Phoenix — Annika Sorenstam became the first player to shoot a 59 in an LPGA tournament Friday, putting on a display of precision golf that was two strokes better than any woman had ever shot.
The day after saying she goes for a birdie on every hole, Sorenstam almost did it birdieing her first eight and 12 of her first 13 while shooting 13 under in the second round of the Standard Register Ping.
Annika Sorentam stands next to a scoreboard after her record round at the LPGA Standard Register Ping tournament in Phoenix. Sorenstam became the first woman to shoot a 59 in an LPGA tournament.
"It was an incredible day," Sorenstam said. "I had a lot of thoughts in my head. I was trying to stay calm and hit good shots, trying to hit it straight every time."
The round included 13 birdies, no bogeys and 25 putts on the 6,459-yard course. She reached every green in regulation and her longest par putt was 31/2 feet.
On a sunny, warm, windless day, the 30-year-old Sorenstam broke every LPGA scoring record for one or two rounds.
Her 59 was two shots better than the 18-hole record of 61 she shared with Karrie Webb and Se Ri Pak. Her 20-under 124 at the midpoint was three strokes better than the 17-under Webb shot at East Lansing, Mich., last year.
Pak's low round was on a par-71 course, while Webb and Sorenstam shot their 61s on par-72s.
The PGA Tour record also is 59, shared by Al Geiberger, David Duval and Chip Beck.
Sorenstam started her round on the back nine and birdied the first eight holes second-best in LPGA history behind the nine in a row Beth Daniel had during a tournament in 1999 and finished her first nine in 28.
Then she birdied the next four before three straight pars and the history-making birdie on No. 8, her 17th hole. She closed with a 31.
On the ninth hole, where she made her first par of the day, she dropped an 8-iron shot from 158 yards to 30 feet, then left her first putt 31/2 feet short.
Sorenstam missed only one fairway, straying about a yard into the rough on her 15th hole. She hit an 8-iron to 20 feet and two-putted for par.
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