Navistar LPGA Classic-Day 3

It would seem that the cheers emanating from the Johnny B household today have propelled Stacy Lewis to the lead of the Navistar. Well, cheers and that massive kettle of skills she is able to draw from. She shot a bogey free round of 65 today while the second round leader and defending champion Lexi Thompson had struggles, shooting a 74. As an aside, I remember watching her on TV during parts of the 2007 Women's Open which she qualified for at the mind blowing age of 12 when she was still going by her full name of Alexis, but I digress.

Stacy Lewis must have a thing about Alabama, this year at least. About her round, she said “I think going into today I knew I needed to make birdies just the way the scores had been all day, and you don't know if you're ever going to start off like that. “You can kind of hit it good warming up, but you never really know what you're going to take to the course.” It would certainly seem that today she successfully navigated the toughest yardage in golf, that from the practice tee to the first tee. 

She also spoke about her tee shots not seeming to roll out as far as they normally do which is probably due to a combination of bermuda grass fairways being slower than many other types, the massive rainfall that Capitol Hill has gotten recently and the fact that the RTJ Trail tends to keep courses a bit soft and slow in general, even without the extra rain. This on a "links style" course. Yes, indeed, the Trail has quite a ways to go before it can advertise anything as a "links," at least among those who know what a real links should be.

Lexi Thompson fell off the pace a bit and from the looks of her interview she was in no mood to talk. Any time a professional answers a question "um-hmm" it was a bad day. Good for her being bold enough to give a real answer like that. When asked what she intended to do after the round and into the night to clear her mind she said "just hang out, eat dinner, have fun." Another refreshing, real answer. Let's hope she doesn't start giving the Nuke LaLoosh cliche answers like many other professional golfers. 

Tomorrow has two possibilities, given that Stacy Lewis holds a two shot lead. One, she could start off hot and put the tournament out of reach for the other golfers. This is certainly the scenario she would prefer. Two, she could play an average round, allowing the other players to get into contention, closing the gap on her. This could lead to a down to the wire finish which fans would love to see for the drama. Either way, tune into it tomorrow, watch some good golf and check out one of the fabulous courses we have here in Alabama.

Navistar LPGA Classic

This week the LPGA Tour is in Johnny B's current state of Alabama, playing on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail site at Capitol Hill's Senator course. Man, that's a long winded name for a golf course. This course is advertised as a links style course due to it's lack of tree lining and pot bunkers. However, one thing it is missing that links courses most certainly have is the option for the player to roll the ball onto most of the greens. But the nice ladies on the LPGA Tour don't mind that and probably don't even think about the style of the course.

Thursday saw Lexie Thompson shoot a 63 to take the lead in the tournament she won last year. She is certainly an exceptional talent in golf. However, one has to wonder if, perhaps, people are being pushed to do things at such young ages. It was just ten years ago that the golf world looked on in shock at young Ty Tryon attempted to qualify for the PGA Tour. Now, it is not that uncommon for kids not old enough to vote having full playing status on a major golf tour. There was even a ten year old who qualified for the US Women's Amateur this year. Best of luck to them all in the future.

Strangely, as much as the RTJ Trail prides itself on having numerous very difficult courses, this course, along with Magnolia Grove (Crossings) in Mobile, seems to be among the easier on tour yeilding scores deep into double digits under par. Of course, it should be noted that the Tour event is played at 6,607 yards, substantially forward of the 7,724 yard back tee yardage.

We'll just all have to wait and see how play turns out today and then leads into the weekend. However, if historical trends are any indication, it is likely that the finish will come right down to the eighteenth green, and while the eventual winner won't like that, we, the fans, certainly will. TV coverage will be on Golf Channel.