5 things to expect on Saturday at the U.S. Women's Open: Golf Digest Woman: Golf Digest

5 things to expect on Saturday at the U.S. Women's Open

Saturday, July 9, 2011

COLORADO SPRINGS, Co. -- Greetings from sunny Broadmoor, where the forecast on Saturday is more promising than it was during the first two rounds. Play officially kicked off at 6:55 a.m., and here are five things to look for on this long third day:

1. Split tees and threesomes: We'll be seeing players tee off in threesome from the first and tenth holes all day, and it's a smart way to cram as much play in as little time as possible. One hundred and eleven players would make the cut if the second round ended right now (the horror!), so jam-packing tee times is the only thing we can expect.

2. A 2:30 p.m. start to the third round: The final players to begin their second rounds will tee off at 8:39 a.m. By that measure, they'll likely finish at around 1 p.m., which means third-round action won't begin until at least 2:30.

3. A major change in the leaderboard: Half the field hasn't even started their third round. With the marquee pairing of Cristie Kerr, Karrie Webb and Ai Miyazato teeing off at 7:55 a.m., the leaderboard will look drastically different at the completion of the second round than it currently does.

4. A tough finishing hole: Midway through the second round, the 433-yard 18th hole is still playing as the toughest on the course. It's stroke average is 4.56, followed by the 440-yard 11th (4.46) and the 460-yard 10th (4.45). The green can be to blame: only 42.6 percent of the field hit the 18th in regulation, and yet it demanded an average of 1.82 putts.

5. Suspension of play due to darkness: There's no chance we'll see the completion of the third round today.

--Ashley Mayo