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1:00pm
Taiwan’s Wei-Ling Hsu has rocketed to a strong lead in the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open after another great day at The Grange, but Perth’s 22-year-old Hannah Green is in contention.
With veteran Karrie Webb preparing to start her second round, Green carded a three-under par 69 to go with her opening 68 to reach seven-under par, tied for second behind Tse with Nelly Korda of the United States.
Hsu, 24, leads by three shots after a second-round 69 to go with her brilliant, opening 65.
Green, the Western Australian had the lead outright when she ran in a string of birdie putts between the ninth hole and the second after starting on the back nine. But Green dropped a shot on the par-four seventh hole and did not make a birdie in her last seven holes on course.
Still, she is well placed for a good finish after a groundbreaking third in 2018 at Kooyonga.
Green, coached by Ritchie Smith and playing out of Mt Lawley, was a fixture in the Western Australian and national programs as an amateur and graduated to the LPGA Tour last year, where she retained her card for 2019.
World No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn has hauled herself back into the Open with a second-round 69 including five birdies that left her at one-over par overall, just inside the cut line.
The veteran Webb made a great start to her second round, immediately taking birdie at the par-five first.
The top 70 players and ties at the end of today’s round will continue into the weekend. In perfect Adelaide weather, the cut-line is likely to be around one-over.
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10:15am
Perth professional Hannah Green has leapt to the top of the leaderboard early on the second day of the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open.
Green, 22, who finished third last year in a breakthrough performance, has backed it up this week.
Having carded an excellent opening 68 in the more difficult afternoon conditions on Thursday, the former national team star and Golf WA product from Mt Lawley Golf Club picked up three birdies on the back nine this morning and another on the first hole to join Taiwan’s Wei-Ling Hsu and England’s Jodi Ewart Shadoff at the top.
Then at the par-four second she birdied again to go to eight-under, outright leader by a shot.
Green spent 2018 on the LPGA Tour based in the United States, and retained her card for this year. Last year’s third place at Kooyonga remains her best finish in a tour event.
Ewart Shadoff and five-time winner Karrie Webb are yet to start their second rounds.
World No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand has made up some ground and given herself a chance of at least making the cut, two-under today through 10 holes and two-over par overall after her opening round 76 on Thursday.
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7:00am
Can Karrie Webb sustain her great run at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open?
That’s a question many people will be asking as the second round of the tournament begins this morning at The Grange in Adelaide.
Stunning conditions greeted the players who stepped on to the tee at 7am for the second round, with no wind to contend with – similar to Thursday’s first round. A warm day with a maximum temperature of 29 degrees is forecast.
The Grange will almost certainly yield many birdies to the players who are fortunate enough to have early tee times today, including the world No. 1, Ariya Jutanugarn, who struggled to a four-over par 76 yesterday but who goes off at 7.44am today.
The 44-year-old Webb, who is tied-third after her first-round 67 yesterday, is due to tee off at 12.34 this afternoon. She showed some of the form that brought her five Women’s Australian Open titles yesterday.
One of the overnight leaders, Taiwan’s Wei-Ling Hsu, is due to play this morning at 8.17am. The other leader, Jodi Ewart Shadoff of England, has an afternoon tee time.