USA Takes Lead After Second Round of Copa de las Americas in Canada

by Mary Kate BrennanAurora, Ontario, Canada (June 21) – The United States of America’s team is in first place after the second day of the 2007 Copa de las Americas Championship at Beacon Hill Golf Club. Both the men’s and women’s teams now lead their respective fields and Jennie Lee, who recorded a 36-hole score of 150, is a women’s individual co-leader. The Copa de las Americas is an international team golf competition played every two years for countries in the Western Hemisphere. Three competitions of 72 holes, 18 holes for four days – overall (both men’s and women’s totals), women’s and men’s – are being conducted by the Royal Canadian Golf Association in conjunction with the USGA and The R&A. In 2007, 10 countries are participating in the overall competition, 15 in the men’s competition and 10 in the women’s competition.Overall, the United States leads Canada by 10 strokes. Argentina, which led after the first round, fell to third with a combined score of 610.The women, with a score of 304, lead by 11 strokes over second place Canada and Argentina, who are tied for second. Lee, a member of the 2006 USA Curtis Cup squad as well as the 2006 and 2007 NCAA championship teams at Duke, shot a 72. She is an individual co-leader along with Canada’s Stephanie Sherlock.Lee’s partner, Stacy Lewis, an All-American at Arkansas, shot 77 for the second day in a row. She is now tied for third with Agostina Parmigiani of Argentina with a combined score of 154. With a combined score of 295, the USA men narrowly lead Canada by one stroke. Both Oklahoma State golfer Jonathan Moore, who competed in the 2006 U.S. Open, and teammate Webb Simpson, who plays for Wake Forest and has been named to the 2007 USA Palmer Cup Team, shot 77. Moore, with a combined score of 146, is tied for third individually with Andres Felipe Echavarria Botero of Colombia. Simpson is in seventh place with 149. Loren Singletary, USA team captain said that while the temperature had improved since yesterday, strong winds continued to be a factor in the tournament. Despite extreme wind gusts on the 16th hole, arguably one of the hardest on the course, Lee recorded the only birdie on the hole thus far. Moore, who double-bogeyed the hole, was impressed with Lee’s performance. "It is an extremely hard hole," he said. "It is a par three, right into the wind.""I had a really good shot off the tee," Lee said. "I just hit a 3-wood. It went a little bit right, but just enough to catch the green." She said that she then putted from 30-feet for birdie."I putted a lot better today than yesterday," she explained. "I definitely made some good par threes and some more birdies. That was a really important factor."The third round begins at 7:30 a.m. Friday. Individual starting times have not yet been announced.