Women's British Open: Annika Sorenstam, who set out to win all four of the season's major championships, has work to do this weekend to win what would be only her second. After one of her poorest rounds in a major this year she is lying joint fifth in the Women's British Open, four strokes behind the leader Karen Stupples.

In perfect conditions, Sorenstam stuttered to a 71, for a halfway total of 139 and after finishing 13th in the Nabisco event, first in the LPGA Championship and runner-up in the US Women's Open her dream can, at best, be only half fulfilled.

The Swede played the back nine in 38, two over par, and was disturbed by what she thought was a photographer's click at the top of her backswing when driving at the 12th.

It turned out to be, literally, a clanger from the nearby scoreboard when a metal plate fell, but her drive buried itself in heather regardless and that was a shot dropped. Another went when she drove into a bunker at the 14th and, as she said: "A birdie became a bogey." While not in the immediate heat of battle she can at least feel the flames, as can Natalie Gulbis, the 21-year old American, who is five under.

Stupples has a philosophy which she admits may be boring, but which is, in its own way both brave and brilliant. On a fast-running course the Kentish player has used the driver only 10 times out of a possible 28 and as a result completed the 36 holes without a bogey. She said: "In its own way taking an iron off the tee instead of driver can be quite brave because the expectation is that a pro will use a driver.

"It does take away some of the excitement because if you take the driver and then only have a nine iron into the green obviously you have a better chance of a birdie. But you also can make bogey and what I've been trying to do for these two rounds is eliminate bogies. I doubt it'll change, either, it's worked very well the last couple of days."

Stupples had to get up at 5 a.m. for a 7.29 start but, despite setting two alarm clocks she "had a restless night". She added: "I kept waking up going 'Is it time to get up yet, is it time to get up?' and finding there was another couple of hours to go. It was because I was excited by Thursday's round of golf and I couldn't wait to get started again."

If that makes her sound an anxious amateur, she is not. When winning in Tucson this year she led after rounds two and three and in the final round found all she cared about was "getting as far under par as possible."

Laura Davies, after a pedestrian first round, added a 69 to be five under overall and by no means out of it. Always a huge hitter, she was accurate with it yesterday and at the 459-yards-long 10th she hit a drive 305 yards and a nine iron into the green. At the uphill 18th, 412 yards, she needed only a drive and wedge and she topped and tailed the back nine with birdies.

Davies, at 40 a veteran, is sufficiently experienced to recognise real talent and she has been impressed by Stupples for two years now. "She played really solid golf in America in 2003 and when she was in contention in Tucson I played with her and she was excellent. She's the real thing, definitely."