heads up. At the end of the day, I can't ignore this betting blitz on Bertoletti. The hot dog sharps have already spoken, gobbling up the Overs from 49.5 to 53.5, and I'm not as confident as the market is that Chestnut will reach 70. Let's see what happens. PICK: Patrick Bertoletti (-130) +17.5 dogs vs. Chestnut Sam Panayotovich is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and the BetMGM Network. He previously worked for WGN Radio, NBC Sports and VSiN. Follow him on Twitter @spshoot. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account , and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! in this topic
