Sunday, June 22, 2003
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) -- Karrie Webb is back at the scene of one of her biggest victories.
Webb came from five shots behind in the final round of last year's Rochester LPGA, snatching her first win of the season when she birdied the 18th hole and South Korean Mi Hyun Kim bogeyed it.
The Australian also won the tournament in 1999.
"Some years I scratch my head wondering how I actually did win here," the defending champion said Wednesday, the day before the opening round at the tree-lined Locust Hill course. "I either play really well here and win, or I sort of don't really contend."
Winless this year, Webb is eager to get back on the podium -- no matter how it comes about.
Webb has won six major golf championships and 22 other LPGA tournaments since turning pro in 1994. She dominated the American tour in 1999 and 2000, when she amassed 13 wins, but has since ceded ground -- and a far brighter spotlight -- to Annika Sorenstam.
At the end of 2001, Webb joked, "I'll eat my hat" if Sorenstam repeated as an eight-time winner. Sorenstam won no fewer than 11 times last year, the most since Mickey Wright in 1964. Webb managed just two wins.
"Obviously, she did prove me wrong," Webb said. It set a mark "that I don't know if I'll ever be able to achieve."
Her rivalry with Sorenstam, once likened to the Jack Nicklaus-Tom Watson duel of two decades ago, has clearly faded.
Webb has five top-10 finishes in nine outings this year, her best showing a second-place tie in February.
Sorenstam, who is skipping Rochester for the third year in a row, has three wins, including a major, and played at the PGA Tour's Colonial in May.
Webb isn't following in her footsteps.
"I just don't see drawing that much attention to myself," she said. "I'd just rather deal with the pressures that I already am accustomed to."
Besides, she added: "I don't think I hit the ball long enough to fairly compete against the guys. There's always going to be a strength difference there, and the men are always going to hit the golf ball farther than you."
While it's been tough to keep pace with Sorenstam, Webb insists she's staying focused on her own game.
"That's just the way I approach things," she said. "I never really motivated myself by another person."