Rose Stepanek says winning the Montana Women's State Am golf tournament would be ";the ultimate."

Not that recent titles at the 4th of July Tournament in Whitefish or the Don Barnett Memorial in Missoula are chopped liver. It's just that the Montana Grizzly and Missoula transplant has worked exceptionally hard lately with a goal in mind.

";Some people tell me, 'Oh even if you don't win it you've had a good summer,'" Stepanek said Friday after her second round in the State Am at The Ranch Club. ";I'm like, 'No, the State Am is the one you want to go out and win.'"

With 18 holes left, Stepanek is in position to realize her dream. She fired a 1-under-par 71 on Friday and holds a one-stroke lead over Jennifer Orchard of Polson, 147-148, heading into the final round Saturday afternoon.

Stepanek, who is halfway through her Grizzly golf career, has taken her game to a new level in part because of her summer job. She spends most of her time at the Missoula Country Club.

";Just a lot of practicing and it really pays off," she said. ";I've never had a summer like this one."

Stepanek put on a clinic Friday, collecting four birdies. Her score was five strokes lower than Thursday, reflecting how much she appreciated her tee time.

";It was real nice to be playing in the morning," she said. ";You don't have to be in the 90-degree heat. It wasn't hard to stay cool.

";Right now I'm putting and hitting the ball off the tee pretty well. When you have those two parts of the game usually you can turn a good score in. But you have to think through every shot here. You can't just go out there and whale on it."

On Saturday Stepanek and her closest challengers will be back in a pressure-cooker with 90-degree heat in the afternoon forecast. To win she'll need to hold off Orchard and Montana golf coach Joanne Steele, a Helena native, who sits in third two strokes off the pace. Steele was a state champ for Capital High as Joanne Roberts.

Orchard, who plays golf and basketball at Rocky Mountain College in Billings, would like nothing more than to win with her father, Tom, serving as caddie.

";That's why I do this tournament because he can be with me," she said. ";At my college tournaments he has to be 30 yards away.

";He's coached me my entire life and knows my game up and down. He's one of my best friends. I wouldn't have anybody else as my caddie. He's just my second brain I guess."

Orchard has been the most consistent golfer in the tournament, firing a 75 on Thursday and 73 on Friday. Critical to her second round was a Houdini-esque escape on the par 4 18th hole. Her second shot landed short of a bunker that protects the green and she managed to make an up-and-down despite having little green to work with.

";It was definitely one of my better rounds, but there were a lot of putts I missed," said the 21-year-old, who won a state golf championship at Polson. ";There seemed to be a little Saran Wrap layer over the cup and the putts just didn't drop."

But that's OK. They'll drop sometime."

Bozeman's Julie Campbell, who led the tournament after the first round, shot a 78 Friday and is four shots off the lead.

In the Women's Senior Am, Julie Andrews Jones of Missoula has moved out to a commanding nine stroke lead. She shot 77 on Friday and has a two-day score of 156.

Sports writer Bill Speltz can be reached at 523-5255 or bill.speltz@lee.net.