Women’s Australian Open: Rookies Rule the Leaderboard!
With defending champion Karrie Webb struggling through the 2nd round at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club to make the 5-over cut, it’s looking more and more like the rookies are going to rule the weekend leaderboard at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open.
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Lydia Ko, Airya Jutanugarn and Ha-Na Jang will go into the weekend sharing the lead at 6-under par, with Charley Hull trailing by one shot and, at 5-under, holding solo 4th on the board.
The Royal Melbourne track demanded championship play and the youngsters all proved up to the task. Still, with early-morning fog delays and rounds that averaged 76.4, even the youngsters felt the bite of one of the world’s most demanding and exacting golf courses as they fought their way to the top.
With two consecutive 3-under rounds of 70, Lydia Ko, the top pick to win by the Ladies Dream Golf fantasy players, is playing the controlled, consistent, largely error-free, down-the-middle game that’s rocketed her to the top of the Rolex Rankings. However, Ko has some company at Royal Melbourne.
. . . simple thinking, only fairway and then green and two putt . . . -Ha-Na Jang
Ha-Na Jang, a Tour rookie with multiple wins on the KLPGA, carded the low round of the day on Friday with a 69. Jang’s wielding her flat stick with laster-like accuracy, continuing to set the pace she established at the
Coates Golf Championship
and again applying her uncomplicated game strategy while she keeps her eye on the top of the leaderboard.
Charley Hull. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
Ariya Jutanugarn and Charley Hull have made very clear that they’re ready to take over from Lexi Thompson and Brittany Lincicome as the Tour’s long hitters. They’re both slamming their drives 280+ yards, besting Thompson’s and Lincicome’s averages by 20 yards.
Jutanugarn had a rough 2-bogey start to her 2nd round but then took a deep breath, focused, and got back to work. That effort paid off. With a pair of birdies and an eagle Jutanugarn pulled even with Ko and Jang and go into the weekend with a share of the lead.
I’ve always been quite old school. – Charley Hull
Charley Hull and Lydia Ko have been paired for both rounds and while we’re likely to see this pairing many Sundays to come, Hull and Ko are a study in contrasts. Hull plays a game of strength and aggression. Ko plays a safely controlled game. Hull wields her irons like weapons and attacks the pin. Ko sets the ball onto the green with delicate finesse. Both approaches seem to produce champions!
The Aussies
Katherine Kirk
With Karrie Webb making the cut on the number — as did comeback queen Rachel Hetherington — hopes faded for a home-town winner of the Women’s Australian Open. Of the Australians who’ll play the weekend, Queenslander Katherine Kirk is best placed to strike, tied for eighth at 1-under despite missing several makeable chances with the blade late in her round. Perth’s Minjee Lee made a solid move, firing a two-under-par 71 to slide into the top 20 in just her third tournament as an LPGA professional. Su Oh, the 18-year-old Aussie phenom who won the RACV Ladies Masters a week ago in only her second professional start, missed the cut this week.
The Americans
Jessica Korda
Of the Americans in the Women’s Australian Open field, only Jessica Korda and Christina Kim are positioned to make a run at the top of the board this weekend. Korda, the Tour’s leader in greens in regulation, hit 15 of 18 greens on Friday and is always a threat at Royal Melbourne, where she won this event in 2012. She trailed by two shots in 2012 heading into the weekend when she won this event in a six-way playoff. This year she trails by three shots and has only a slightly greater distance to travel. Kim, going into the weekend trailing the lead by five shots, will need to sharpen up her putting and pick up a fistful of birdies to close the gap.