<p>Annika Sorenstam may have gotten a little too much rest.</p><p>Coming off a three-week break, Sorenstam needed birdies on the final two holes to break par in the opening round of the Chick-fil-A Charity Championship.</p><p>She headed to Friday six strokes behind 20-year-old Christina Kim, whose 7-under 65 was her best round of the year.</p><p>"That was probably as good as I've hit it all year," Sorenstam said. "But I couldn't put it all together. Maybe I'm rusty because I haven't played the last three weeks."</p><p>Of course, six shots behind with three rounds to play was hardly an insurmountable margin for Sorenstam, who already has two wins in her first three LPGA tournaments this year.</p><p>And she was chasing a player who missed the cut two weeks ago in Las Vegas, has never finished higher than fourth and had no idea how she would handle a leading role.</p><p>"It's hard to say if I'm going to be able to follow up," Kim conceded. "I'll just try to have the same mind-set I had today _ just attack everything, think of every shot as being the one and only shot, the only chance you get."</p><p>Kim grabbed the lead with some exquisite iron play _ only one of her nine birdie putts was longer than 15 feet.</p><p>"I finally figured out that when you hit the irons close, it's actually easier to make the putts," said Kim, brightly attired in a pink beret and a shirt with pink and green stripes.</p><p>Grace Park, who won the first major of the year at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, was one stroke back. Cristie Kerr, Lorie Kane and Becky Morgan were grouped at 67, while defending Chick-fil-A champion Se Ri Pak lurked at 68 following Thursday's round at Eagles Landing Country Club south of Atlanta.</p><p>But, as usual, all eyes were on Sorenstam, playing for the first time since earning her 50th career win at the Office Depot Championship in Los Angeles.</p><p>She got off to a strong start at the tournament she won in 2001, making birdies at Nos. 6 and 7 despite swirling winds that created plenty of indecision when reaching into the bag.</p><p>Sorenstam's momentum slowed with a bogey at 9, and her score crept above par when she bogeyed 14 and 15 in similar fashion. Both times she knocked her second shot into a bunker _ the only greens she missed all day _ and couldn't get up-and-down.</p><p>"I got a little fired up at myself," Sorenstam said.</p><p>She rallied with birdies on the last two holes for a 71. A 7-iron at 17 snuggled within 4 feet of the hole. At the par-5 18th, Sorenstam knocked her second shot through the green, then played an imaginative chip across the fringe that curled toward the flag for another short birdie putt.</p><p>Sorenstam is the favorite any time she tees it up, a role she doesn't shy away from.</p><p>"I have high expectations," she said. "I don't necessarily think I'm going to win every week, but I do expect to play well every week."</p><p>Sorenstam has won three of four tournaments worldwide in 2004, but her goal of capturing the Grand Slam was denied at the year's opening major.</p><p>Park won the Nabisco for her first major title and looks strong again after a seven-birdie round. Her only bobble came at the par-3 11th, where her tee shot plugged in a bunker and was unplayable, leading to bogey. She bounced back to make a 40-footer for birdie at 15.</p><p>"It was one of my best ball-striking days yet this year," Park said. "Most of the time, I hit it perfectly where I wanted to."</p><p>Pak closed with an eagle at 18, following a booming drive with a 7-iron over the water to 7 feet. The first 17 holes were a bit of a scramble, though.</p><p>"I finished in the red numbers, but I really didn't have a solid round," Pak said. "I really didn't hit a great driver all day. I missed left, missed right. I really missed a lot of fairways today."</p><p>Divots:@ Sorenstam didn't play in this event last year because she was preparing for her historic appearance in the Colonial, where she became the first woman since 1945 to compete on the PGA Tour. ... The Chick-fil-A was expanded from three to four rounds this year. ... 1994 winner Val Skinner withdrew because of a sprain ankle and was replaced by Mardi Lunn. ... Suzann Pettersen made her 2004 debut after elbow surgery in January. She opened with a 72. ... Kerr launched a Web site, www.birdiesforbreastcancer.com, to raise money for breast cancer research. Her mother and aunt have been stricken with the disease,</p>
