China’s Liu Yan made a shocking albatross and a closing birdie to grab a one-stroke lead when darkness halted Friday’s second spherical of the LPGA Chevron Championship, whereas Australia’s Minjee Lee is well-placed to make a weekend cost.
Lee sits three photographs behind Yan at -4 on the midway mark of the match, main the Australian contingent with Grace Kim (E), main debutant Cassie Porter, Gabriela Ruffels and Steph Kyriacou (+1) additionally making the reduce.
However the nation’s top-ranked participant had a day to neglect with world No.5 Hannah Inexperienced capturing a +5 second spherical to tumble down the leaderboard as fellow Australia Hira Naveed additionally missed the reduce.
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Lee had an early begin as she needed to full the final gap of her first spherical, which she bogeyed, earlier than firing a -3 second spherical 69.
“I simply need to play with freedom, so for me, I simply need to see my photographs actually clearly,” Lee stated.
“If it stays this smooth, I feel I may very well be fairly aggressive on the holes the place I can hit shorter golf equipment. Simply attempt to benefit from these alternatives.
“They’re most likely going to attempt to make it a little bit bit tougher come the weekend as a result of it’s a main championship. Simply attempt to play sensible, be affected person when I’ve to be.”
The 2-time main champion solely missed one inexperienced in regulation in her opening spherical, however scrambled and putted fantastically within the second to profit from her scoring alternatives.
“It was fairly very best situations to attain,” Lee shared.
“There are some harder… like 9 is a little bit longer. Ten, clearly the drive is demanding. Few holes coming in which can be fairly demanding.
“Simply attempt to have a strong rating by means of these. Completed at 3-under so fairly comfortable the place I’m at.”
Yan sank a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-five 18th gap to complete off a stage par 72 and seize the lead on seven-under 137 for 36 holes at Carlton Woods within the yr’s first main ladies’s match.
“I’m glad I made that final birdie,” she stated. “Right now I had so many putts so shut. Final gap was my first birdie right this moment so I’m very comfortable.” Liu’s most spectacular shot, nevertheless, got here on the par-five eighth when she holed out her second shot from 170 yards with a seven-iron.
“There was serving to wind and I hit a extremely strong driver on the golf green,” Liu stated. “I took my seven-iron and yeah, it was fairly loopy.” It was the primary albatross in a ladies’s main since American Morgan Pressel made one on the 2015 Ladies’s British Open.
Liu hopes to make her first LPGA triumph a significant victory however a bunch of rivals had been sizzling on her heels.
American Lindy Duncan birdied her final three holes to shoot 66 and share second on 138 with compatriot Sarah Schmelzel, Japan’s Mao Saigo and South Korean Kim Hyo-joo.
South Koreans Choi Hye-jin and Ryu Hae-ran, American Angel Yin and Belgium’s Manon De Roey had been on 139.
A 90-minute morning fog delay led to the spherical being halted by darkness with 9 gamers but to complete. They are going to full the second spherical on Saturday morning earlier than the reduce is made and the third spherical performed.
Amongst these nonetheless on the course, China’s Zhang Weiwei was on five-under with three holes remaining.
Liu, who started enjoying golf together with her mom 15 years in the past, has a greatest LPGA profession end of third on the 2023 ShopRite Basic.
She had opened with a 65 to share the 18-hole lead, however stumbled with bogeys on the first and sixth holes solely to reply with the albatross stunner.
After a bogey on the ninth, Liu’s lead was down to at least one stroke. She parred the subsequent six holes earlier than making bogey at 16, lacking an eight-foot par putt to fall again, solely to surge into the lead alone once more together with her closing birdie.
“I feel undoubtedly I’ll really feel a little bit bit (of stress) as a result of it is a main,” Liu stated. “I do know the course going to be tougher so I feel I simply keep affected person, calm, as a result of I’m a really emotional individual.”