Three share lead at U.S. Women's Open

HUTCHINSON, KANSAS - An Australian again leads the U.S. Women&#39;s Open. Only it&#39;s not the one who always seems to be there. <br> <br> Not even close. <br> <br> On a day when two-time defending champion Karrie Webb shot a 79 for her worst round on the tour in six years, fellow Aussie Shani Waugh claimed a share of the lead Thursday at the 57th Open. <br> <br> Waugh&#39;s 3-under-par 67 on a Prairie Dunes course that got tougher as the opening round wore on left her tied with Americans Laura Diaz and Juli Inkster, the 1999 Open champion and only U.S.-born golfer to win this event in the last seven years. <br> <br> ``I&#39;ve been playing well coming into this tournament the last two weeks, so it&#39;s a nice surprise,&#39;&#39; said Waugh, who has yet to win in seven years on the LPGA Tour. ``But I&#39;m not shocked. Put it that way.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Shocked described Webb&#39;s feeling after her miserable round. Seeking to become the first woman to win the Open three straight years, Webb sprayed shots all over the blustery course. <br> <br> The 9-over score was her worst on the tour since 1996 and left her groping for an explanation. <br> <br> ``I thought I had as good a chance to win this year as I have in the past two,&#39;&#39; Webb said. ``Obviously things changed. I don&#39;t know what it was. If I did, I wouldn&#39;t have hit so many off the planet today.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Webb played in the afternoon, when a hot sun baked the course and conditions were harshest. None of the 75 players who teed off in the afternoon broke par, leaving only six players in the 60s. <br> <br> Kim Saiki had a bogey-free 68, while Lorie Kane of Canada and Catriona Matthew of Scotland were at 69. <br> <br> Waugh found the relatively tame morning conditions to her liking. Starting on the back nine, she was even at the turn and then made four birdies in seven holes. <br> <br> But with a chance for sole possession of the lead, Waugh three-putted from 60 feet on her final hole, her 5-foot putt for par bouncing off the lip. <br> <br> ``I was putting pretty aggressively,&#39;&#39; Waugh said. ``That was probably my weakest attempt to make a putt. I knew it was going to break right to left. I didn&#39;t hit it firm enough. A bit of nerves, I guess.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> A sizzling start carried Inkster into the lead. She was 4 under after just six holes and was never worse than 3 under after that. <br> <br> ``It seems like in an Open, you&#39;re going to have one day where you&#39;re going have a mediocre round,&#39;&#39; Inkster said. ``If you&#39;re off to a good start and get yourself in position, that really helps.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Inkster, too, had a chance to finish 4 under before bogeying her final hole. With her ball in a small depression in the first cut of rough on No. 18, Inkster&#39;s sand wedge came out a little thick and landed short of the green. <br> <br> ``I always get that bogey the last hole,&#39;&#39; Inkster said. ``But I made a lot of good birdies and par saves, so I&#39;ve got to take that with a grain of salt.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Diaz failed to make the cut in her first two appearances in the Open, but was all smiles Thursday. <br> <br> She hit a 4-iron to 5 feet on No. 13 to get to 1 under, then had to work hard for a birdie on the next hole. Her wedge hit the base of the pin and bounced back 25 feet, but she holed the putt. <br> <br> Diaz hit a 9-iron within 3 feet on the 500-yard 17th for another birdie that gave the United States another leader on Independence Day. Diaz played the part, wearing a red, white and blue ribbon in her hair and painting her fingernails blue with stars. <br> <br> ``I don&#39;t think there is anything easy about this golf course,&#39;&#39; Diaz said. ``I hit it closer on the back nine more times, so I was able to make a few more birdies than I did on the front. <br> <br> ``But I didn&#39;t find either nines easy. I think it is a very challenging golf course, as the U.S. Open should be.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> It was challenging for most of the golfers. Only 15 shot par or better and 15 others failed to break 80, including two-time champion Patty Sheehan and Nancy Lopez, most likely playing in her final Open. Both finished at 81. <br> <br> Annika Sorenstam, a winner six times in 12 starts this year, skidded to a 70 after going 3 under through seven holes. She needed 18 putts on her last eight holes, knocking some 8 feet past the cup and leaving others 4 feet short - a rare occurrence for the tour&#39;s dominant player. <br> <br> ``I kind of lost a feel there for a bit and it cost me a few shots,&#39;&#39; the Swedish star said. ``That&#39;s something I&#39;m going to work on and try to improve.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Another one of the favorites, 1998 champion Se Ri Pak, bogeyed three of her first seven holes and closed with two straight bogeys for a 74. <br> <br> Webb planned to join Pak on the practice range, looking to regroup for what shaped up as a Friday round for survival. <br> <br> ``Hopefully,&#39;&#39; Webb said, ``I can work a few things out and shoot a few under and at least play on the weekend.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Not words usually spoken by a champion.