The Stanford product was 2-over on Friday and is 5-over for the tournament.
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SAN MARTIN, Calif. When Sung Hyun Park entered her first U.S. Women’s Open, her goals were modest. Halfway through the tournament, Park has put herself in prime position to contend.
Park capitalized on favorable morning scoring conditions, shooting 6-under 72 Friday to take a two-stroke lead after the second round of the U.S. Women’s Open at CordeValle.
“I made some good par saves early and then just played solid golf”, said Lang, 30, whose only LPGA win came at the 2012 Manulife Financial Classic. “I just tried to enjoy it out there. I don’t even think about the winning, I just enjoy the play”.
The contingent of South Koreans in the field-a South Korean has won the U.S. Open in four of the last five years-is making its presence felt once again. Pak announced during her pre-tournament press conference that this week would mark her last competitive tournament in the United States.
John Daly and Stephen Ames each shot 68 and were tied for sixth at 8 under with Bart Bryant, who shot 70.
Kerr, playing in the same group with Lee, almost matched her stroke for stroke with players standing 3-under through their first 11 holes. She has broken par all three rounds with a 69 and 71 in the first two rounds followed by the 2-under performance on Saturday. She continued to excel on the back nine as she made four birdies on her first seven holes, but stumbling at the 17th, where she recorded her lone bogey of the round.
Even though the 18th is reachable in two shots, Ko opted to take three and it paid off when her approach stopped about 9 feet from the hole.
Her 2-under round on Thursday was only her second career round under par at the U.S. Open, where her highest finish is a tie for eighth in 2010.
World number one Lydia Ko is three shots adrift in fourth place after matching Park’s 66.
Yang, who took second in the U.S. Open previous year, delivered a run of four straight birdies to move into the co-lead at one point, but she bogeyed hole No. 7 – her 15th hole after she started the day on the back nine – to fall a stroke behind.
But things then quickly fell apart. She’s at 4-over. Yang, who opened her round on hole No. 10, is through 12 holes at 3-under for the day.
“It would be a tournament that I would love to win”, she said. “So score, it’s not bad, but not good, too”. She added two more birdies before capping her round with the seventh of the day at the par-5 18th.
Ko came from behind this year to win ANA Inspiration and last year to win the Evian Championship, her two major titles. Three weeks ago, she was second in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in a playoff with Brooke Henderson.
“I knew that it would play a lot tougher than yesterday, because the majority of my round yesterday was played in calm weather”, Ko said. Obviously you’ve got to be able to control it. But a little bit of nerves I think is always good. Ko is World No. 1.
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Yes, Ko’s still so young, playing the U.S. Women’s Open for just the fifth time, but she concedes there has been some frustration trying to claim this prize.
