It was another balmy day in Ayrshire, Scotland and Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 4 Lydia Ko took advantage of the unusually calm conditions once again. Ko carded another bogey-free, 7-under 65 on Friday to lead after round two of the Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open. Her 36-hole total of 130 is her lowest since last year’s LOTTE Championship presented by Hoakalei where she went on to win her 16th LPGA Tour title. Although she felt better about yesterday’s performance, Ko was happy to post two low numbers ahead of what’s forecasted to be a wet weekend at Dundonald Links.
“Sometimes when you're giving yourself a lot of looks, I think you can get easily frustrated because not all of them are going to drop,” said Ko who made five birdies and an eagle on day two. “I think a lot of the times when I was putting for birdie, it was in pretty good range and not that tricky, where I think I was putting pressure on myself, then I would hit a mis-shot on the next one. So I tried to make sure that what happened behind me wasn't going to affect what was happening in front.”
This is Ko’s 10th time holding the 36-hole lead or co-lead, and in the nine previous instances, she’s gone on to win four times, most recently at the Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio earlier this year. She came up just short in this event last year, finishing in a tie for second with now LPGA Tour Rookie Atthaya Thitikul, and while she isn’t too worried about what’s to come this weekend, an 18th win on Tour would certainly taste sweet ahead of the year’s final major.
“I was so close last year, but at the same time, Ryann played amazing, and I was definitely a chaser so I knew that I played a great round and then was able to finish there,” said Ko. “I think that's all you can do, right, is just focus on your game and the world's bests are here, so it's not easy to be the one hoisting the trophy at the end of the week. I know that if I play good, then I just got to be pleased with that. And it's not really a game, me versus the rest of the field, but more like me against myself.”
Epson Tour graduate Lilia Vu sits in solo second after backing up her opening 65 with a 5-under 67. The 24-year-old caught fire on the front nine – her back nine today – recording four birdies in her last eight holes, including two straight on Nos. 6 and 7. Vu is familiar with what’s needed to play well on links-style courses – her home course, Shady Canyon Golf Club in Irvine, Calif., doesn’t have many trees – and says that she’s put a premium on finding the fairway this week, something that’s been key to her 36-hole success.
“I just put myself in a good position off the tee. I think that's really important,” said Vu who hit eight of 14 fairways on Friday. “You really make your birdies from hitting the fairways here and each hole is different from the other hole. There's not a lot of similar holes so you have to be really accurate off the tee. And I was able to do that on my back nine more so than my front nine to give myself more chances.”
Bank of Hope LPGA Match Play presented by MGM Rewards winner Eun-Hee Ji rounds out the top three at -11 after tying the week’s low round with an 8-under 64. The 36-year-old Korean made nine birdies and one bogey on the day, carding four in a row from Nos. 3-6. It’s the first time she’s shot 65 or better since last year’s Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, and the 64 ties her second-lowest round score on the LPGA Tour.
“I got a bogey early in the round, but honestly, I could have saved par there, but just missed the putt,” said Ji of her lone blemish of the day. “My caddie was telling me, ‘Let’s bounce back’ and cheered me on so I played with more confidence and got a lot of birdies after that hole and finished with a good result.”
Thailand’s Wichanee Meechai and LPGA Tour winner Celine Boutier are tied for fourth at -10. Four players, including 18-hole leader Hye-Jin Choi, are in a tie for sixth at -9. Six players are in a logjam at T10, most notably 2018 AIG Women’s Open champion Georgia Hall and 2022 Epson Tour winner Andrea Lee. A total of 75 players made the cut at -1, including Scots Gemma Dryburgh and Kylie Henry.
)
)
)
)
