SHANGHAI — First-round co-leader Maja Stark of Sweden took the lead on her personal Friday with a 4-under 68 that left her with a one-stroke lead after two rounds on the LPGA Shanghai event.
Stark had a two-round complete of 10-under 134 on the Qizhong Backyard Golf Membership course within the LPGA’s first return to China since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two-time defending champion Danielle Kang of the U.S. and Yu Liu of China, who each shot 67 in wet situations, have been tied for second.
“I believe I performed just a little bit higher than yesterday often because I hit higher photographs,” Stark stated. “Clearly did not make as many putts as I did yesterday, however general my sport felt higher.”
Stark had her first birdie of the day on the third gap. A missed inexperienced on the par-3 seventh led to her solely bogey by way of 36 holes, however she recovered fast with birdies on Nos. 8 and 9.
She closed with two extra birdies on Nos. 13 and 16 to complete with the primary 36-hole lead of her tour profession.
Stark, who admitted to a confidence increase after her first Solheim Cup begin final month in Spain, will play alongside Kang and Yu within the third spherical.
Yu, whose 67 tied her season-low particular person 18-hole rating, had a solo birdie on No. 3 and a bogey on 8 in her first eight holes. But it surely was 5 birdies within the subsequent six holes on Nos. 9 and 11-14 that introduced Liu again up the leaderboard and in competition as soon as once more in her house nation.
“To be sincere, fairly low expectations coming in as a result of I am not good at enjoying within the rain, so I knew the forecast was just about going to rain all all through the spherical, which it did,” stated Yu, who completed in a tie for ninth in 2018 and a tie for third in 2019 within the occasion’s first two editions.
“So I simply really feel like — my aim right now was simply to get by way of the spherical with out making an excessive amount of injury. I really feel like I did a fairly good job.”
Kang’s spherical consisted of seven birdies — together with 4 in her remaining six holes — and two bogeys. Kang is now 25 underneath in her final six rounds on the LPGA Shanghai.
“I’ve hit some good drives. Hold giving myself some good alternatives … capable of hit the second photographs and stuff, so sport has been feeling good for just a little bit,” stated Kang.
Azahara Munoz, who shot 66, is in a three-way tie for fourth with rookie Yuna Nishimura (67) and Thailand’s Pavarisa Yoktuan (68) at 8 underneath.
The occasion is the beginning of a four-tournament Asia swing, with later stops in South Korea, Malaysia and Japan.
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