Evian-les-bains: Lee So-mi has surged into the 36-hole lead at the Amundi Evian Championship in France, moving closer to her first LPGA major title.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Lee picked up an eagle, six birdies, and two bogeys for a six-under 65 in the second round of the season's fourth major tournament at Evian Resort Golf Club in Evian-les-Bains, France. At 10-under overall, Lee is alone at the top of the leaderboard, one stroke ahead of Grace Kim of Australia.
Lee's 36-hole score of 132 ties her lowest 36-hole total, and the round of 65 also matches her career best. This is only the second time that the South Korean sophomore has led or co-led an LPGA event after two rounds. After opening her day with a birdie, Lee gave back a shot with a bogey on No. 6. She bounced right back with a birdie on the par-5 seventh and then an eagle on the next par-5 hole, No. 9, pushing her to seven-under.
Lee finished with four birdies and one bogey on the back nine to take the early clubhouse lead, and no one caught her on a day when the par-71 course played 6,227 yards with a scoring average of 71.534. "Tee shots are really important on this course, but mine weren't great today," Lee said, though she only missed two fairways out of 13. "But I managed to make up for it with some solid putting."
Lee arrived in France on a roll. She and fellow South Korean Im Jin-hee combined to win the Dow Championship for their maiden LPGA titles on June 29, and Lee had recorded three top-10 finishes in her four previous starts before that breakthrough. But Lee insisted her focus is on this week, not on her recent results. "I'm trying to put the last tournament behind me and focus on the present," she said. "Right now, I'm concentrating on my putter and driver, keeping my rhythm. And we'll see where that takes me."
Choi Hye-jin is the next-best South Korean at seven-under, which put her in a three-way tie for fourth. Choi followed her opening 67 with a 68 on Friday, which featured five birdies against two bogeys. "Overall today, my shot was really good and I had lots of birdie chances," Choi said. "I finished well. I missed some putts and I also made some good putts. So I'm just looking forward for the weekend." Choi has been in the top 10 in each of the first three majors this season.
Among other notable South Koreans, the 2019 Evian champion Ko Jin-young is tied for 26th at three-under after carding a 69 on Friday. Kim Hyo-joo, the 2014 winner, is at one-under with five other golfers, as they're tied for 38th. Hwang You-min, the only Korea LPGA Tour member in the field, shot a 68 in the second round to make the cut by one stroke at one-over. Ryu Hae-ran, the top-ranked South Korean player at No. 5, missed the cut at seven-over, despite rebounding with a 70 after her opening 79.