Laguna—Sung Hyun Park double her overnight lead to four behind a solid 66 expected from a player of her status and caliber but amateur Yuka Saso kept impressing the world No. 1 with her own superb game in the second round of The Country Club Ladies Invitational here yesterday.
While Park’s bogey-free 32-34 card fashioned out in another hot, windy conditions hardly came as a surprise for the field and the gallery which also grew in numbers, Saso continued to amaze the world’s best with a 68 spiked by late birdies at the front of the TCC layout that continued to receive a beating from the Korean ace.
After a shaky finish of two birdies and two bogeys at the back and settled for an opening 69 Wednesday, Park all figured out the 6461-yard course, particularly its tricky surface, gunning down birdies on Nos. 10 and 15 and sustaining her assault at the front of the Tom Weiskoph layout, netting her four birdies for that 68 and a nine-under 135.
Though half of the 125-player starting field still have to complete their second round play, no one is expected to make a big surge given the playing conditions in the afternoon.
“Putting was the key. I stroked them better than the first round. I made a few adjustments and it worked perfectly,” said Park, whose impeccable iron game set up five birdie putts from close range that went with her long birdie putt from 25 feet on the difficult, tight par-4 No. 4.
That put the 25-year-old two-time Major champion 18 holes away from marking her rise to the world top ranking with a victory although Saso remained hopeful of pulling off a shock final round charge given her equally fierce form and confidence boosted by Park’s inspiring remarks.
“She’s really good. She made some great shots today,” said Park of the reigning Asian Games gold medalist.
“I had to keep up with her (Park). Otherwise, she would’ve pulled away,” said Saso, who chipped in for birdie from 20 yards on No. 11 then nearly matched Park’s fiery frontside finish with a 33, anchored on a pair of back-to-back birdies inside nine feet from Nos. 1 and 7.
She braces for a third straight face-off with the six-time LPGA Tour winner in today’s final round of the 54-hole championship put up by ICTSI serving as the third leg of the LPGA of Taiwan and fifth stop of the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour’s 2018-19 season.
“It’s been wonderful playing with her. I hope to further learn from her,” said Saso.
But while the reigning two-time Philippine Ladies Open champion stayed at second, LPGA campaigner Dottie Ardina hobbled trying to offset Park and Saso’s power, ending up with three bogeys against a lone birdie for a 74. She tumbled from joint fifth to provisional ninth at 146, now 11 strokes off the Korean.
Princess Superal, four down at the start of the day, tried to press her bid with a 35 at the back but lost her momentum, finishing with two bogeys against a birdie at the front for a 72 for a 145 for provisional third with another Korean Ji Hyeon Lee carding a 71 to tie Ardina at fifth.
Tzu Chi Lin of Taiwan bombed out with a 77 after a 71 for a 148 while Pauline del Rosario skied to a 77 for joint seventh at 150 with Thai Nattagate Nimitpongkul, who rallied with a 71, and Hsin Lee of Taiwan, who limped with a 76, in the tournament organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. and backed by Custom Clubmakers, Meralco, K&G Golf Apparel, BDO, Sharp, KZG, PLDT, Empire Golf and Sports and M.Y. Shokai Technology, Inc.