Kerr tied as weather halts Women's Open

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Instead of teeing it up when she comes back to the Broadmoor, Cristie Kerr's next shot at the U.S. Women's Open will be a blast out of the bunker to the seventh green.

A quirky day of thunder and lightning -- but only spits of rain -- suspended play Thursday with only 25 players finished with their first round. It was a bad break on the opening day of the toughest test in golf.

"That's part of the gamble," said Christina Kim, who will try to squeeze in 36 holes Friday.

Kerr had made two straight birdies to get into a tie for the lead at 2-under par with amateur Amy Anderson. After her second birdie, Kerr, who opened her round on the back nine, teed off into the right rough on No. 7, then hit her approach into the sand. That's when the siren sounded.

"At least I'll get to practice some long bunker shots before we go out, so maybe it's a good thing for me," she said.

After halting play, the USGA kept the players in the clubhouse for 2 1/2 hours, but with the thunder still rumbling and the radar blinking red, officials called play. There were 75 players on the course and 66 who hadn't hit a shot.

That means nearly half the field, including defending champion Paula Creamer and Yani Tseng, trying to complete her career Grand Slam, could face 72 holes packed into three days. The Broadmoor is the first course to measure more than 7,000 yards for the U.S. Women's Open -- quite a haul, even at 6,700 feet in altitude.

"We were actually sitting here debating, what's the better draw?" Kim said. "Is it the one we have and we try to get 36 in in one day, or the one where you have 19 hours between shots in the same round?"

Amateur Kelly Shon, who played high school golf for Port Washington, was at a respectable 3-over-par through 17 holes when play was suspended. It was a good score considering she made double bogey on the first hole.