SYLVANIA, Ohio — Ji Leon Choi promised his daughter he would caddie for her until she won the LPGA Tour.

Chella Choi isn’t so sure she’s ready to break up the team after winning the Marathon Classic on Sunday.

“My father wants to retire because we promise, but I don’t know,” Choi said. “We will talk later.”

The 24-year-old South Korean player broke through in her 157th start on the tour, beating compatriot Ha Na Jang with a birdie on the first hole of a playoff.

“You know, first time win is hard,” Choi said. “I cannot believe it. Hopefully, this is a turning point for me. … It’s been a long time, seven years. So, I was really, really excited and happy.”

In the playoff on the par-5 18th, Choi chipped onto the green from 87 yards and two-putted from 25 yards for the par – holing a 1-footer for the victory. Jang bogeyed the hole after hitting approach long into high rough.

Choi closed with a 5-under 66 to match Jang at 14-under 270. Jang, the leader after each of the first three round, finished with a 68.

Jang didn’t speak to the media after the round.

Choi opened with a 73, then moved into contention with rounds of 66 and 65.

“I made just made one birdie on Thursday,” Choi said.

Her father was a police officer before joining her on the course.

“I work with my father eight years and somebody say like that’s why I don’t win, just for my caddie,” Choi said. “So I’m so exciting with my father.”

Choi earned $225,000. She will jump from 40th to 25th in the world ranking.

Second-ranked Lydia Ko, the winner last year, had a 67 to tie for second with Shanshan Feng at 13 under. Fend also shot 67.

“I’m happy that I could give it a run for it to defend the title,” Ko said. “Seeing how average my first day score was, to be top five or whatever, I think it’s a good finish for the week.

“I played really solid the front nine, and that’s all I could really do. I know it would have been great if I could continue that on the back nine, but it just wasn’t going.”

Playing a group in front of the leaders, Ko was looking for a birdie on No. 18 to reach 14 under, but made a par.

“I hit a great 3-wood off the tee and miss-hit it on the second shot,” Ko said. “I guess it’s not the worst place to be, but it’s not the best place to be either.”

Top-ranked Inbee Park tied for eighth at 10 under after a 70 while the top Canadian in the field was Alena Sharp who finished tied for 22nd.

SYLVANIA, Ohio — Ha Na Jang parred the last five holes Saturday for a 2-under 69, leaving her a stroke ahead with one round left in the LPGA Tour’s rain-plagued Marathon Classic.

The South Korean player had an 11-under 202 total at Highland Meadows. Fighting back pain, she opened with rounds of 66 and 67 and has only two bogeys over the first 54 holes.

Play was delayed for 1 hour, 59 minutes in the afternoon. Delays Friday forced 54 players to complete the second round Saturday morning.

Seeking her first LPGA Tour victory, Jang said her target is to finish at 15 under.

“I don’t want to think about any players. Just myself, confidence, concentration and play,” Jang said.

South Korea’s Q Baek was second. She birdied the final hole for a 68.

“Overall I missed a lot of putts today,” Baek said. “But I was just happy with the way I played.”

Jang and Baek have played against each other numerous times over 10 years on the Korean tour.

“We have played a lot of events against each other,” Baek said through a translator, adding that she and Jang played together on the South Korean national team. “We have a pretty good friendship. I am just one shot behind Ha Na. The main focus is to keep my temper down, and try to stay calm and play as best golf as I can and stay positive.”

Defending champion Lydia Ko, ranked No. 2 in the world, was 9 under after a 67 in a group that included top-ranked Inbee Park. Ko also was second, two shots off the lead last year.

“It’s great to be back,” Ko said. “I don’t mind the position I’m in right now. It’s great to return to a course where you’ve played well. There is a little bit of expectation and a lot more people recognize you and you kind of get that support. So there are pluses and minuses.”

Ko said the putts started dropping for her in the second and third rounds.

“I’ve been hitting it pretty solid so I’ve been trying to give myself plenty of opportunities,” Ko said.

Park also had a 67.

“It was a long day,” Park said. “But no bogeys today, which is really good. I feel like I have played pretty solid the last couple of days. I still feel I left a few out there. I am satisfied where I am.”

Chella Choi, Austin Ernst and Shanshan Feng were tied with Ko and Park.

Choi had a 65, the best round of the day. She started her round with a bogey, but then made seven birdies, including three of the last four holes.

“Actually, my shot is good, but I don’t make that (many putts),” Choi said. “So just one birdie Thursday. But yesterday and today my shots really good and made more putts.”

Ernst, who had five birdies, finished her second round with a double bogey for a 66, but was able to wide out that memory and play a solid third round.

“I just said it was one bad swing and then – you know, just made a bad swing and a bad putt,” Ernst said about her double bogey. “So really over the last two days that’s the only blemish on the card.

“I am hitting it well. I just need to make a few putts.”

Feng shot a 68.

Third-ranked Stacy Lewis was tied for 23rd at 5 under after a 69.

Alena Sharp shot a 4-under 67 today and is currently T8 but only 3 shots back of Ha Na Jang’s lead heading into tomorrow’s final round.

Alena Sharp, Jenny Suh and Jaye Marie Green earned spots in the Women’s British Open. Sarah Kemp and Dewi Claire Schreefel locked up spots Friday.

SYLVANIA, Ohio — South Korea’s Ha Na Jang shot a 4-under 67 on Friday to increase her lead to two strokes in the suspended second round of the LPGA Tour’s Marathon Classic.

Jang had a 9-under 133 total at Highland Meadows. Winless in 23 career tour events, she capped her bogey-free round with a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth.

South Korea’s Q Baek was second after a 67.

The start of the round was delayed 2 1/2 hours because of rain and lightning, and play was suspended for the day at 8 p.m. because of more lightning. Fifty-four players were unable to complete the round.

Jang has fought through back problems that had her thinking about withdrawing before the first round.

“I think not much practice makes it easier to playing golf,” Jang said. “Not tired. Just feels really, really good. Body is a little tight, but my swing is very good.”

She had a one-hour massage after Thursday’s round and planned to do the same thing Friday.

Her success during the first two rounds has helped Jang’s confidence. She went back to South Korea to play in two tournaments and that also helped improve her confidence.

“I have a little bit more confidence in Korea,” Jang said. “It’s just a little different feel than one month ago. Every day practicing, change my swing and then everything change really good. I have 100 percent, 200 percent confidence right now.”

Baek had five birdies, making four in a row on Nos. 18-3, and one bogey.

“(I) missed a lot of birdie opportunities earlier, but I was able to sink a couple putts a bit of a distance from the hole,” Baek said. “I really gained confidence from there and made four birdies in a row.”

Baek said her experience last weekend at the U.S. Women’s Open has helped.

“I played last week at the U.S. Open with great players,” Baek said. “I learned a lot from them. I had a good experience there. I have something that I am really focusing on this week, so going into the weekend, I am really, really looking forward to it.”

Baek said she was not bothered by the morning delay, adding that she enjoyed the additional sleep.

Shanshan Feng, Sarah Kemp and Dewi Claire Schreefel were tied for third at 6 under. Feng shot a 67, Kemp had a 69, and Schreefel a 68.

Kemp, an Australian, bogeyed her final hole for the second straight round.

“It’s nice to put another round in the 60s,” Kemp said. “I’ll take 69 around here any day. With the conditions this morning, it played a lot longer.”

Being able to advance to weekend play is exciting for Kemp, who has missed the cuts in seven of 12 starts this season.

“This is great. I’m going to enjoy it because it hasn’t happened very much so it must mean I’m doing something good,” Kemp said. “I haven’t been in this position very much so everything that happens from now on it a total learning experience.”

Moriya Jutanugarn, Caroline Masson, Angela Stanford and Gerina Piller were 5 under. Jutanugarn shot a 66, Masson and Stanford had two holes left, and Piller had three to go.

Canadian Alena Sharp is 4-under for the tournament was tied for 10th after second round of play.

Top-ranked Inbee Park and defending champion Lydia Ko, ranked second, were 4 under after 14 holes. Third-ranked Stacy Lewis was tied for 18th at 3 under after a 68.

“Score-wise it was obviously better,” Lewis said. “Still I think, just knowing me, I think I could have done better. I could have made a few more putts. But all it all, it really was a better day. Hopefully, it leads to some better things.”

SYLVANIA, Ohio — South Korea’s Ha Na Jang birdied the par-5 18th for a 5-under 66 and a one-stroke lead Thursday after the first round of the LPGA Tour’s Marathon Classic.

She chipped to 6 feet to set up the final birdie after hitting a 3-wood approach to the front edge.

“Just really good shot,” Jang said about the chip with a 52-degree wedge.

“I feel happy today because in the morning … I was very tired in my bed, so no practice today. I don’t think about the score, so really good play today.”

Winless in 23 career tour events, Jang birdied four of the first five holes on the back nine at Highland Meadows, dropped a stroke on the par-4 15th and rallied with the closing birdie.

“I like the course,” Jang said. “Very narrow fairways and small greens. Very close to Korean golf course, so I think it’s very easy for my feel. … Really good golf course.”

She took a simple approach on the course softened by a rainy month.

“Just always thinking about fairway and greens,” Jang said. “Very easy thinking.”

Sarah Kemp, Nannette Hill, Wei-Ling Hsu and Lee-Anne Pace were tied for second.

Kemp bogeyed her final hole, the par-4 ninth. The Australian has missed the cuts in seven of the 12 tournaments this season.

“My caddie and I were actually talking before I teed off that I had not had a 4 or 5 under in a while,” Kemp said. “That was the plan today, so it was nice to pull it off. It’s confidence. I’ve had an inconsistent year, some good and some bad. Hopefully, for the rest of the three days I can keep it up.”

Kemp’s approach on No. 9 landed in the rough to the left of the green. She hit to the fringe, but came back with a chip that hit the flagstick and she was able to make her putt for bogey.

“It was a funny lie,” Kemp said. “I had a bad lie for the first chip, where I shouldn’t have been in the first place.”

Hill had three straight birdies on Nos. 6-8 to reach 4 under and parred the final 10 holes.

“I feel really good,” Hill said. “All season I feel like I’ve been very consistent and building off good stuff. So, came to this course on Sunday and felt like it fit my eye really well.”

Top-ranked Inbee Park, a three-time winner this season, birdied her final hole for a 70.

“I hit a lot of greens, but not really close,” Park said. “Irons just weren’t as pure as I thought it would be. Missed couple putts here and there. Only two birdies and one bogey. Not a bad start.”

Defending champion Lydia Ko, ranked No. 2 in the world, opened with a 71.

Third-ranked Stacy Lewis also had a 71.

Canadian Alena Sharp is T6 after an opening round of 68. Jennifer Kirby posted a score of 74, while Rebecca Lee-Bentham had a round of 80.

With a final round of 4-under par 66 this past Sunday, Brooke Henderson managed to climb up the U.S. Women’s Open leaderboard and finish in a tie for fifth place. She began the day in a tie for 18^th but made a charge recording five birdies on the card and a single bogey.

Her performance at Lancaster Country Club in Lancaster, Pa., earned her $141, 396 in prize money and a spot in next year’s U.S. Women’s Open to be hosted by CordeValle in San Jose, Calif. It also pushed her closer to the possibility of having full status on the LPGA Tour in 2016.

The Smiths Falls, Ont., product also recorded a T5 finish earlier this season at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship with a 10-under par score earning her $132,725.

These two T5 finishes in major championships have significantly contributed to the 17-year-olds 2015 LPGA earnings, currently sitting just below $459, 000.

This places her in a good position to earn status on the LPGA Tour next season. If Henderson’s earnings land within the equivalent of the top 40 on the LPGA money list, she will earn her 2016 tour card. In 2014, the 40^th-place finisher on the LPGA Tour earned $447, 658. With her T5 finish this past weekend she has surpassed this number to date. Although this is a fluctuating number, Henderson appears to be right on track.

Brooke Henderson’s season continues today as she attempts to Monday qualify for the LPGA’s Marathon Classic Presented by Owens Corning and O-I. If she does not make it into the field, she will compete in the Symetra Tour’s Toyota Danielle Downey Classic in Rochester, N.Y.

Among the remaining tournaments on the LPGA calendar, Henderson has exemptions into both the Ricoh Women’s British Open and the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open where she will look to solidify her 2016 LPGA Tour card.

LANCASTER, Pa. – In Gee Chun’s modest goal for her first U.S. Women’s Open was to enjoy every new experience.

Boy, did she enjoy herself.

The 20-year-old South Korean stormed from behind, posting birdies on four of the last seven holes to rally for an unlikely one-stroke victory Sunday.

Chun shot a 4-under 66 in the final round and finished at 8 under, becoming the first player to win her U.S. Open debut since Birdie Kim in 2005.

“Everything I faced and I did here was completely new,” Chun said. “So all I did was enjoy the new stuff … I enjoyed it and had a lot of fun. Even though I’m Korean, here American fans supported me a lot and they gave a lot of claps. That has put me in the great rhythm of play, and I enjoyed that tournament rhythm.”

A bright smile rarely left Chun’s face, and that was part of the plan.

“Without thinking any negatively, all I could do was just enjoy the game,” she said. “That’s what has brought me to the U.S. Open win, I believe.”

The win was Chun’s fifth of the year after three in Korea and one in Japan. She credited her experience in four LPGA Tour events earlier this season for her success in the other events and preparing her for the rigors of the U.S. Open.

“With all those four wins this year, I got a lot of confidence coming into this tournament,” Chun said. “And that’s why I could enjoy every moment of the tournament.”

Third-round leader Amy Yang struggled in the middle of her round and then pulled within one by going eagle-birdie at Nos. 16 and 17. But she bogeyed the 18th and fell a stroke short.

Playing in the final group on the last day of the championship for the third time in four years, Yang squandered a three-stroke lead and settled for a 1-over 71 and second at 273.

Two-time champion and top-ranked Inbee Park (67) overcame putting woes and rallied late, tying for third with Stacy Lewis (70) at 5-under 275. Lewis was three back at the start of the round.

Defending champion Michelle Wie battled hip and leg injuries and limped in with an even-par 70, placing 11th at 2-under 278.

As Yang and Lewis drew most of the focus as the last grouping, Chun went about picking up strokes on the leaders. At 4 under heading into the final round at Lancaster Country Club, Chun picked up two strokes on the front nine, closing within two of the lead.

“I knew it wasn’t going to come down to the two of us,” Lewis said. “I knew somebody was going to shoot a number to get up there.”

Chun got within a stroke with a birdie at the 12th, and then rolled in a nine-foot putt at No. 15 for the first of three straight birdies. She moved into the lead with a birdie at 16 as Yang and Lewis struggled. She added another birdie at the 17th to stretch her lead to two strokes.

At the troublesome 421-yard, uphill closing hole, Chun drove into the rough, chipped short and went on to make bogey, falling into a tie for the lead with Yang, who birdied 17.

But Yang failed again in her bid to claim the biggest prize in women’s golf. She also drove into the rough at the last hole, chipped short of the green and failed to get up-and-down for par, giving Chun the win.

“I did my best out there today,” Yang said.

Yang was tied for the lead heading into the final round of 2014 and second after 54 holes in 2012. She tried to put another failed final round into perspective.

“It was another good experience,” she said. “It just didn’t go as well as I thought, but I learned another great lesson here. And it’s going to make me better player, improve my game.”

Lewis’ bid for her first U.S. Open title was foiled by a pair of double-bogeys, with the most costly one coming at 15, a hole after she had moved into a tie for the lead. At the 15th, she drove into the rough, hit her second shot through the fairway, and then dumped her third shot into a greenside bunker before taking a 6 and falling out of contention.

“I think anytime you have a championship like this, you want to have somebody go out there and win it, and that’s definitely what happened there at the end,” Lewis said.

But, the two-time major winner admitted the loss stung.

“I’ll get over this eventually, but it will take a day or two,” Lewis said.

Park had three birdies on the back nine. Within two shots of the lead through 16 holes, the putting woes that dogged the 2008 and 2013 winner returned and her bid ended with a three-putt bogey at the 17th.

Wie grimaced in pain throughout the round. The nagging left hip and leg issues that have made this a forgettable season for the 25-year-old four-time LPGA Tour winner seemed to intensify in the final round. She repeatedly cringed and tried to take weight off her right side after drives. Her round did have one highlight, with her drive at the 234-yard, par-4 16th hitting the flagstick before she rolled in the short eagle putt.

Megan Khang was the championship’s low amateur. The 17-year-old from Rockland, Massachusetts, closed with a 1-over 71 and finished at 5-over 285.

Fan favorite Laura Davies, who is to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame at St. Andrews on Monday, closed with her worst round of the championship, a 5-over 75. The 1987 champion, who was the oldest player in the field at 51, finished at 287.

The event set a U.S. Women’s Open attendance record with 134,016 spectators for the week, the USGA said, surpassing the 131,298 in 2005 at Cherry Hills outside Denver.

Canadian teenager Brooke Henderson helped her bid to lock up LPGA Tour playing privileges for next season. The 17-year-old had a closing 4-under 66 and rocketed up the leaderboard, tying for fifth at 3-under 277.

LANCASTER, Pa. – Amy Yang is back in the final pairing at the U.S. Women’s Open, and this time she’s prepared for the daunting challenge ahead.

The 25-year-old South Korean beat back all of Stacy Lewis’ challenges in the third round at Lancaster Country Club on Saturday, and the day ended as it started: with Yang three strokes ahead of Lewis.

On Sunday, for the third time in four years and fourth time in six, she’ll be in the final group at a U.S. Open. This time, she’ll have a three-stroke cushion over her nearest competitor and plenty of experience to draw on.

“It was good experience, the last two – the final group experience,” she said. “Me and my coach, we prepared. We practiced hard. I’ll go out there and I’ll just do my best, like what I practice.”

Yang shot a 1-under 69 Saturday, the same as Lewis, as the last pair off went toe-to-toe, giving the pairing a match-play feel.

Yang pushed her lead to four strokes at the 13th before Lewis capitalized on a two-stroke swing at the 14th, closing within two. But Lewis’ struggles with putting carried over to the 17th, where she made a three-putt bogey, sending Yang’s advantage back to three.

Yang’s three-day total of 8-under 202 is the second-lowest in championship history behind Julie Inkster’s 201 in 1999. Lewis was at 5-under 205.

On “moving day,” all the action was outside the top two spots.

In Gee Chun, playing in her first U.S. Open, shot a second 2-under 68. The 20-year-old from South Korea is alone in third place at 4-under 206. Japan’s Shiho Oyama is fourth at 3 under after a 71.

Defending champion Michelle Wie played with nagging hip and ankle pain, firing a 68. She is in a four-way tie for fifth at 2-under 208, along with two-time winner Inbee Park (70).

History was made in the third round when South Korea’s Chella Choi shot the first nine-hole score of 29 for the championship. But the 24-year-old missed a three-foot putt on her final hole that would have tied the championship’s single-round scoring record. She settled for a 6-under 64, shooting up the leaderboard into the pack at 2 under.

On Sunday, Yang will again be one of the last to tee off in the U.S. Open. She has been in the last grouping two of the last three years, and in 2010. At Pinehurst No. 2 in 2014, she played with Wie, was overtaken by eventual runner-up Lewis and settled for fourth. In 2012, she finished second to Na Yeon Choi, and placed fifth in 2010.

Lewis, a two-time major winner, figures she needs to solve the slippery, sloping greens of Lancaster Country Club if she’s to overtake Yang.

“It’s just the severity of these greens,” said Lewis, who is tied for 26th with 96 putts over three rounds. “And the moment you do try to hit one of those down the hill, that’s when you knock it five feet by. I don’t think the speed of the greens is that inconsistent; I just think it’s the slope within the greens.”

Chun is enjoying her run through her first U.S. Open. She was paired with two-time champion Karrie Webb on Saturday, saying she was 4 years old when the seven-time major winner turned pro. She offset three bogeys with five birdies in her round to stay in contention, albeit four strokes off the lead.

“Everything I experience here, it is new, completely new,” she said. “So this is an adventure to me. So tomorrow it’s going to be the same thing. Everything is going to be very fun. I just want to be enjoying every bit of the time.”

The hilly course in the heart of Amish country is taking its toll on the hobbled Wie. At one point Saturday, the 25-year-old, four-time winner was kneading her hip and thigh, trying to loosen her muscles.

“I just feel like there’s a knot in it sometimes and just trying to get it to go,” she said.

“Unfortunately it does get a little bit worse. It’s just a pretty hilly golf course. On flat lies, it’s OK. It’s just on the uphill shots,” she said.

Wie, 57th after the opening round, finally got into red numbers with a birdie at the second, but struggled to stay below par on the front nine. She gave a stroke back at the fourth before following consecutive birdies at the sixth and seventh with back-to-back bogeys closing out the side.

She finally got on track on the back side, posting birdies on the 10th, 12th and 13th to reach 3 under. But she gave another stroke back at the 16th and limped in with pars.

Wie is refusing to let the injuries that forced her to withdraw from Kingsmill earlier this year hamper the defense of her major title.

“It was a long day today,” Wie acknowledged. “I’m glad to be done … I’ve played with the pain for a while. I know what to expect, nothing is unexpected.

“I just feel like it’s coming together. I just want to keep the good feelings going and keep improving on them, gaining confidence in my good shots and learn from the bad ones.”

Of the five amateurs who made the cut, Megan Khang has the lowest score at 4-over 214, good for a tie for 37th.

There was a hole-in-one Saturday. Lee Lopez used a 6-iron to ace the 156-yard sixth hole, the 23rd hole-in-one in U.S. Women’s Open history.

LANCASTER, Pa. – Amy Yang has experienced success at the U.S. Women’s Open. Now, she wants the ultimate prize.

The 25-year-old South Korean went on a four-birdie run Friday, charging to a three-stroke lead after two rounds at Lancaster Country Club and putting her in position – again – to make a run at her first major championship.

The day started early for 55 players, who resumed their opening round after play was suspended late Thursday due to a powerful storm. The second round ended with the bulk of the field still trying to solve the speedy and sloping greens of the hilly William Flynn layout in the heart of Amish country.

Ultimately, the day belonged to Yang.

She took control on her inward nine with birdies on the 11th, 12th, 13th. She hit her approach to within a foot on No. 14 and punctuated the 4-under-par run. She was at 7-under 133.

“I just enjoy it out here,” Yang said. “And I know the golf courses are very tough; I just enjoy the tough condition of the golf courses.”

Stacy Lewis, last year’s runner-up, and Japan’s Shiho Oyama were tied for second at 4-under 136.

Yang has had her share of success on the LPGA Tour, earning two victories since turning pro in 2006. But some of her finest golf has been played in the U.S. Open, where she has finished in the top 10 four times in the last five years.

She tied for fifth in 2010, shared 10th place the following year and placed second in 2012. Last year at Pinehurst No. 2, she was third after 36 holes and first after 54 before closing with a 74 and finishing fourth.

She was paired with eventual winner Michelle Wie in the final round at Pinehurst and believes that experience can only help over the final two rounds.

“It’s better to have that experience than never experience that before,” Yang said. “It’s different out there and I know what kind of pressure that is like. It will be tough, but I will be patient and work on it.”

Lewis birdied four of eight holes in the middle of her round, but bogeyed her last and settled for a 3-under 67.

Lewis’ patience was tested early in the first round as she struggled with four bogeys and two birdies before breaking out of her funk. That carried over into the second round and she went on a tear that propelled her near the top of the leaderboard – again – in the biggest event in women’s golf.

“I just started playing golf, is really what it was,” Lewis said, “I was thinking a lot those first 10, 11 holes, thinking a lot about my golf swing and just not playing. So I got to just playing golf … and it’s what you’re seeing in the scores.”

The 38-year-old Oyama had an opening 70 and was 2 over early in her second round before shooting up the leaderboard. She made six birdies in a 12-hole stretch, including four on her second nine on the way to a 4-under 66.

She has a total of nine victories in Japan. She played in the 2007 and 2009 U.S. Opens, but said surgery kept her from playing golf for a year. She’s thrilled to be back in the championship.

“I feel really great. … I’m so excited to play two more days,” she said.

Marina Alex, part of a three-way tie for the lead after one round, carded a 1-over 71 and was in fourth place at 3-under 137.

Karrie Webb, also first-round co-leader, had a 2-over 72 and was in a large group at 2-under 138. That group includes top-ranked and two-time champion Inbee Park (70), first-round co-leader Jane Park (72) and Morgan Pressel (70).

Inbee Park and Jane Park were among the players forced to finish their first rounds early Friday.

Jane Park, the 2004 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, used a birdie and four pars to earn a share of the lead after one round.

“It wasn’t exactly a day where I could be very aggressive with my putts because the pin placements were very difficult,” she said.

Inbee Park, a two-time U.S. Open winner with titles in 2008 and 2013, played 22 holes Friday. She said her patience was tested by her poor putting.

“I hit probably every putt short, I missed it short,” she said. “It’s hard to think that you have to smash the putts at a U.S. Open. That’s where putts are, really, really slow. It’s a little bit disappointing. “

Wie rebounded from an opening 72 with a 2-under 68 and was seven shots off the lead.

Team Canada Young Pro Brooke Henderson signed for a round of 73 today and sits T44 heading into the weekend. Christina Foster missed the cut after a round of 82 to follow a round of 71 yesterday.

LANCASTER, Pa. – Atop the leaderboard, veteran Karrie Webb and second-year LPGA Tour player Marina Alex did their best to temper expectations at the U.S. Women’s Open.

Both early starters opened with a 4-under-par 66 on Thursday, and that score held up through the afternoon before things turned wet and windblown. Play was suspended in the early evening after a storm packing high winds, lightning and heavy rain pounded Lancaster Country Club.

The sudden halt to the action with 55 players needing to complete their rounds – with at least two threatening the lead – left Webb and Alex as unlikely co-leaders.

The USGA’s plan is to restart the first round at 6:45 a.m. Friday and begin the second round at 7:15.

Amy Yang was in the clubhouse a shot behind the leaders. Two players on the course were also at 3 under: Na Yeon Choi, the 2012 U.S. Open champion, had three holes to play, while Jane Park had five.

Top-ranked Inbee Park birdied two of her last three holes before play was stopped and was at 2 under through 14. Morgan Pressel and six other morning starters shot a 2-under 68.

The 40-year-old Webb reeled off four birdies on her second nine holes and finished with her first score in the 60s in a U.S. Open since 2001, when the Australian won the tournament for the second straight year.

The seven-time major champ started on the back nine and reeled off 10 straight pars before making her move with birdies at the second, fourth, sixth and eighth holes.

This season has been a struggle for Webb, who has three top-10 finishes in 14 starts. That all changed Thursday when she hit 14 fairways and 17 of 18 greens.

“It’s been a test of my patience. I feel like I’ve had some good golf in me,” Webb said.

An eighth major title would move her into a tie for sixth place with Betsy Rawls, but Webb said it was too early to think about that.

“That’s never been a goal of mine,” she said. “I’m just happy to get off to a good start and hopefully continue to play this good for the next three days.”

Alex, playing in her second U.S. Open and first since 2009, was a surprise atop the leaderboard. The 24-year-old from Wayne, New Jersey, is in her second season on the LPGA Tour. She missed the cut five straight weeks and her best finish was a tie for ninth in Arkansas.

She’d been working on swing changes before the tournament, and it finally all came together.

She hit a 5-wood to within 18 feet on the ninth hole and made a curling birdie putt.

“It was the best putt and best shot of the day for me, so that was great,” she said.

Alex was an amateur when she played in her first U.S. Open.

“I qualified like the last spot on my sectional,” she said. “My game then and now is not even remotely the same. I was a nervous kid, pretty much.”

On Thursday, she embraced the championship atmosphere and cheering crowds.

“I’m not a front-runner for this tournament, really,” she said. “So I’m just going to go out there and have fun tomorrow with my caddie and just keep doing the things that we’ve been doing and just see where that puts me.”

Elizabeth Nagel, a 23-year-old playing her second professional event, was in the group two strokes off the lead. Making her U.S. Open debut wasn’t going to rattle the cancer survivor.

After a trip to her doctor because of cold symptoms during her junior year at Michigan State, Nagel was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. She had surgery to remove her thyroid and cancerous lymph node in her neck. Nagel went through radioactive iodine treatments and was declared cancer free about a year later.

“It kind of brings all this into perspective and makes this even more special,” she said. “Everybody says it, but when you make a bogey you keep pressing on. When you’ve heard the `C’ word and went through that whole battle really in your life, it brings everything back to even keel.”

Stacey Lewis, who finished second last year, shot a 69, while Lydia Ko opened with 70, and defending champion Michelle Wie, slowed by injury and illness this season, shot a 2-over 72.

Jimin Kang withdrew after 16 holes, citing illness.

Canadian Christina Foster made her professional debut today with a round of 1-over par 71. Currently Brooke Henderson sits at 1-over par with two holes to play tomorrow to complete her first round.

LANCASTER, PA. – Brooke Henderson might be a little worse for wear after a minor car accident last week, but that’s not stopping the 17-year-old from a busy stretch of golf.

It starts with the Women’s U.S. Open this week as Henderson continues to try to earn enough money to qualify for her LPGA card for next season.

The goal is to earn as much as 40^th place on the LPGA money list (she would currently be 22^nd with $317,000). She cannot be a member of the LPGA Tour until she turns 18 (in September) and has been turned down in her request for a special age exemption.

The LPGA has ruled it will count her money earned this summer as official when she turns 18. If she earn as much as 40^th place on the money list (which looks like it might be about $450,000) she will earn her card for 2016.

After winning on the developmental Symetra Tour last month and being granted membership, she could also earn her card by finishing in the top 10 on that Tour’s money list.

That’s why she withdrew from competing for Canada at the Pan-Am Games next week. She’ll be playing the Symetra Tour event in Rochester, N.Y. to try and boost her chances.

Henderson said she remains confident choosing the Symetra Tour over the Pan-Am Games was the right thing to do.

“I’m very happy with my decision,” she said after a practice round at the Lancaster C.C. “Of course I love playing for Canada and I’m hoping to play in the Olympics next year. I wear the Maple Leaf on my shirt every time. I love playing for Canada, but I know it was the right decision.”

Her other options to earn an LPGA card are by winning one of her remaining Tour starts. The last resort is going through qualifying school in the fall.

After another Symetra Tour event in Albany, Henderson will be off to the Ricoh British Women’s Open at Trump Turnberry Resort in Scotland  July 30-Aug. 2. She was granted a special exemption for the women’s major.

At this point, her last chance to earn money on the LPGA Tour will be at the Canadian Pacific Canadian Women’s Open Aug. 17-23 at the Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C. The championship will be her sixth and last sponsor’s exemption, the most allowed for an LPGA non-member.

There remains a chance she could play in more LPGA events by Monday qualifying.

In the meantime, she could take a big step this week with another strong performance at the U.S. Open. She finished tied for 10^th last year at Pinehurst as an amateur which earned her a place in the field this week.

This is the most lucrative event in women’s golf with a pursue of $4.5 million, the United States Golf Association announced Wednesday. The winner will receive $810,000. Tenth place is worth $121,500.

“I’m in a good position. I’m far from being safe with that top 40 though, and I know that my next three tournaments – this one, British and Canadian Open – will be really important,” she said. “That’s another reason why this week it’s really important that I play and that I play well.”

Henderson’s leg was a little sore after her accident – which caused her to withdraw from the Symetra Tour event in Michigan last week – but after a couple of trips over the Lancaster C.C.’s rolling hills, she’s ready to go.

“I’m excited for this week. There’s a reason why I’m ready to play and I want to see what I can do with it. It’s been an interesting week, but I’m very grateful to be here,” Henderson said. “It’s by the grace of God that I’m here this week and able to play.

“I think I have to take the most out of this opportunity.”