30 Apr 2022 | Professional golf |
Green soars to lead on LPGA Tour
by Martin Blake
Hannah Green shot a dazzling, second-round 66 to pinch the lead from her WA compatriot Minjee Lee at the LPGA Tour’s Palos Verdes Championship in California today.
Her lead is three shots at at nine-under par.
World No. 19 Green made seven birdies and two bogeys in her round, leapfrogging Lee with the low round of the day to take top billing into the weekend.
About to head home for a break in Australia, the 25-year-old has hit a good stretch of form, finishing runner-up at the LA Open last weekend.
“I had a lot of close wedge shots today which was nice, because I feel like that hasn’t been the strongest part of my game as of late,” she said. “I started with three birdies and the longest putt I had was five feet, so that’s always nice.
“I made a couple of errors coming in. Kind of got a little bit gusty and tricky with the wind, trying to pick the correct club and shot. Hopefully I can keep making birdies because I think there’s going to be some low scores.”
Green is heading back to Perth on Sunday for a short break, consistent with her policy of not spending too much time on the road. “I’m in a really good headspace at the moment so hopefully that gets me across the line,” she said.
Lee, the world No. 4, remains in a tie for second after recovering from a poor start to shoot a second-round 73 with four bogeys.
It continues to be a good week for Australians overseas, with Harrison Endycott just a shot from the lead in the Korn Ferry Tour’s Huntsville Championship in Alabama.
Endycott, seeking his first win on the Tour, has shot 63-67 to be 10 under par, a shot behind American Erik Barnes.
In Japan, Queenslander Brad Kennedy has a share of the lead through two rounds of the Crowns tournament in Nagoya, after consecutive rounds of 66.
Anthony Quayle remains in contention there, having led through round one with a 61. Quayle dipped to tied-fifth after shooting three-over par partway through a second round interrupted by bad weather, and was two shots from the leading bunch.
New Zealander Steve Alker is tied for the lead at the Champions Tour’s Insperity Invitational in Texas at five under par alongside Ernie Els and Steve Stricker.
Alker has already won on the Tour this year and is ranked second on the points standings.