HARRISON, N.Y – South Korean Jenny Shin kept moving up the leaderboard, chasing Hall-of-Famer Karrie Webb.

Shin eventually caught her, shooting a bogey-free, 7-under 66 Thursday for a one-stroke lead after the opening round at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, the second major of the season.

“I was chasing the leaderboard all day, and I was surprised that Webby was at 6 under at one point,” said the 22-year-old Shin. “I got there and was like `Maybe I can get one more on the 18th hole,’ and I did.”

Canadian teenager Brooke Henderson had a three-putt bogey on her final hole at the ninth to drop a shot back after Shin birdied No. 18 at the Westchester Country Club.

“I hit it well all day, I’m disappointed with the finish on the last hole,” said the 17-year-old Henderson, who was playing on a sponsor exemption.

Webb birdied three of the first four holes and finished at 68. The 40-year-old Webb started her round in hazy conditions at No. 10 and shot a 4-under 33 on the opening nine. She had a bogey-free round until she dropped a shot on the seventh when she missed the fairway left and hit the front bunker.

“I hit a wedge to a foot and a half on 10 and that settled me in,” Webb said. “Hit the green in two on 12 and had about a 15-footer for eagle. I really put some very solid swings on it early on.”

Shin had five birdies and an eagle on the par-5 15th. She spoke to her sports psychologist on Wednesday night to help calm her nerves.

“I was freaking out for this round, so I tried to play as comfortable as I can, just like any other tournament,” Shin said. “I tried not to think of it as a major and it turned out great. I had a couple of bogey-free rounds last week, so I think I’m on a good run.”

Americans Brittany Lincicome, Lexi Thompson, Cristie Kerr and Stacy Lewis were in a large group that finished four strokes back at 70 in steamy temperatures that reached the mid-80s. Lincicome, the winner of the first major at the ANA Inspiration in April, eagled the par-5 15th and followed with a birdie on 16.

Two-time defending champion Inbee Park shot a 71. Top-ranked teenager Lydia Ko was another stroke back, and Suzann Pettersen, coming off a win in Canada, finished at 74. Michelle Wie, bothered by a hip injury, shot 75.

Shin, who is seeking her first major, had three birdies on the front nine to gain on Webb, a seven-time major winner.

Henderson, who turned pro in December, is below the LPGA Tour’s age requirement of 18. But she made the most of her sponsor exemption.

Henderson birdied No. 10, her opening hole, and added birdies at Nos. 3, 5, 6 and 15. For her eagle on the par-5, 274 yard 12th hole, she hit a 7-wood 204 yards and the ball landed three feet from the cup.

Then came the three-putt on her final hole, where she “tried to hit it a little too hard and had an 8-footer to save par.”

The 29-year-old Lincicome, who is seeking her third major, is one of the longest hitters on the tour. She used a 4-iron from 203 yards out and got within 30 feet for her eagle on the par-5, 497-yard 15th.

“The putt, if I hadn’t hit the hole, it probably would have gone off the green,” she said. “(My caddie) asked if I had dented the cup.”

Park finished with a birdie on 18, one of five on the day along with a bogey. The South Korean has won five majors, including three straight in 2013.

Kerr had a bogey on the par-5, 551-yard fifth hole and four birdies on the West Course that she often plays when in New York. She’s familiar with the sloping greens at the longtime home of the PGA Tour event now called The Barclays.

“The front nine, I had a bunch of chances and a couple putts lipped out,” Kerr said. “I just tried to stay patient and got off to a great start on the back nine.”

Alena Sharp carded a 1-under 72, while fellow Canadians Sue Kim and Rebecca Lee-Bentham both posted rounds of 78.

BIRDIES: Annika Sorenstam, a winner of 10 majors and three Women PGA Championships, said she walked the course. “It’s a tough course, the greens and some blind holes where you really have to commit yourself. The scores are not that low, not many birdies. It will be a typical grinder week.” … Lincicome ran into Triple Crown-winning jockey Victor Espinoza at the Mets game on Tuesday night and got a picture with him. … Playing with Kerr and Jessica Korda, Lincicome bet $5 for every birdie after a slow start. “Korda birdied the last, so we were tied, unfortunately,” Lincicome said. “We just kind of needed something to motivate us to get back in it. We didn’t let Kerr in because she was already making too many.”

RYE, N.Y. – So Yeon Ryu walked off the ninth green in the fading late afternoon sun light at the Westchester Country Club and, with a big smile on her face, thanked her pro-am partners at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

The smile said a lot. The game has stopped being a grind for the defending Canadian Pacific Women’s Open champion.

A meeting a month ago with former British Open champion Ian Baker Finch, which was arranged by her caddie to discuss her putting, evolved into an exploration of how Ryu was beating herself up on the golf course.

“I think my expectation level was so high, I just kept pushing myself into a corner,” said the 24-year-old, who has turned things around lately. She’s coming off two top five finishes including a tie for fourth last week at the Manulife LPGA Classic in Cambridge, Ont. “Now I’m enjoying reading the line, enjoying the putting and even when I miss it, I just get away from there and focus on the positive things.

“Last week in Canada my golf game looked really in great shape so I feel really comfortable and I’m enjoying playing so I’m really excited to be playing a major tournament.”

Ryu and Baker Finch met in West Palm Beach. Her results had been slipping this season, including a 47^th place finish at the Volunteers of America North Texas Shootout Presented by JTBC.

Baker Finch looked over her putting stroke and couldn’t find any serious faults.

“It’s not about the golf technique or what the stroke looks like, what it has to be. Not that type of thing,” said Ryu. “He just taught me maybe I just worried about so many things on the golf course. I started to worry about ‘what if I miss the putt?’

“That kind of behaviour wasn’t really helping to make a lot of good putts. He mentioned just enjoy reading the line, feel like you’re on your putting. Be kind to me. That’s the thing he taught me. After that I realized how harsh I was to myself.”

Accepting the result and moving on will be an important ability at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship this week. Westchester’s rolling terrain and perched greens are going to be a challenge and there will be bogeys.

“Sometimes you really have to accept bogey and just walk away,” said Ryu, exhibiting some of her new attitude.

The Women’s PGA, now being staged by the PGA of America, is playing on a big stage in a big market.

Westchester was a regular stop on the PGA Tour and has hosted the PGA Tour’s playoffs.

“It’s such an honour to play this golf course. I was here like a month ago with Inbee (Park). We talked about what a good golf course it is,” said Ryu. “The golf course is in great shape. They don’t have any similar holes. It’s a really historical place. I really love to play here. I think it’s really going to be tough to play, but I always enjoy the tough golf course.

“I think par is going to have a really good chance to finish in the top five.”

Ryu said she’s hoping to have a strong run up to her defence of her Canadian Pacific Women’s Open title at the Vancouver Golf Club Aug. 20-23.

She said she’s looking forward to being the defender.

“Absolutely. No matter, even if I’m not the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open defending champion, I’ll always have fun to play in Canada because the Canadian crowds are so great, you know? They are so humble and they are always very supportive of the LPGA.

“I was always happy to play up there especially now that I’m defending champion. I’m more excited. I’m wishing I can have a lot of great wins before I got to play in the Canadian Women’s Open. I hope I can defend my title.”

Brooke Henderson’s solid results on the golf course recently not only has provided a solid indication of a bright future ahead for the 17-year-old from Smith Falls, Ont. but has also generated huge excitement, with many now taking notice of her game.

Her breakthrough performance came at the 2015 Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic in April when the youngest member of Golf Canada’s Young Pro Program set a new 36-hole record; and held the outright lead heading into the final round.

The following weekend, at the Volunteers of America North Texas Shootout, Henderson once again found herself on top of the leader board after shooting a second round 6-under 65.

Henderson – who is currently in her first full season as a pro – has not only caught the attention of fans and those in the media, but also the attention of the game’s biggest star, Lydia Ko.

“She’s obviously playing great; really solid. I got to play with her recently at the Kingsmill Championship and she’s a really strong player mentally,” said the current world No. 1 at the Manulife Financial LPGA Classic about Henderson.

“I’m sure she’s going to keep shooting low scores and it’ll be great to have her as a full-time member soon,” added the 18-year-old New Zealander, who is a seven-time winner on the LPGA Tour.

Despite coming up short in her efforts to win an LPGA tournament thus far, Henderson says her stellar results have done a lot for her confidence.

“It was awesome and definitely a huge confidence booster leading two weeks in a row on the weekend which was really exciting,” said the former world No. 1 amateur.

“The experience taught me a lot about myself, and my game and also about competing on the LPGA; and it’s something I can continue to use in each tournament,” added the 17-year-old Canadian.

Currently as a player without status on the LPGA Tour, Henderson’s entry into additional LPGA events requires her to either successfully go through a pre-tournament qualifier or be granted a sponsor exemption.

Just this week, it was announced that she has been offered a sponsor exemption into the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, which is the LPGA’s second major on the 2015 schedule.

However, one event that the talented young golfer from Smith Falls, Ont. has guaranteed herself entry into is the U.S. Women’s Open – which will be held in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in July.

“I’m excited about it; I didn’t have to go through the 36-hole qualifier which is always nice and it’s pretty close to home; so I’m hoping that a lot of family and friends will be able to make it out,” said Henderson, who finished runner-up at the 2014 U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship and earned entry into this year’s event U.S. Women’s Open as a result.

The week following the LPGA’s third major, she will be representing Canada at the Pan Am Games along with four-time LPGA Tour winner, Lori Kane.

“It’s an honour to play for my country,” said Henderson. “And it’ll be fun; Lori is a great player and I think we’ll have a lot of bonding timing which is always good with such a legendary player with such great experience.”

Another successful Canadian LPGA veteran that Henderson has bonded with and gained valuable insight from is Alena Sharp.

“I like it that she asks me for advice. I just tell her things that she needs to know and I’m happy that she’s not afraid to talk to me,” said the 34-year-old from Hamilton, Ont. when asked for her input on Henderson’s progress and maturity as a golfer.

“I think she’s got all the talent and she’s just a nice girl. She’s really humble and we’re becoming good friends, which is cool,” Sharp added.

With strong and highly capable mentors willing and eager to provide guidance on her journey towards success, the future appears to be very bright for the talented young golfer from Smith Falls, Ont.

And while the talented young golfer lists gaining her full LPGA Tour card and earning a spot on the 2016 Canadian Olympic team as her two top goals over the next year, Henderson also understands the future is now.

The mature 17-year-old says that the best way to reach her longer term goals is simply to continue taking care of business in the busy summer ahead.

“I try not to look too far ahead but just trying to take it week by week; I’ve had great weeks out there recently, and in my mind, I know my game is right there,” said Henderson.

“I just have to stay patient,” she added. “Because I know great finishes and a win will come soon.”

CAMBRIDGE, Ontario – Suzann Pettersen birdied two of the last three holes to win the Manulife LPGA Classic on Sunday for her 15th LPGA Tour victory and first since October 2013.

Pettersen closed with a 3-under 69 in windy conditions for a one-stroke victory over Brittany Lang at Whistle Bear Golf Club, the first-year venue after three seasons at Grey Silo in Waterloo.

Pettersen blasted out of a greenside bunker to 2 feet on the par-5 16th to set up a birdie that tied Lang for the lead, then hit a 5-iron to 8 feet for another birdie on the 191-yard, par-3 17th. The 34-year-old Norwegian parred the par-4 18th, hitting her long first putt to a foot.

Pettersen finished at 22-under 266. She ended a 35-event victory drought and is projected to jump from 10th to fifth in the world ranking.

Lang, the winner of the inaugural tournament in 2012 at Grey Silo, finished with a 65. She birdied Nos. 15-17 and closed with a par.

After playing bogey-free the first three rounds, Petersen dropped strokes Sunday on Nos. 2 and 5. She rallied with birdies on Nos. 8-9, eagled the par-5 12th, and gave a shot back with a bogey on the par-4 13th.

Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe was third at 18 under after a 72.

Cristie Kerr bogeyed the final four holes for a 73 to drop into a tie for fourth at 16 under.

Top-ranked Lydia Ko tied for 27th at 10 under after a 71.

Canada’s Alena Sharp also tied for 27th with Ko. The Hamilton, Ont., native was the top Canuck.

Team Canada’s Sue Kim of Langley, B.C., tied for 54th at 5 under.

CAMBRIDGE, Ont. – Suzann Pettersen took a one-stroke lead Saturday in the Manulife LPGA Classic, making an eagle and four birdies on the first 11 holes and closing with seven pars for a 6-under 66.

Pettersen had a 19-under 197 total at Whistle Bear Golf Club. Bothered by a shoulder injury this season, the 34-year-old Norwegian player won the last of her 14 LPGA Tour titles in 2013.

“I can only look upwards, only I can set the pace,” Pettersen said. “Yeah, there’s a lot of people in the hunt for this and the course is playing great. I think it’s fun for the fans to see us shooting low scores and I’m excited to go back out there tomorrow and fight it to the very end.”

Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe was second after a 67.

“I’m a pretty aggressive player, so luckily I didn’t have to change my strategy here,” Uribe said. “I feel really confident right now, my driver’s pretty straight, so I like it.”

She won the tour’s unofficial HSBC Brazil Cup in 2011.

Cristie Kerr was third at 17 under, also after a 67. The American won the Kia Classic in California in March for her 17th LPGA Tour title.

“I think you can’t get too far back on a course like this,” Kerr said. “You’ve got to be able to stay within sight. Just got to play my own game and just start walking some putts in and put some pressure on the other people.”

Petersen birdied the first three holes, eagled the par-5 ninth and made another birdie on No. 11.

“I got off to a fantastic start,” Pettersen said. “Then, coming off 18, I don’t know if I felt like I played that well today. I kind of dried up a little bit towards the end. … Overall very happy, in a good position, but there’s a good job to be done tomorrow.”

Uribe rebounded from a bogey on No. 11 with birdies on 12 and 14.

“I just tried to stay patient, there’s so many options there to make birdie,” Uribe said. “I didn’t really start that well, birdie on No. 1, and then didn’t really make birdie til the end of the front nine, so just stayed patient there. I think of just my game.”

Kerr saved par with 15-foot putt on No. 16 and closed with a 15-footer for birdie on 18.

“That was a great birdie on the last hole,” Kerr said. “I think I jumped up in the air. I made a great putt on 16 and that was not an easy pin there, either. You know what, I was hitting so many good putts all day that nothing was dropping and I was getting a little frustrated. … I just got really determined down at the end there to make up a couple so I stay within reach tomorrow.”

Canadian Alena Sharp is currently T15 after a third round of 68. Natalie Gleadall carded a round of 70, while Sara-Maude Juneau and Sue Kim both shot a round of even par.

CAMBRIDGE, Ontario – Suzann Pettersen shot a 7-under 65 on Friday for a share of the second-round lead with Mariajo Uribe in the Manulife LPGA Classic.

Pettersen had seven birdies in a 10-hole stretch at Whistle Bear Golf Club. The 34-year-old Norwegian player won the last of her 14 LPGA Tour titles in 2013.

Uribe, from Colombia, had five birdies in a 66 to match Pettersen at 13-under 131. She won the tour’s unofficial HSBC Brazil Cup in 2011.

Cristie Kerr, tied for the first-round lead with Cheyenne Woods and P.K. Kongkraphan after matching the course record with a 63, was a stroke back after a 69. She won the Kia Classic in California in March for her 17th LPGA Tour title.

Yani Tseng and Brittany Lang topped the group at 11 under. Tseng had a 65, and Lang, the 2012 winner at Grey Silo in Waterloo, shot a 68.

Woods had a 73 to drop into a tie for 19th at 8 under. She’s Tiger Woods’ niece.

Kongkraphan also struggled, shooting a 75 to fall into a tie for 35th at 6 under.

Second-ranked Inbee Park, the winner last year at Grey Silo, had a 68 to reach 7 under.

Top-ranked Lydia Ko was 5 under after a 68.

Canadian Alena Sharp was the top Canadian. The Hamilton, Ont., native was tied for 23rd at 7 under after a 70 Friday.

Brooke Henderson, the 17-year-old Team Canada member who was third in the Swinging Skirts in April in California, missed the cut by a stroke with rounds of 71 and 70.

Sister Brittany Henderson also dropped out, shooting 72-70.

CAMBRIDGE, Ont. – Cheyenne Woods, Cristie Kerr and P.K. Kongkraphan matched the course record at 9-under 63 on Thursday to share the first-round lead in the Manulife LPGA Classic.

Woods, Tiger Woods’ niece, and Kerr tied the Whistle Bear Golf Club record set by Matt Bettencourt and Jon Mills, in the Web.com Tour’s 2005 Canadian PGA Championship. The tournament is in its first year at Whistle Bear after three years at Grey Silo in Waterloo.

Woods had an eagle, eight birdies and a bogey in calm morning conditions.

“It wasn’t very windy today,” Woods said. “I thought it played a little shorter than it had the past few days because maybe the wind was down. So, I think there are a lot of birdies out there. The par 5s are birdie-able, eagle-able, so I think it’s playing pretty good. It’s a nice course.”

The 24-year-old LPGA Tour rookie made a 50-foot eagle putt on the par-5 ninth.

“I played really solid all day,” said Woods, who won the Ladies European Tour’s Australian Ladies Masters last year for her biggest victory. “I had one bogey, which was a stupid three-putt, but overall I played solid. And I think the biggest thing, we were just having fun out there, Jaye Marie (Green) and I were talking the whole day and it was very relaxed, very relaxed atmosphere while we were playing. That’s sometimes when I play my best.”

The 37-year-old Kerr had 10 birdies and a bogey, playing her opening nine in a career-best 7-under 29. She won the Kia Classic in California in March for her 17th LPGA Tour title.

“The course has pretty generous fairways and, I mean, our tour is so good with talent that I knew somebody was going to shoot a low number,” Kerr said. “Maybe I thought not as many people would shoot such low numbers, but there were definitely birdies out there today.”

Kongkraphan, from Thailand, also had 10 birdies and a bogey.

“I hit the ball very solid today,” Kongkraphan said.

Israel’s Laetitia Beck and Germany’s Sandra Gal were a stroke back.

Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist, the winner Sunday in New Jersey in the ShopRite LPGA Classic, topped the group at 65 along with South Korea’s Sei Young Kim, a two-time winner this season.

Second-ranked Inbee Park, the winner last year at Grey Silo, opened with a 69. Third-ranked Stacy Lewis had a 70, and top-ranked Lydia Ko shot 71.

“Hopefully, tomorrow there will be many more birdies,” said Ko, a two-time winner this year.

Brooke Henderson, the 17-year-old Canadian who was third in the Swinging Skirts in April in California, had a 71. The crowd chanted “Go Canada Go!” and cheered loudly for Henderson

“It was different,” said Henderson, from Smith Falls, Ontario. “The crowd was more in my favor, which was amazing and such an awesome experience. I’m hoping that the next couple days I’ll play well enough so that the crowd’s not just there to see me play but to see me play really well.”

Sister Brittany Henderson opened with a 72.

Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ont., was the top Canadian at 5-under par 67.

GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP, N.J. – Anna Nordqvist gave her visiting mother the perfect gift Sunday, which also happened to be Mother’s Day in Sweden.

The 27-year-old Nordqvist birdied the 16th and 17th holes to break out of the pack and win the ShopRite LPGA Classic by a stroke. She closed with a 2-under 69 in windy conditions to finish at 8-under 205 at Stockton Seaview’s Bay Course.

The former Arizona State player has five career LPGA Tour titles, winning twice each in 2009 and 2014. And none of those victories could have been any sweeter than Sunday’s, with mother Maria in the gallery.

“It’s the first time I’ve won on the LPGA Tour and one of my family members were there with me, so it’s definitely special,” Nordqvist said. “It’s Mother’s Day in Sweden, so I couldn’t have given her a better present than to spend the day with her.

“I’m just speechless right now. I fought hard today and I can’t believe I’m sitting here with the trophy.”

A stroke behind leader Morgan Pressel entering the round, Nordqvist made her move on the closing three holes – a stretch she played in 5 under the first two days.

She sank a 12-foot birdie putt at the par-4 16th to break a tie with Christel Boeljon of the Netherlands and get to 8 under. Nordqvist hit her tee shot on the short par-3 17th to 8 feet to the left of the hole and drained that putt as well to move to two strokes in front.

“I thought I hit a lot of good putts” all day, Nordqvist said. “Just knowing that I hit good putts helped me. I hit a real good putt on 16 and even on 17 to give me a little bit of space there at the last. I felt like I played really well and I put myself in a position to win.”

With Boeljon, winless in five years on the LPGA Tour, missing an 18-inch birdie putt at the 18th while playing in the group ahead, Nordqvist was not hurt by a bogey at the last. She finished her round, played in steady afternoon wind, with five birdies and three bogeys.

After she putted out, she was sprayed with champagne by some fellow players, and then looked for her mother.

“I tried to find her but it was quite a bit of people,” she said. “I saw her after 17 after I just made two straight birdies. And then on 18 I had a short putt to win and just in my line I saw my mom.”

Boeljon, who played for Purdue and was the second in the 2007 NCAA tournament, was a career-best second after a 68. Pressel, who fell out of the lead following a bogey-double bogey stretch on the front nine, tied for third at 5 under after a 73. Rookie Kelly Shon got within one stroke of the lead, but a tough finish dropped her to a 70 and a tie with Pressel.

Nordqvist picked up her first birdie of the day at the par-4 fourth with a 5-foot putt. She moved into a tie for first after Pressel bogeyed the sixth hole and lost the lead to Boeljon after she missed the eighth green and made bogey.

Nordqvist picked up two shots with birdies at the par-5 ninth and short par-4 10th, draining putts of 8 and 6 feet. She dropped back into a tie for first after a three-putt bogey on the difficult par-3 15th but surged into the lead for good with her birdie at 16.

Pressel, who birdied the par-5 third, ran into her worst stretch of the weekend at the sixth and seventh holes. After her approach at No. 6 ran into the collar, she chunked her chip shot and made bogey. Then at the par-3 seventh, she came up well short with her tee ball, hit a bad pitch and three-putted.

The three lost shots dropped her from 8 under to 5 under, trailing by two, and she never held as much of a share of the lead the rest of the day in her bid for her first LPGA Tour win since 2008.

“I just didn’t make anything today,” Pressel said. “I didn’t hit it quite as well. I certainly made a mess of 6 and 7 and got behind the 8-ball early, and these greens are just a little bit too bumpy to make a ton of putts out here, even with good strokes.

“I just had way too many putts and you’re not going to win a tournament hitting 2 over on Sunday.”

Team Canada’s Brooke Henderson of Smiths, Falls, Ont., tied for 23rd at 1 under after a final round 67.

Alena Sharp finished 2 over after a final round 72. The Hamilton, Ont., native tied for 51st.

GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP, N.J. – Morgan Pressel said she knew Saturday that it was going to be a tough day in the second round of the ShopRite LPGA Classic. The wind was strong and steady, the greens were bumpy and she failed to convert some early birdie chances.

But Pressel showed some veteran patience throughout the day and effectively battled the elements well enough to shoot a 2-under 69 and maintain a one-stroke lead.

Pressel had three birdies and a bogey to reach 7-under 135 on Stockton Seaview’s Bay Course. The 27-year-old American won the last of her two LPGA Tour victories in 2008.

“I think my patience was kind of tested on the first few holes where I had a few good birdie opportunities and didn’t even sniff the hole,” Pressel said.

“Rock (caddie Barry Cesarz) said to me, `Keep giving yourself birdie opportunities.’ And I ended up making a few. When you’re missing four or five putts on the front nine from 10 feet for birdie, it can wear on you. You’ve just got to say, `Hey, I made a good stroke, the greens bounced this way.'”

Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist was second. She birdied the last three holes for a 69.

Gerina Piller, Kelly Shon, Pernilla Lindberg, Catriona Matthew and Christel Boeljon were tied for third at 4 under. Shon had a 68, and Piller, Lindberg, Matthew and Boeljon shot 70.

The start was delayed an hour by fog. After the fog lifted, the breeze that usually blows at the Bay Course confounded many players trying to pull the right clubs. In addition, players noted that bumpy greens affected their putting.

Pressel didn’t allow the conditions to bother her. She did card a pair of birdies on her front nine – a 2-putt at the par-5 third hole and on the difficult par-4 sixth.

Her only bogey of the day came at the par-4 13th hole, where she lost her drive into the trees on the right and had to punch out from high grass into the fairway. After her third shot rolled over the green, she got up and down from 6 feet for a good bogey.

“I think that once that went in, my patience was fine,” Pressel said. “I’m like, `OK, I got out of there with a bogey and didn’t make double, and I know that I’ve just got to keep plugging along with pars coming in, and ended up making a good birdie on 16.”

She got the shot back at No. 16, hitting a 7-iron approach from 170 yards to 20 feet, and sinking the putt.

Pressel came close to winning last month, but lost a playoff to top-ranked Lydia Ko in the Swinging Skirts in California.

Nordqvist, a four-time tour winner who had four straight top-10 finishes earlier this year, rallied from bogeys at Nos. 11 and 12.

She began her hot stretch with a 5-foot birdie putt at the 16th, followed by a 6-footer at the short 17th and a 10-footer at the par-5 18th.

“I tried to give myself chances for birdies or play for pars on some holes,” Nordqvist said. “But knowing it’s a three-day event, you’re really going to have to try to shoot low scores every day. I tried to stay patient, and I think it paid off with three birdies there at the end.”

Defending champion Stacy Lewis and 17-year-old Canadian sensation Brooke Henderson struggled, but made the 36-hole cut right on the number at 3-over 145. Lewis had a 73, and Henderson, who had eight birdies in her opening round, went without a birdie Saturday in her round of 77.

Canada’s Alena Sharp also made the 36-hole cut. The Hamilton, Ont. native carded a 76 to sit tied for 35th at 1-over.

Michelle Wie, who withdrew from the Kingsmill Championship for what was diagnosed as bursitis in her left hip, missed the cut with a 72 and 4-over 146 total. She said her hip was sore and that she was considering withdrawing from the Manulife Classic next week in Cambridge, Ontario.