Dulac: Gulbis getting attention for her game
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Natalie Gulbis hits off the 17th tee during the second round of the U.S. Women's Open at Oakmont Country Club Friday.
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Some 16,000 fans descended on Oakmont Country Club on Friday for the second round of the 65th U.S. Women's Open, 15,500 of whom appeared to be following Natalie Gulbis.
The swarm can be seen across the turnpike, waiting for her to cross the pedestrian bridge to the second hole. It can be felt stomping up the hill and appearing over the rise at No. 9 as she and her bobbing blonde hair make their way toward the clubhouse.
And it can be heard when she does something noteworthy, like, make a birdie, which she did on six occasions in the second round.
"Is that how many I had?" Gulbis asked afterward.
Indeed.
Natalie Gulbis draws a crowd wherever she goes, mainly because of the way she looks. But she is garnering even more attention at Oakmont because of the way she is playing, something for which she is not always given enough credit.
Gulbis was able to sneak in another 73 Friday before rain wiped out the afternoon portion of the second round, and that has her at 4-over 146, just three shots behind the clubhouse leader, Cristie Kerr, her good friend.
Gulbis' position is all the more surprising because she did not play a practice round this week because of a nagging back injury. In fact, she didn't even take a putt or hit any balls until Wednesday.
"I wouldn't have teed it up if I didn't think I could go out and play well," said Gulbis, who has just one victory in nine seasons on the LPGA Tour. "But I was very grateful I came out [in May] and played the golf course and had seen the golf course. I think that helped with some confidence going in."
It must be something.
In two days at Oakmont, Gulbis has already made eight birdies and an eagle, that when she drove the green and made a 45-footer at the par-4 17th Thursday. To put her number of subpar holes in perspective, Angel Cabrera made 13 birdies and didn't have an eagle in four rounds when he won the U.S. Open here in 2007.
First Published July 10, 2010 12:00 am
