A Psychotic Day at Sybase

Wow. I don't even know how to start. I mean, we all know match play gets crazy... but this! This is just psychotic!

Juli Inkster and Karrie Webb both got drubbed 7&6 by Amy Yang and Amanda Blumenherst, respectively. It's not the beating that shocks me, as neither seemed to be quite on their games yesterday (despite Webb's 4&3 victory). No, it's the degree of the beating -- only 12 holes played in either match!

Also out: Cristie Kerr, Ai Miyazato, Maria Hjorth, Kristy McPherson (who I picked as a good bet yesterday), Sophie Gustafson, and Sandra Gal. These are all players with Solheim Cup experience. So who's left?

Well, surprisingly, given a wide open course that Angela Stanford (still alive) said pretty much eliminated big scores, Morgan Pressel has taken out Jimin Kang (perhaps not a huge surprise) and Sophie Gustafson, who outdrives her by nearly 20 yards and was hitting 'em close Friday. I think Morgan's putting is what's keeping her alive -- she made some big ones the first two days -- so she's become one of my favorites to make the finals.

Amanda Blumenherst and Michelle Wie are both still in it. as are Jiyai Shin and Yani Tseng. Unlike HoundDog, the Constructivist, and Stephanie Wei, who picked every round's winners, I'm just going to pick my "Final Four" based on Friday's results (cheating a bit, perhaps, but it's my blog!):

• Wright Bracket: Amanda Blumenherst
• Sorenstam Bracket: Morgan Pressel
• Whitworth Bracket: Jiyai Shin
• Berg Bracket: Yani Tseng

Barring any implosions, I think the Sorenstam and Berg brackets pretty much belong to Pressel and Tseng. I'm picking Blumentherst over both Angela Stanford and Catriona Matthew in the Wright bracket; she just seems to be the most "on" right now. And I'm picking Shin over Michelle Wie in the Whitworth bracket simply because I'm not sure Wie's new Dave Pelz putting stroke will hold up when the pressure cranks up Saturday afternoon. I do think Karine Icher could be a wild card in this bracket though; if she beats Wie Saturday morning, she could gain a slight edge over Shin in the quarters.

If I understand the brackets correctly, this will pit Blumenherst against Shin, and Pressel against Tseng. So, given the psycho nature of this tournament so far, I expect a Blumenherst v Pressel final... with Morgan Pressel taking it all.

I know... call me crazy. It's been that kind of week.